Iridescent structural coloration in a crested Cretaceous enantiornithine bird from Jehol Biota
Zhiheng Li, Jinsheng Hu, Thomas A. Stidham, Mao Ye, Min Wang, Yanhong Pan, Tao Zhao, Jingshu Li, Zhonghe Zhou, Julia A. Clarke
The paper estimates the iridescent color range of a Cretaceous bird's crest feathers using fossil melanosome structure and modeling, suggesting a signaling and behavioral function.
eLife · Aug 12, 2025Peer-reviewedEvolutionary Biology