The exquisitely preserved integument of Psittacosaurus and the scaly skin of ceratopsian dinosaurs

© 2022. The Author(s)..

The Frankfurt specimen of the early-branching ceratopsian dinosaur Psittacosaurus is remarkable for the exquisite preservation of squamous (scaly) skin and other soft tissues that cover almost its entire body. New observations under Laser-Stimulated Fluorescence (LSF) reveal the complexity of the squamous skin of Psittacosaurus, including several unique features and details of newly detected and previously-described integumentary structures. Variations in the scaly skin are found to be strongly regionalized in Psittacosaurus. For example, feature scales consist of truncated cone-shaped scales on the shoulder, but form a longitudinal row of quadrangular scales on the tail. Re-examined through LSF, the cloaca of Psittacosaurus has a longitudinal opening, or vent; a condition that it shares only with crocodylians. This implies that the cloaca may have had crocodylian-like internal anatomy, including a single, ventrally-positioned copulatory organ. Combined with these new integumentary data, a comprehensive review of integument in ceratopsian dinosaurs reveals that scalation was generally conservative in ceratopsians and typically consisted of large subcircular-to-polygonal feature scales surrounded by a network of smaller non-overlapping polygonal basement scales. This study highlights the importance of combining exceptional specimens with modern imaging techniques, which are helping to redefine the perceived complexity of squamation in ceratopsians and other dinosaurs.

Medienart:

E-Artikel

Erscheinungsjahr:

2022

Erschienen:

2022

Enthalten in:

Zur Gesamtaufnahme - volume:5

Enthalten in:

Communications biology - 5(2022), 1 vom: 12. Aug., Seite 809

Sprache:

Englisch

Beteiligte Personen:

Bell, Phil R [VerfasserIn]
Hendrickx, Christophe [VerfasserIn]
Pittman, Michael [VerfasserIn]
Kaye, Thomas G [VerfasserIn]
Mayr, Gerald [VerfasserIn]

Links:

Volltext

Themen:

Journal Article
Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
Review

Anmerkungen:

Date Completed 16.08.2022

Date Revised 18.11.2022

published: Electronic

Citation Status MEDLINE

doi:

10.1038/s42003-022-03749-3

funding:

Förderinstitution / Projekttitel:

PPN (Katalog-ID):

NLM344808114