In Depth
Caihong is a genus of anchiornithid dinosaur that lived in Asia during the late Jurassic. Caihong was a very small dinosaur, roughly about forty centimetres long in life. Caihong is noted for having feathers covering the entire body except for the snout and claws. Study of melanosome associated with Caihong show that in life Caihong probably had black iridescent feathers over most of its body, while the feathers of the head, neck, chest and base of the tail were brightly coloured. This patterning is suggested by the observation that these feathers had platelet like melanosomes denoting colours like those seen in trumpeter birds. This is because the platelets are solid with no air bubbles, like the platelet melanosomes of these birds. At the time of its description, this also means that Caihong is the earliest known appearance of platelet like melanosomes in the fossil record.
Further Reading
- A bony-crested Jurassic dinosaur with evidence of iridescent plumage highlights complexity in early paravian evolution. - Nature Communications 9(217). - D.-Y. Hu, J. A. Clarke, C. M. Eliason, R. Qiu, Q.-G. Li, M. D. Shawkey, C.-L. Zhao, L. D’Alba, J. K. Jiang & X. Xu - 2018.
