Prehistoric Dandruff Found On Tiny Fossilized Dinosaur

Researchers have discovered prehistoric dandruff in the fossil of a microraptor, a type of tiny dinosaur that was about the size of a crow and feasted on meat. This is officially the oldest instance of skin flakes discovered thus far, bits joined by similar preserved dandruff found on the fossilized remains of a primitive bird and two other feathered dinosaurs.

Modern reptiles shed their skin as one large piece, such as when a snake leaves behind a single tube of skin. No one has known for sure, until now, whether dinosaurs similarly shed in large pieces or experience smaller, flaky shedding of skin. That makes this discovery an important one: it is the first discovery of fossilize dandruff.

Rather than shedding like modern reptiles, the fossil reveals flaky skin shedding akin to that of modern birds. Using an electron microscope, the team found that the dandruff contains keratin and corneocytes. Feathered dinosaurs during that time period (about 125 million years ago) were adapted to the feathered structure.

However, there is a notable difference. Unlike modern birds, these ancient feathered dinosaurs didn't feature a type of fat that helps birds eliminate heat generated by flying. Researchers indicate this could be due to a lack of heat levels modern birds are exposed to, such as due to an inability to fly such distances.

SOURCE: The Guardian

Image By David W. E. Hone, Helmut Tischlinger, Xing Xu, Fucheng Zhang – Hone DWE, Tischlinger H, Xu X, Zhang F (2010) The Extent of the Preserved Feathers on the Four-Winged Dinosaur Microraptor gui under Ultraviolet Light. PLoS ONE 5(2): e9223. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0009223, CC BY 2.5, Link