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Three‐dimensional soft tissue preservation revealed in the skin of a non‐avian dinosaur
Author(s) -
Fabbri Matteo,
Wiemann Jasmina,
Manucci Fabio,
Briggs Derek E. G.
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
palaeontology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.69
H-Index - 63
eISSN - 1475-4983
pISSN - 0031-0239
DOI - 10.1111/pala.12470
Subject(s) - fossilization , fossil record , biology , anatomy , paleontology , soft tissue , matrix (chemical analysis) , evolutionary biology , pathology , chemistry , medicine , philosophy , linguistics , chromatography
The most commonly preserved soft tissues associated with ornithischian dinosaurs are skin remains. The apparent resistance of hadrosaur skin to decay, and its abundance in the fossil record relative to that of other tetrapods, has been attributed to factors such as thickness and composition. Here we report additional intrinsic factors within hadrosaur skin: 3D‐preserved eumelanin‐bearing bodies, dermal cells and blood vessel fragments in an organic matrix composed of protein fossilization products. The skin is much thinner than that of living mammals of similar size. It is likely that the preservation of hadrosaur skin is related to the arrangement of the layers composing it.