November 20, 2024

Colorful feathers on dinosaurs’ head

On the Fitz

Colorful feathers on dinosaurs’ head

By: Zelin Fang

In April 2022, scientists published a paper in Nature. They found pterosaurs might have been quite flashy because they had colorful feathers on their heads.

One of the authors, Aude Cincotta, says that they found Pterosaurs’ head had two kinds of feathers on its head, they knew because they analyzed the partial fossil skull of a 113-million-year-old pterosaur.

The team also said that the feathers weren’t just for warmth, they can be used to send signals, such as to attract a mate, because the shapes of the fossil’s melanosomes suggest this creature might have been quite flamboyant.

Back To Top