More dinosaur colour news

Using the same technique of identifying melanosomes with microscopy as in the Sinosauropteryx story, researchers from China and USA have identified the colour patterns of the tiny, feathered dinosaur Anchiornis huxleyi. The body was gray, the limbs and tail had white patches and the head had reddish features - making it rather similar to some modern birds. Again, the distinct colourations suggest a function for the first feathers in signalling.



Image by Matt Martyniuk, made available at Wikimedia Commons.