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Researchers Unearth Largest Feathered Dinosaur
sciencehabit writes "Paleontologists have unearthed fossils of the largest feathered creature yet known, a 1.4-metric ton dinosaur that was an early cousin of Tyrannosaurus rex. The long, filament-like feathers preserved with three relatively complete skeletons of the newly described species provide direct evidence of extensively feathered gigantic dinosaurs. The discovery is controversial—and in some scientific circles, largely unexpected."
My (certainly amateur) reading of the literature indicates that it's likely that all therapods were feathered, albeit mostly with thin insulating feathers that don't fossilize well. How is this unexpected?
-- Two men say they're Jesus. One of them must be wrong. - Dire Straits
Think about this for a moment:
Nobody has ever seen a real dinosaur. We're separated in time from them by millions of years. Sure, we can make some great guesses but the fact is that we aren't going to get it perfectly right.
Look at what happens if you haven't seen the critter...
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ECHELON is a government program to find words like bomb, jihad, plutonium, assassinate, and anarchy.
Have we eliminated the possibility that dinosaurs wore clothing?
Gently reply
It is likely that in some dinosaurs that both were present. In other cases, it may be that feathers were present first, then scales replaced them when shed - like adult teeth replace milk teeth. Also, because it's the same gene, a change in environmental conditions may cause feathers to appear in dinosaurs in which they would not otherwise do so -- once the mutations necessary have arisen, of course. One case study is proof that the mutations existed at that time and is a strong indication that feathered dinos existed prior to that time, but we've insufficient evidence to say definitely if this was a feathered dino in the general case, only the specific case.
It's a small world and it smells funny; I'd buy another if it wasn't for the money; Take back what I paid (SoM)
Feathers evolved as insulation. After millions of years, they and the critters they adorned evolved them into use for flight (along with diminished size, air-pockets in bones, etc).
His ignorance covered the whole earth like a blanket, and there was hardly a hole in it anywhere. - Mark Twain
Here is an article with one photo of the skull, at least. And this one shows the scientists reassembling the fossil like a jigsaw puzzle (and has an interesting writeup in general).
If he'd posted under his own username, he'd be +5 Funny/Troll/Insightful by now :)