--- On Mon, 2/8/10, Dan Chure <danchure@easilink.com> wrote:
From: Dan Chure <danchure@easilink.com>
Subject: Re: More evidence of dinosaur colors
To: dinosaur@usc.edu
Date: Monday, February 8, 2010, 7:14 AM
Some time ago there was a short paper
on the origin of ichthyosaur skin
impressions which described them as bacterial mats that
just preserved
the outline of the skin. Close up examination of the
skin showed
abundant, close packed, rod-like bacteria. In light
of this new paper,
I wonder if those might not have been misidentified and
careful restudy
might reveal something about the colors of those ancient
marine
reptiles. Might this study technique also be applied
to that collection
of soft body weirdos known as the Burgess Shale fauna?
Dan
Don't know the source, but I've heard there was a study on this exact subject. Apparently
the conclusion was that the specimen was "toroise-shell brown" in life.
~ Abyssal