The Most Accurate Depiction of a Dinosaur Created(?)

[suspsy]

https://www.theguardian.com/science/2016/sep/14/scientists-reveal-most-accurate-depiction-of-a-dinosaur-ever-created?CMP=share_btn_fb

That's quite the lovely little ceratopsian!

[Flaffy]

Imagine that shrunken down and sold as an affordable model... Wouldn't that be something.

[Jose S.M.]

I find it very cute! and the preservation of the fossil it's bassed on it's incredible.

[ceratopsian]

So this must be the subject of Bob Nicholls' talk at the Dinosaur Society conference in London next month!

[Dilopho]

Hmm. Not too crazy about the colour scheme but those cheek spike...things....are pretty funny to me!
Psittacosaurs are like amalgamate animals. A bunch  of random birds, reptiles and mammals got mixed together and formed this dinosaur hee hee 

[Pachyrhinosaurus]

Interesting restoration. I think that's my favorite thing about psittacosaurus, it's pretty much the most well-known dinosaur there is.

[CarnegieCollector]

Wow! Amazing model! It's very cute 

[Gwangi]

What a fantastic depiction. As you can see, I'm a fan.
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[CarnegieCollector]

What a fantastic depiction. As you can see, I'm a fan.
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Haha! Nice profile pic 
I would love this thing as a 1:15 model by safari or collectA

[amargasaurus cazaui]

The cheek spikes are referred to as jugals   Regarding the coloration scales and soft anatomy of the dinosaur I have always been an advocate that this particular fossil
Gives a better image of the dinosaur than any other we have. That the colors
And patterning now appear to be more well supported is great news although it was already fairly well established as evidenced by some of the models in my psittacosis threads. Incidentally while not safari or a mainstream company the shape ways piece Aaron Doyle did is very close to the model shown. Also of interest note the hands on the model are neutral in this latest reconstruction for those unsold on the idea

[stargatedalek]

The cheek spikes are referred to as jugals   Regarding the coloration scales and soft anatomy of the dinosaur I have always been an advocate that this particular fossil
Gives a better image of the dinosaur than any other we have. That the colors
And patterning now appear to be more well supported is great news although it was already fairly well established as evidenced by some of the models in my psittacosis threads. Incidentally while not safari or a mainstream company the shape ways piece Aaron Doyle did is very close to the model shown. Also of interest note the hands on the model are neutral in this latest reconstruction for those unsold on the idea

Exactly this, we've been aware of most of these pigmentation patterns for some time (albeit, not aware of exactly where each pattern was present on the animal). That being said, the patagiums are of news to me.

[Takama]

Well that is a wonderful model.

So we know the coloration of another dinosaur now?

Only problem is, there are Dozens of Species for this Genus.  What are the odds that there all like this?

[Thylacosmilus]

Takama, I understand your concerns, because we know a wide variety of Psittacosaurus with unique characteristics living in diverse biotas - many of them separated by millions of years.



However, some features should be common in the Yixian and Jiufotang Formation species.

[Derek.McManus]

Very interesting...I continue to be amazed at how modern science continues to expand our knowledge on these creatures, things as I child I was told / taught we would never know!

[amargasaurus cazaui]

I think takaama hit on a very valid point actually   this dinosaur existed in some form for roughly thirty million years and was part of a vast area of territory extending all over southern Asia Mongolia and China.  It is highly There may well have been environmental variances.....forest. Beach uplands each with its own variations .  Another aspect to consider is birds.   There are multiple different species we distinguish by soft tissue features,behavioral patterns ,coloration and so forth. Those factors do not fossilize so a future Paleo well may find cardinals and bluebirds are the same animal due to lack of fossil evidence.  Takaama exaggerated when he said dozens of species known, as a good case would he hard to make for more than roughly thirteen   however it is likely there were far more species than we know

[The Atroxious]

Is this a more accurate depiction (and relatedly a better preserved fossil) than the black and white, red crested Anchiornis? I thought that was one of the best preserved dinosaurs, but this article makes it sound like the new Psittacosaurus blows the Anchiornis fossil out of the water.

That said, I wasn't expecting anyone to find preserved pigmentation in an unfeathered dinosaur in my lifetime. I'm happily proven wrong. On the other hand, I've long held to a personal idea that dinosaurs probably didn't have the tight skin on the backs of their knees the way they're so often depicted, and as it turns out, at least in this case, I was right.

It also looks like one of CollectA's controversial ideas isn't as awful as it is often thought to be."Highly pigmented cloaca" indeed.

[stargatedalek]

Is this a more accurate depiction (and relatedly a better preserved fossil) than the black and white, red crested Anchiornis? I thought that was one of the best preserved dinosaurs, but this article makes it sound like the new Psittacosaurus blows the Anchiornis fossil out of the water.

The (second [first was unremarkable as far as feather preservation goes]) Anchiornis fossil is far less articulate than this Psittacosaurus is. It preserves the feathers very well, but the soft tissue anatomy is unfortunately not present at all.

[Dilopho]

I bet this is really exciting for you, amargasaurus cazaui, eh? 

[amargasaurus cazaui]

The psittacosaurus fossil we are discussing is hardly a new discovery .It first emerged at least ten years ago at a mineral show in Tuscon . Since then it has traveled a bit and is at the center of a debate surrounding it's return to the country of China.  There are multiple papers a!ready published on the specimen but the highlights are the only dinosaur with actual preserved scales. Colors and patterns are distinguishable. Quills are present   specimen shows evidence of predation. This dinosaur has already had a lot of time spent on it and just keeps giving.  I had been following the little guy for years and many of the models I have had Martin paint for me use this suggested coloration and patterning  I love anything that hits the news about these little guys but for me it is not do much exciting as confirmation of things already fairly well accepted

[Silvanusaurus]

This little creature looks like he could have been the perfect protagonist in a Pixar Dinosaur movie, if they had actually had any interest in depicting dinosaurs rather than formless blobs of play-doh. Wouldn't even need to stylize it, he's adorable enough already.
Seriously though, lets get these bad boys cloned and domesticated already.