# What color were dinosaurs? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cecil's Columns/Staff Reports\ **Created:** [November 26, 2008, 7:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-color-were-dinosaurs/474596 "2008-11-26T19:29:42Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![CaptainMetHead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/8491ac/32.png) [@CaptainMetHead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CaptainMetHead)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2008, 7:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-color-were-dinosaurs/474596/1 "2008-11-26T19:29:42Z")
“No pieces of dinosaur skin have ever been found; like other soft tissue, it decays rapidly.” In 2002, a dinosaur mummy was found in Montana. > **[National Geographic](https://www.nationalgeographic.com/)** > > Explore National Geographic. A world leader in geography, cartography and exploration. In 2004, another mummy was found in N. Dakota. > **[NBC News - Breaking News & Top Stories - Latest World, US & Local News](https://www.nbcnews.com/)** > > Go to NBCNews.com for breaking news, videos, and the latest top stories in world news, business, politics, health and pop culture. ---
**Author:** ![ChrisBooth12](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e95f7d/32.png) [@ChrisBooth12](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ChrisBooth12)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2008, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-color-were-dinosaurs/474596/2 "2008-11-26T19:56:30Z")
green ---
**Author:** ![Musicat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/musicat/32/20189_2.png) [@Musicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Musicat)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2008, 8:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-color-were-dinosaurs/474596/3 "2008-11-26T20:40:06Z")
**CaptainMetHead,** just so we know what column you are referring to, it’s a good idea to reference it in the OP. Is [this the one?](http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/13/what-color-were-dinosaurs) Other than that, I think they had yellow polka dots, but what do I know? 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Giles](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/giles/32/60_2.png) [@Giles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Giles)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2008, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-color-were-dinosaurs/474596/4 "2008-11-26T20:51:37Z")
The linked articles say that soft tissue survived, including skin, but fossilised. That would preserve the structure of the soft tissue, but I don’t think it would preserve the colour. ---
**Author:** ![Projammer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/projammer/32/559_2.png) [@Projammer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Projammer)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2008, 10:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-color-were-dinosaurs/474596/5 "2008-11-26T22:40:24Z")
Not to hijack the thread, but this is actually the best argument I can think of to clone specimens once we’ve compiled enough data to sequence and build a sample of their DNA. I can just imagine the reaction of the scientific community and the world at large if they turned out to be Barney purple. ---
**Author:** ![John\_W.Kennedy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_w.kennedy/32/1031_2.png) [@John\_W.Kennedy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_W.Kennedy)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2008, 12:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-color-were-dinosaurs/474596/6 "2008-11-27T00:16:40Z")
> [@Giles](#): > > The linked articles say that soft tissue survived, including skin, but fossilised. That would preserve the structure of the soft tissue, but I don’t think it would preserve the colour. Precisely. _Maybe_ a chemical analysis would be possible that would give some kind of reasonable guess at the color, but… ---
**Author:** ![Grendel\_s\_Father](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/b782af/32.png) [@Grendel\_s\_Father](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grendel_s_Father)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2008, 12:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-color-were-dinosaurs/474596/7 "2008-11-27T00:34:32Z")
> [@John\_W.Kennedy](#): > > Precisely. _Maybe_ a chemical analysis would be possible that would give some kind of reasonable guess at the color, but… In most cases it’s not actual skin that’s preserved, but a 3-d impression of the skin in surrounding mud. No actual mummified tissue is preserved, it more a cast of a mummy. The closest you’ll get to dinosaur coloration is in fossils that preserve feathers. Here’s an article on the topic: [http://opa.yale.edu/news/article.aspx?id=5898](http://opa.yale.edu/news/article.aspx?id=5898) Some feathered dinosaur fossils preserve distinct patterns in their feathers, such as an apparently striped or ringed tail in _Sinosauropteryx_. ---
**Author:** ![pseudotriton\_ruber\_ruber](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/a9a28c/32.png) [@pseudotriton\_ruber\_ruber](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pseudotriton_ruber_ruber)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2008, 1:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-color-were-dinosaurs/474596/8 "2008-11-27T01:22:06Z")
I have a dream that dinosaurs will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character. ---
