In 2017, the British biologist Colin Palmer used CT scans of ornithocheirid pterosaur wing-bones, including the wing phalanx that had been assigned to C. cuvieri, to reconstruct the wing spar (the main structural element) of pterosaur wing-membranes. He used the bending strength of the wing spar of a structural model with a wing span based on the CT scans to infer the likely tension of the wing membrane needed to suppress aeroelastic flutter (instability caused by air resistance) at high flight speeds, and minimising ballooning, thus preventing structural failure of the membrane under flight loads. The three estimates were of similar magnitude, implying the membrane would have high-modulus material (Young's modulus, tensile elasticity), which supports the idea that the actinofibril layer (structural fibres inside the wings of pterosaurs) on the outside of the membrane which reinforced pterosaur wings were of keratinous material (the same material in human hair and nails), and differed greatly from the membranes of bats.
