Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, and Peabody Natural History Museum, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8150, USA.
Nature. 2010 Nov 4;468(7320):E1; discussion E2. doi: 10.1038/nature09480.
Xu et al. describe the extraordinarily preserved feathers from two subadults of the oviraptorisaur Similicaudipteryx from the Yixian Formation of Liaoning, China. The preserved tail feathers of the juvenile specimen (STM4.1) show a morphology not previously observed in any fossil feathers. The tail feathers of an older, immature specimen (STM22-6) show a typical closed pennaceous structure with a prominent, planar vane. I propose that the feathers of the tail of the juvenile specimen are not a specialized feather generation, but fossilized 'pin feathers' or developing feather germs.
徐星等人描述了来自中国辽宁义县组的两只亚成年尾羽龙的保存极好的羽毛。幼年标本（STM4.1）的保存尾羽呈现出一种之前在任何化石羽毛中都未观察到的形态。一个更年长、未成熟标本（STM22-6）的尾羽则显示出典型的闭合羽片状结构，并有一个突出的平面羽片。我提出，幼年标本尾羽的羽毛不是一种专门的羽毛生成，而是化石化的“针羽”或正在发育的羽毛芽。
