The classic image ofTyrannosaurus rex is a reptilian monster. A green or brown, scale-covered brute that looks like an overgrown version of a crocodile or lizard. But in recent years, a new image has been making its way into books, television documentaries and online dinosaur palaeoart: a feather-covered T. rex.
Is this true?
First, there is not yet any direct fossil evidence of feathers on aT. rex. Nobody has found aT. rexskeleton cloaked in feathers, or any feathers sticking out of aT. rexarm bone. But this isn’t surprising. Feathers,muscle, skin,internal organsand other soft structures don’t often preserveas fossils.Most fossils are of hard objects like bones, teeth and shells,whichcan be more easily turned to rock and survive the ravages of geological time.
With that said, we have good reason to believeT. rexdid have some feathers. InChina, in theEarly Cretaceous, volcanic eruptions buried entire ecosystems similar to how the city of Pompeii was buried by Mount Vesuvius. The dinosaurs were killed and interred quickly, and their soft tissues were locked in place.
Many of these dinosaur skeletons are covered in feathers, including two tyrannosaurs – close cousins ofT. rex–calledYutyrannusandDilong. This means that the ancestors ofT. rexhad feathers, which meansT. rexprobably did too.
As an aside, a recent study made headlines by dividingT. rexinto three separate species, based on differences in the proportions of the thigh bone. It’s a provocative study, but to me, this variation is minor, and not yet conclusive enough to show whether there was more than one type ofT. rex.
Read more:
- Were the dinosaurs cold-blooded?
- When did dinosaurs become birds?
- How do we know what dinosaurs looked like?
- What makes a dinosaur a dinosaur?
Asked by: Eddie Smith, via email
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