Detecting dandruff in dinosaur fossils 125 million years

The world's oldest dandruff sample is found in China's fossil dinosaur microraptor.

Scientists found dandruff between the feathers of 4 wings, Independent on 27/5 reported. This suggests that microraptor also removes skin in the form of small pieces of birds and modern mammals instead of stripping off dead skin or large patches.

Microraptor fossils were found in Liaoning Province, China, in 2005. (Photo: Spencer Platt).

"As far as I know, this is the only case of dandruff fossil detection so far. This is also the first case in dinosaurs and is the oldest dandruff fossil , " said Professor Mike Benton, one of the authors of study, share.

The expert team used electron microscopy to study feathers from Chinese fossils of dinosaur microraptor, feathered dinosaurs beipiaosaurus and sinornithosaurus, primitive bird confuciusornis."At first, we were interested in studying feathers. When we looked at the hairs, we continued to find small white spots. They were everywhere, between all hairs," said Dr. Maria McNamara at Cork University said.

"We wonder if this is a biological trait like the debris of the shell or the skin of the reptile, but they are not the same as anything. The only possibility is the preserved skin fragments. "They have a similar structure to the outer part of the skin in modern birds, which we call dandruff," McNamara added.

Structural differences in skin fragments indicate that this dinosaur does not produce high body temperature like modern birds. This indicates they may not fly for a long time.