ArticleCurrent biology : CB2016
3D Camouflage in an Ornithischian Dinosaur.
Article in Current biology : CB, 2016. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 24 papers.
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24 citing papers in PubMed, 106 citations in OpenAlex.
- Article
- From melanogenesis to melanin technologies.Communications chemistry · 2025Review
- Epidermal scale growth, allometry and function in non-avian dinosaurs and extant reptiles.Journal of anatomy · 2025Article
- Cellular structure of dinosaur scales reveals retention of reptile-type skin during the evolutionary transition to feathers.Nature communications · 2024Article
- Taphonomic experiments reveal authentic molecular signals for fossil melanins and verify preservation of phaeomelanin in fossils.Nature communications · 2023Article
- Correction statement for Recent advances in amniote palaeocolour reconstruction and a framework for future research (volume 95, issue 1, pp. 22-50).Biological reviews of the Cambridge Philosophical Society · 2023Article
- The exquisitely preserved integument of Psittacosaurus and the scaly skin of ceratopsian dinosaurs.Communications biology · 2022Review
- Oldest preserved umbilical scar reveals dinosaurs had 'belly buttons'.BMC biology · 2022Article
- Environmental Factors Affecting Feather Taphonomy.Biology · 2022Article
- Laser-stimulated fluorescence reveals unseen details in fossils from the Upper Jurassic Solnhofen Limestones.Royal Society open science · 2021Article
- Archaeopteryx feather sheaths reveal sequential center-out flight-related molting strategy.Communications biology · 2020Article
- Mimicry in Cretaceous Bugs.iScience · 2020Article
- Hierarchical biota-level and taxonomic controls on the chemistry of fossil melanosomes revealed using synchrotron X-ray fluorescence.Scientific reports · 2020Article
- Countershading enhances camouflage by reducing prey contrast.Proceedings. Biological sciences · 2020Article
- Recent advances in amniote palaeocolour reconstruction and a framework for future research.Biological reviews of the Cambridge Philosophical Society · 2020Article
- Taphonomic experiments resolve controls on the preservation of melanosomes and keratinous tissues in feathers.Palaeontology · 2020Article
- Chemical characterization of pterosaur melanin challenges color inferences in extinct animals.Scientific reports · 2019Article
- Tissue-specific geometry and chemistry of modern and fossilized melanosomes reveal internal anatomy of extinct vertebrates.Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America · 2019Article
- Body coloration and mechanisms of colour production in Archelosauria: the case of deirocheline turtles.Royal Society open science · 2019Article
- Characterization of melanosomes involved in the production of non-iridescent structural feather colours and their detection in the fossil record.Journal of the Royal Society, Interface · 2019Article
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Authors and funding
8 authors at 4 institutions in 4 countries.
Funding
Abstract
Countershading was one of the first proposed mechanisms of camouflage [1, 2]. A dark dorsum and light ventrum counteract the gradient created by illumination from above, obliterating cues to 3D shape [3-6]. Because the optimal countershading varies strongly with light environment [7-9], pigmentation patterns give clues to an animal's habitat. Indeed, comparative evidence from ungulates [9] shows that interspecific variation in countershading matches predictions: in open habitats, where direct overhead sunshine dominates, a sharp dark-light color transition high up the body is evident; in closed habitats (e.g., under forest canopy), diffuse illumination dominates and a smoother dorsoventral gradation is found. We can apply this approach to extinct animals in which the preservation of fossil melanin allows reconstruction of coloration [10-15]. Here we present a study of an exceptionally well-preserved specimen of Psittacosaurus sp. from the Chinese Jehol biota [16, 17]. This Psittacosaurus was countershaded [16] with a light underbelly and tail, whereas the chest was more pigmented. Other patterns resemble disruptive camouflage, whereas the chin and jugal bosses on the face appear dark. We projected the color patterns onto an anatomically accurate life-size model in order to assess their function experimentally. The patterns are compared to the predicted optimal countershading from the measured radiance patterns generated on an identical uniform gray model in direct versus diffuse illumination. These studies suggest that Psittacosaurus sp. inhabited a closed habitat such as a forest with a relatively dense canopy. VIDEO ABSTRACT.
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