January 6, 2013
Scientists think that feathered, two-legged dinosaurs called Oviraptors may have used their muscular tails to shake their feathers as part of a mating dance, just as some male birds do today. One of the researchers who analyzed 75-million-year-old oviraptor fossils said, "I think like peacocks, oviraptors were strutting their stuff by shaking their tail feathers to show off."
Oviraptor tails were short, but were made of many tailbones attached by very strong muscles. This suggests that their tails were both very flexible and very strong, enabling these prehistoric animals to do eye-catching dances and hold powerful poses. The mating dance has apparently been with us through the ages!
Drawing by Sydney Mohr
Posted by: Liz Nealon
