Qilong on DeviantArthttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/https://www.deviantart.com/qilong/art/The-Rainbow-Serpent-349466136Qilong

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The Rainbow Serpent

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Description

Done partly in conjunction with my discussions on the possible oviraptorosaur affinities of the almost-certainly Aussie abelisauroid Kakuru kujani. Known from a broken and nearly complete tibia from southeast Australia, which was transformed into opal during fossilization, and thus preserved in many rainbow hues, this name honors the common Australian myth of the Rainbow Serpent, which in the language of the local native Guyani, was called Kakuru.

Ignore the horrible feathering and coloration, but damn! Biological exhuberance. The colors were alluding to both the name and hue of its fossils; there was a somewhat tongue-in-cheek reference to this creature being gay, but that had only to do with the Western convention of presuming "rainbows" are a gay "thing," when many cultures applied much more mystical and religious significance to them and the many hues. Indeed, in nature, the more colorful a creature, and the brighter, cleaner the colors, indicated healthiness and maleness. This was reconstructed as an avimimid back when I thought there was good evidence it was a dromaeosaur, but data currently points to it being a far more primitive, though possibly still fluffy, theropod, an abelisauroid not unlike Masiakasaurus knopfleri.

Discussion of this animal here: [link] and here: [link] (where the image was originally posted).

Edit: This was created back in 2003. I want to stress this, and note the technical skill is terrible compared to what I do now. Plus, you know, I stopped coloring about this time.
Image size
900x737px 83.22 KB
Date Taken
Jan 12, 2003, 4:01:02 PM
Comments17
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DinoBirdMan's avatar
I just drew this one before you did.:)