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Submitted: January 28
Image Size: 786 KB
Resolution: 1300×927

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Eosinopteryxby *EWilloughby

Digital Art / Drawings / Animals

Here is my rendition of Eosinopteryx brevipenna, the new troodontid described last week in Nature Communications. This tiny feathery, from the Late Jurassic Tiaojishan formation of Liaoning, China, differs from other basal troodontids in that it lacked the long feathers on the metatarsals and pes that typifies related animals, such as Anchiornis. It also had much shorter footclaws than related species, and this together with the lack of "legwings" indicates it was very likely a terrestrial bird. The animal is also a bit unusual in that its tail is rather short and lacks any sign of retrices, which gives it a bit unusual and somehow more "primitive" appearance than its relatives.

Here, the little fellow perches atop a mossy stump, possibly the highest vantage point it was able to manage. The paper makes no mention of whether the ungual on the second digit of the foot could be retracted, but the fossil's second pedal claw is clearly larger than the other claws on the foot, so it's possible it was used to aid in balance as well as predation.

Photoshop CS4.

Godefroit, P.; Demuynck, H.; Dyke, G.; Hu, D.; Escuillié, F. O.; Claeys, P. (2013). "Reduced plumage and flight ability of a new Jurassic paravian theropod from China". Nature Communications 4: 1394. doi:10.1038/ncomms2389.

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~JacquelineRae Apr 8, 2013

Amazing! I love the colors in this one. I like your paleo-illustrations - they seem very accurate and highly detailed, yet still express a lot of creativity.

~Halbatroz Apr 4, 2013 New member

Great work!

~Think-Like-the-Wolf Mar 18, 2013 Professional Interface Designer

Reminds me of a roadrunner. Could it have had some flight capabilities, as in "extended" jumps to escape predators?

*EWilloughby Mar 20, 2013

Roadrunners definitely are rather deinonychosaurine-looking birds. I do imagine that the extended feathers on the legs and arms could be utilized in something like WAIR stabilizing jumps and fast turns, or extending jumps, but I doubt that it had any significant gliding or flight abilities.

*joeyv7 Mar 12, 2013

Very cool style. I like the attention to detail and what you did with the shadows here. Nice retro 'field guide' feel to your illustrations, very unique

*EWilloughby Mar 14, 2013

Thanks muchly! I've never had my work described as retro field-guide style before, haha.

~Sketchy-raptor Mar 3, 2013 Student General Artist

It's amazing how realistic your deinonychosaur art is. So much so, when I've been asked by friends how best to reconstruct a deinonychosaur, I always send them to your gallery. Beautiful, as always.

*EWilloughby Mar 3, 2013

Thank you, that's very kind of you!

~marcoornithodira Feb 17, 2013 Student Digital Artist

Magical. What kind of tree is that, by the way?

*EWilloughby Feb 17, 2013

It's based on Ginkgo apodes, with some speculative reddish coloration - or perhaps the reddish tinge is a result of the strong pink lighting... the viewer can decide!

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