**Author:** ![Oakminster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/77aa72/32.png) [@Oakminster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oakminster)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2008, 1:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-color-were-dinosaurs/474596/9 "2008-11-27T01:49:25Z")
Why would dinosaurs be any different from modern reptiles when it comes to color? Snakes, lizards, etc. seem to come in a wide variety of colors…and some lizards change color according to their surroundings. I kinda like the idea of a bright purple T-Rex… ---
**Author:** ![SeanArenas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/df705f/32.png) [@SeanArenas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SeanArenas)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2008, 2:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-color-were-dinosaurs/474596/10 "2008-11-27T02:10:24Z")
> [@Oakminster](#): > > Why would dinosaurs be any different from modern reptiles when it comes to color? Snakes, lizards, etc. seem to come in a wide variety of colors…and some lizards change color according to their surroundings. IANAPaleontologist, but I’m guessing different atmospheric conditions, different body needs, different food-chain environment (who eats who), and other conditions different between then and now would make a difference in skin color… 🙂 For all we know, they are all the primary colors, or … forget polka dots, how about paisleys or tartan. 🆒 By the way, color-changing dinos is a cool idea, you just don’t see that in dino movies and TV shows very often. ---
**Author:** ![Captain\_Haddock](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ce73a5/32.png) [@Captain\_Haddock](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_Haddock)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2008, 9:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-color-were-dinosaurs/474596/11 "2008-11-27T09:05:24Z")
> [@SeanArenas](#): > > … how about paisleys or tartan. Well maybe not quite tartan, but the scaling pattern of the fossilised skin from the N. Dakota hadrosaur may indicate that a section of its tail was at least partially striped. Differences in the sizing of these scales often conforms to colour patterns within modern reptiles. In terms of specific colours it’s pretty much pin the tail on the hadrosaur. ---
**Author:** ![bup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/6bbea6/32.png) [@bup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bup)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2008, 1:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-color-were-dinosaurs/474596/12 "2008-11-28T13:12:29Z")
> [@Captain\_Haddock](#): > > the scaling pattern of the fossilised skin from the N. Dakota hadrosaur may indicate that a section of its tail was at least partially striped. And, IIRC, the skin on the underside of the body was apparently a different shade (the cast was lighter) than that on the back - also in line with modern reptiles. ---
**Author:** ![jimigorilla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/edb3f5/32.png) [@jimigorilla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jimigorilla)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2008, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-color-were-dinosaurs/474596/13 "2008-11-28T17:25:46Z")
Since theropod dinosaurs are so closely related to birds as to be virtuyally indistinguishable, and birds have a keen sense of colour with regard to their sexual display, one would assume the same would apply to dinosaurs. Lots of bright colours, especially amongst the males. Polka dots are not at all to be ruled out. ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2008, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-color-were-dinosaurs/474596/14 "2008-11-28T20:42:51Z")
> [@SeanArenas](#): > > For all we know, they are all the primary colors, or … forget polka dots, how about paisleys or tartan. 🆒 > > . “Paisley”? Goddam Hippy Dinosaurs! Send em all to Vietnam! ---
**Author:** ![Sailboat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sailboat/32/461_2.png) [@Sailboat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sailboat)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2008, 12:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-color-were-dinosaurs/474596/15 "2008-12-01T12:28:18Z")
While they probably share color schemes with birds and perhaps with their more distant relatives, reptiles, it’s worth noting that there seems to be little point in camouflage coloration for a 30-ton sauropod. When you’re the largest land animal that ever lived and the ground shakes when you walk, there doesn’t seem to be much chance of passing undetected. ---
**Author:** ![Irishman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/b487fb/32.png) [@Irishman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Irishman)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2008, 2:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-color-were-dinosaurs/474596/16 "2008-12-01T14:20:01Z")
[QUOTE=jimigorilla] Since theropod dinosaurs are so closely related to birds as to be virtuyally indistinguishable, [/QUOTE] I seriously doubt this is true. Not that dinosaurs are related to birds, but the part about being indistinguishable. Cite? ---
