Pterodactyl Defense: Sicilian, Anhanguera
1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 g6 3. d4 Bg7 4. Nc3 Qa5 5. Be3
The Pterodactyl Defense: Sicilian, Anhanguera is a chess opening classified as ECO B27, reached after 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 g6 3. d4 Bg7 4. Nc3 Qa5 5. Be3. It is a line of the Pterodactyl Defense. Black is to move.
In 12.6 million rated Lichess games (blitz and slower), this position was reached 5 times by this move order. White won 60%, 0% were drawn and Black won 40%. The most popular continuation is 5… Nc6 (60% of games).
Engine evaluation: +0.74 (Stockfish, depth 32; best line 5… d6 6. Qd2 cxd4 7. Nxd4 Nc6 8. O-O-O)
- ECO
- B27
- Moves
- 9 plies
- FEN
rnb1k1nr/pp1pppbp/6p1/q1p5/3PP3/2N1BN2/PPP2PPP/R2QKB1R b KQkq - 4 5- PGN
1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 g6 3. d4 Bg7 4. Nc3 Qa5 5. Be3
Analyse with Stockfish · Board image (SVG) · Open on Lichess
Results by rating
| Average rating | Games | White / draw / Black |
|---|---|---|
| 1500-1999 | 1 | |
| 2000+ | 4 | |
| All | 5 |
Most played moves
| Move | Games | White / draw / Black |
|---|---|---|
| 5… Nc6 | 3 (60%) | |
| 5… Nf6 | 2 (40%) |
Master games
7 over-the-board games are classified under this line (White 43%, draw 14%, Black 43%). The strongest:
- WGM Barbara Jaracz (2246) – IM Krystian Kuzmicz (2469) 0-1 · European Rapid 2014 · 2014-12-20
- WFM Kolagatla Alana Meenakshi (2200) – IM Attila Jakab (2252) 1-0 · Vezerkepzo IM Aug/Sep · 2024-08-31
- Valo Vainio (2162) – FM Hentunen, A. (2228) 1-0 · TCh-FIN 2022-23 · 2022-10-16
- Nevenko Cvijic (2145) – Robert Tonkovic (2152) 0-1 · Prva liga RS seniori 2012 · 2012-08-13
- FM Cristian-Clement Daianu (2199) – Andrei-Catalin Mintau (2084) 1-0 · FISCA Open 2019 · 2019-06-27
Search all games of the Pterodactyl Defense: Sicilian, Anhanguera and its sub-variations
Highest-rated Lichess games
- Euphoria1230 (2578) – lilama (2399) 0-1 · 2026-09-05 · 180 + 2s
- Maupert (2190) – behrozmt (2312) 1-0 · 2026-09-03 · 300 + 0s
- RicardoSchutt (2278) – parvadomus (2134) 1-0 · 2026-09-06 · 180 + 2s
Comes from
Modern Defense: Pterodactyl Variation 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 g6 3. d4 Bg7 4. Nc3 Qa5
More Pterodactyl Defense lines (all)
- Pterodactyl Defense: Central, Benoni Beefeater Pterodactyl A40
- Pterodactyl Defense: Central, Benoni Pterodactyl A40
- Pterodactyl Defense: Fianchetto, Queen Benoni Pterodactyl A40
- Pterodactyl Defense: Fianchetto, Queen Pteranodon A40
- Pterodactyl Defense: Fianchetto, Queen Pterodactyl A40
- Pterodactyl Defense: Queen Pterodactyl, Quiet Line A40
- Pterodactyl Defense A42
- Pterodactyl Defense: Central, Bogolubovia A42
- Pterodactyl Defense: Austrian, Austriadactylus Western B06
- Pterodactyl Defense: Austrian, Grand Prix Pterodactyl B06
- Pterodactyl Defense: Austrian, Pteranodon B06
- Pterodactyl Defense: Central, Anhanguera B06
Opening names and moves from the Lichess openings dataset; statistics from the Lichess open database, 2026-09 (CC0), sample of 12.6 million games, bots excluded; evaluations from Lichess cloud analysis (all CC0). Master games from The Week in Chess #920–#1664 by Mark Crowther, used with permission.