Does the average modern long-tailed pterosaur (Rhamphorhynchoid or “basal”) have above average intelligence? It’s too early to say much, but there are indirect signs that point to the ropen having higher intelligence than any reptile.
The Lakewood Ropen (observed at close range on June 19, 2012) did not fly away when the nearby dog was barking wildly at it. The ropen did fly away when the lady walked up and started talking loudly to the dog (just before the flying creature was noticed by her). I think that it’s a sign of intelligence to know that a barking dog is harmless but a human may be dangerous, when one is perched on a phone line.
Marfa Lights
Those “dancing devils” (as some local residents of southwest Texas call them) act intelligently. Why does one light seem to divide into two, then they separate for awhile before returning? It seems to show some intelligent direction.
Most likely a group of large bioluminescent nocturnal flying predators are hunting together, possibly hunting the Big Brown Bat. It takes a smart species of predator to hunt as a group like that.
Ropen of Umboi Island
One local legend is that the ropen sometimes changes into a man and later back into a flying creature. If I recall correctly, one native even claims to be a descendant of a ropen. This only indirectly credits the creature with intelligence, of course, but it fits the overall picture.
Linda Armstrong was driving to Marfa, Texas, on the night of October 8, 2008, when she was startled to see a bright white light in her rear-view mirror; it seemed to be gaining on her car. Two aspects of her encounter each discredit the Fata Morgana mirage explanation.
Not all books for children are equal in value, for an adult to read to a pre-school child.