**Author:** ![Darwins\_Finch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darwins_finch/32/20304_2.png) [@Darwins\_Finch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darwins_Finch)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2008, 5:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-color-were-dinosaurs/474596/17 "2008-12-01T17:09:20Z")
> [@Sailboat](#): > > While they probably share color schemes with birds and perhaps with their more distant relatives, reptiles, it’s worth noting that there seems to be little point in camouflage coloration for a 30-ton sauropod. Reptiles weren’t exactly “more distant relatives” for dinosaurs; dinosaurs _were_ (and, from a cladistics viewpoint, still are) reptiles. Of course, while camouflage coloring probably wouldn’t have accomplished much, there was still the potential for sexual displays or individual recognition. All of which is purely speculative, of course. > [@Irishman](#): > > I seriously doubt this is true. Not that dinosaurs are related to birds, but the part about being indistinguishable. Cite? Correct: theropod dinosaurs are not indistinguishable from birds. It does get a little tricky as you get closer to the origins of birds, but then, that is expected to be the case, and is the case for pretty much all groups (e.g., at which point does an artiodactyl become a whale; when do synapisds become mammals, etc.). But even _Archaeopteryx_, often considered the first “bird” (actually, it’s the _earliest_ “true” bird we know of; it was most likely an evolutionary dead-end itself, and thus probably not the true _urvogel_) is quite distinguishable from modern forms, and distinguishable from its ancestors, as well. ---
**Author:** ![Musicat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/musicat/32/20189_2.png) [@Musicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Musicat)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2008, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-color-were-dinosaurs/474596/18 "2008-12-01T17:16:17Z")
> [@Sailboat](#): > > While they probably share color schemes with birds and perhaps with their more distant relatives, reptiles, it’s worth noting that there seems to be little point in camouflage coloration for a 30-ton sauropod. > > When you’re the largest land animal that ever lived and the ground shakes when you walk, there doesn’t seem to be much chance of passing undetected. Yet elephants are not brightly colored (which they could be, since they don’t need to hide) nor camouflaged, at least not as much as some animals that blend in with trees, leaves and ground using random coloration patterns. ---
**Author:** ![SeanArenas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/df705f/32.png) [@SeanArenas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SeanArenas)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2008, 8:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-color-were-dinosaurs/474596/19 "2008-12-01T20:24:21Z")
> [@Sailboat](#): > > While they probably share color schemes with birds and perhaps with their more distant relatives, reptiles, it’s worth noting that there seems to be little point in camouflage coloration for a 30-ton sauropod. It’s possible it needed to be camouflaged while resting or eating. Just cuz it’s 30-tons doesn’t mean things don’t want to eat it - in fact, that makes it a better kill, something that size will feed a family of smaller dinos for quite some time. Ever seen the discovery channel shows where lions take down an elephant? I’m sure there were predators even for a 30-ton herbivore. Maybe when it’s being stalked (or sleeping or eating, otherwise holding still and not causing earthquake-like rumbling with its movement) its camo colored skin keeps the predators from finding it? ---
**Author:** ![Grendel\_s\_Father](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/b782af/32.png) [@Grendel\_s\_Father](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grendel_s_Father)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2008, 10:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-color-were-dinosaurs/474596/20 "2008-12-01T22:44:25Z")
> [@Irishman](#): > > I seriously doubt this is true. Not that dinosaurs are related to birds, but the part about being indistinguishable. Cite? Not indistinguishable from _modern_ birds, but here’s a relevant quote from Paleontologist Mark Norell of the American Museum of Natural History: > [@](#): > > The more that we learn about these animals the more we find that there is basically no difference between birds and their closely related dinosaur ancestors like velociraptor. Both have wishbones, brooded their nests, possess hollow bones, and were covered in feathers. If animals like velociraptor were alive today our first impression would be that they were just very unusual looking birds. > **[Velociraptor Had Feathers](http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/09/070920145402.htm)** > > Finding of quill knobs on fossilized velociraptor bone demonstrates that even large dinosaurs were feathered and may have descended from animals capable of flight. Scientists have known for years that many dinosaurs had feathers. Now the presence of... > [@](#): > > But even Archaeopteryx, often considered the first “bird” (actually, it’s the earliest “true” bird we know of Not to derail the thread, but “true” being the operative word here. There are earlier animals with modern-style feathers (_Pedopenna_, _Epidendrosaurus_, _Epidexipteryx_) that are only not considered birds because the cladistic definition of “bird” had already been set in such a way that _Archaeopteryx_ or another member of its immediate line MUST be the first. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-color-were-dinosaurs/474596.md?page=2)