Why is the inside of the mouth of the BOTM Dilophosaurus blue?

[andrewsaurus rex]

Why is the inside of the mouth of the BOTM Dilophosaurus blue?

[Faelrin]

Because the bird it is based on, the Double-crested Cormorant, does. And it looks cool too.

[andrewsaurus rex]

ah, i see.  It may look cool, but i'm not sure it looks very realistic; could see that putting off some buyers....bold choice by BOTM

[DavidJamesArmsby]

Because the bird it is based on, the Double-crested Cormorant, does. And it looks cool too.

It immediately put me in mind of the kaiju Otachi from Pacfific Rim which also has a blue mouth and a very Dilophosaurus-looking face. I'm pretty sure David Silva sculpted the original Otachi NECA figure many years ago before starting up Creative Beasts and the dilophosaurus instantly reminded me of it. I thought it may have been an obscure reference to his early work.
I really like the look of the blue mouth, and knowing that it's actually based on the bird in which the colour scheme is based is super cool and makes me like it more.

[crazy8wizard]

ah, i see.  It may look cool, but i'm not sure it looks very realistic; could see that putting off some buyers....bold choice by BOTM

How could it be unrealistic when it's based directly off of a living animal?

[andrewsaurus rex]

how many living animals have blue mouths?  One i now know of.  Dilophosaurus was not that closely related to Cormorants, or even birds for that matter.  It was more closely related to reptiles and lizards, most of which have mouths that are off white inside, or pinkish etc.  But not blue.

Now maybe Dilopho did have a blue mouth, or maybe it was red and white striped inside...but perception is important; most of the people who buy this figure will probably not like the blue mouth and won't think it looks particularly realistic...that's why i said it was a bold move.  Just because a figure's colouration is based on an extant animal, doesn't mean it has be be an exact copy of that colouration...inspiration is fine..

[Saarlooswolfhound]

Many more animals than you'd think! And relatedness has nothing to do with it, its just adaptation.

Giraffes, polar bears, chow and shar pei dogs, blue tongued skinks, impala... and I'm sure more birds and reptiles.

[Gwangi]

how many living animals have blue mouths?  One i now know of.  Dilophosaurus was not that closely related to Cormorants, or even birds for that matter.  It was more closely related to reptiles and lizards, most of which have mouths that are off white inside, or pinkish etc.  But not blue.

Now maybe Dilopho did have a blue mouth, or maybe it was red and white striped inside...but perception is important; most of the people who buy this figure will probably not like the blue mouth and won't think it looks particularly realistic...that's why i said it was a bold move.  Just because a figure's colouration is based on an extant animal, doesn't mean it has be be an exact copy of that colouration...inspiration is fine..

All dinosaurs are more closely related to birds (which are dinosaurs) than they are to other reptiles (which are not dinosaurs).

Unrealistic paintjobs on a BOTM figure? I'm shocked! SHOCKED I tell you! 

[DavidJamesArmsby]

how many living animals have blue mouths?  One i now know of.  Dilophosaurus was not that closely related to Cormorants, or even birds for that matter.  It was more closely related to reptiles and lizards, most of which have mouths that are off white inside, or pinkish etc.  But not blue.

Now maybe Dilopho did have a blue mouth, or maybe it was red and white striped inside...but perception is important; most of the people who buy this figure will probably not like the blue mouth and won't think it looks particularly realistic...that's why i said it was a bold move.  Just because a figure's colouration is based on an extant animal, doesn't mean it has be be an exact copy of that colouration...inspiration is fine..

All dinosaurs are closer related to birds than lizards. Crocodilians are closer related to birds than lizards too. But like Saarlooswolfhound said; it doesn't seem to matter. Blue mouths just show up anywhere and everywhere in the animal kingdom. And it doesn't seem to be restricted to small animals either.
I honestly think the Dilophosaurus is one of the most natural-looking colour schemes of the line, blue mouth and all. The line is infamous for unrealistic, extravagant, and garish colours that aren't to everyone's tastes. I love them – the big blue Torosaurus is my favourite figure of the whole collection - but I know not everyone does.
The Dilophosaurus seems super tame and plausible in comparison! XD

[Faelrin]

@DavidJamesArmsby Yes he was the one who sculpted the NECA Otachi. I honestly thought it was a tribute of sorts to that figure, before finding out about the bird actually having this feature. Funny coincidence nontheless.

A @andrewsaurus rex Well it helps it was a theropod (Dilophosaurus), and all living birds like this cormorant are also derived theropods, but yeah who knows how common or widespread this trait is. Anyways I did a little more research and it turns out the blue mouth is a display feature that comes and goes, during and after breeding season, alongside brighter teal eyes, and the two feather crests that give it its namesake. Both males and females develop the same features during breeding season. A western population has white feather crests, and those in the east have black ones.

Who knows if Dilophosaurus had something similar going on or not. Maybe just its crests had color changes (if possible). As we currently have nothing for or against, and the coloration is somewhat derived from an extant aninal anyways, I don't mind it (and find it pretty neat).

As for the lizard thing, well that's just factually wrong, and I'm not sure what brought you to that conclusion short of extremely outdated science (like prior to Dinosaur Renaissance)?

In any case the clade Dinosauria falls under Dinosauromorpha, which is the sister clade to Pterosauromorpha. Both fall under the clade Avemetatarsalia (and Ornithodira), which falls under Archosauria (which also includes Psuedosuchia, which includes Crocodilia and their relatives). And as mentioned all birds are theropods. They fall under the clade Maniraptora, and in turn Paraves, which is the same clade that the Dromaeosauridae, and the Troodontidae, among other non-avian theropods fall under.

Lizards (and snakes) fall under Squamata, and in turn that falls under Lepidosauromorpha. Both Lepidosauromorpha and Archosauria fall under the clade Sauria (which in turn falls under Diapsida).

[andrewsaurus rex]

well if dinosaurs aren't closely related to lizards then why are they called 'terrible LIZARDS'?....just kidding.

ok, well i guess i stand corrected...lol.

Still not a fan of the blue mouth, but at least i feel a bit better about it.......mouth aside it's otherwise a nice figure.

[CityRaptor]

I'm not too sure those colors are that unrealistic, given that they all are based on real animals. Among modern animals the only ones which are mostly dull colored are mammals (an exception is the Mandrill), while all other groups seem to vary between dull and extremely garish.

Even Jurassic Park Chaos Effect's Raptor Alpha ends up being rather close to the coloration of an actual animal: the Blue-Legged Mantella.

[Faelrin]

@CityRaptor Of course it's a frog lol. Though thanks for sharing that though. Didn't know an animal was out there with similar colors to the Chaos Effect raptor.