In a recent issue of Science magazine, researchers Li et al., were able to determine the plumage color of an extinct non-avian theropod dinosaur. This was possible due to the presence of melanin-containing melanosomes, which were preserved in the fossilized feathers. The fossilized remains were from a Jurassic troodontid, Anchiornis huxleyi, an ancestor of Archaeopteryx and modern birds. The presence of colored feather patterns in a bird prior to the evolution of true flight, suggests that feather coloration may have evolved for reproductive or communication purposes.
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While it was often hypothesized in the 20th century that dinosaurs were the evolutionary ancestors of birds, it wasn't until the late 1980s that we found the first firm evidence of a dinosaur with feathers - specifically, quill knobs (which are strongly correlated with large and well-developed se
Beipaiosaurus was among the strangest of dinosaurs.
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