Rainbow dinosaurs have colorful fur

Characteristics in China show that it has beautiful, colorful feathers like hummingbirds.

A farmer finds fossils of a bird-like dinosaur, with colorful in Hebei Province, China. It lives in the Jurassic period, about 161 million years ago, according to IFL Science. A detailed description of this creature is published by a group of international scientists in Nature Communications on January 15.

Caihong juji's colorful fur.(Photo: Reuters).

The dinosaur is about the size of a duck and has a bony crest on its head. Scientists named this dinosaur Caihong juji , meaning "rainbow with big crest" in Mandarin (Mandarin).

"When you look at fossils, you often see only bone-like hardware. But sometimes soft parts like feathers are preserved and you get a glimpse of the past. "Long Caihong juji is surprisingly well preserved. We are happy to be able to see the details of animal fur , " said Chad Eliason, co-author of the study at the Field Museum, USA.

When observing dinosaur fossils under a microscope, the team saw parts of the cell containing pigment called melanosomes . Although the pigment is almost gone, scientists can rely on the shape of melanosomes to find the color of the animal's fur.

Caihong Juji fossilized skull.(Photo: Dongyu Hu).

The results showed that Caihong juji has many modern breed characteristics . The top coat has a blend of green, blue and orange. In addition, Caihong juji's coat is asymmetrical, a feature that helps modern birds navigate while flying. However, Caihong juji is unable to fly. Its colorful coat is more likely to play a role in keeping warm and attracting partners.

Caihong juji skull is like a velociraptor dinosaur while the body part resembles a bird. Julia Clarke, co-author of research at the University of Texas in Austin (USA), said this feature is quite unusual.