Mark Witton
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markwitton.bsky.social
Mark Witton
@markwitton.bsky.social
13K followers 380 following 790 posts
Palaeoartist, palaeontologist, author, documentary consultant and creature designer. Affiliated with the University of Portsmouth, UK; views and opinions are my own.

More about me at markwitton.co.uk.
Support my work at www.patreon.com/markwitton
Posts Replies Media Videos
Reposted by Mark Witton
jameylaroche.bsky.social
My in-laws got me King Tyrant by @markwitton.bsky.social for Christmas. What a beautiful book! The perfect gift for any dinosaur nerd/enthusiast.
Book cover of King Tyrant by Mark P Witton. The cover is dominated by warm orange and amber tones, like a glowing sunset or dust-filled sky, and a Tyrannosaurus rex stands front and centre.
December 27, 2025 at 3:32 AM
markwitton.bsky.social
It's #ChristmasEve, so I depicted Parasaurolophus under UV light, lit up like a Christmas tree - you can check out the rationale of this #paleoart on my #Patreon if you're already bored of holiday TV. Oh, and Happy Christmas to those who celebrate! #sciart #fossils

www.patreon.com/posts/146578...
The crested dinosaur Parasaurolophus, as it may have appeared when hit with UV light. The fluorescent body parts indicate areas of thickened keratin, which is especially reflective of UV light, even in species that cannot see UV wavelengths. The fluorescent fungi are just fluorescent fungi.
December 24, 2025 at 6:48 PM
markwitton.bsky.social
Brundle's Christmas present came early. With @gizz47.bsky.social.
Brundle the bearded dragon wears a harness so he can get some enrichment and exercise walking around our Christmas tree.
December 24, 2025 at 2:28 PM
markwitton.bsky.social
Spent #FossilFriday tweaking my Anchiornis colour reconstruction. The black+white+red intepretation does entirely match the melanosome data recorded for this species, as there's evidence of phaeomelanin (= rufous hues) on the arm, and lots of grey across the body. #paleoart #sciart #paleontology
Anchiornis, a small blackish, greyish and brownish-red bird-like dinosaur, perches on a twig singing a happy tune. But not a Christmas tune, because the holidays don't start until next week.
December 19, 2025 at 4:25 PM
Reposted by Mark Witton
richardjbutler.bsky.social
Magnificent artwork from projects with which I was involved in 2025, by @sketchy-raptor.bsky.social @markwitton.bsky.social @maijakarala.bsky.social
December 19, 2025 at 9:21 AM
Reposted by Mark Witton
gergelyk.bsky.social
Some cool early christmas presents are here finally. Spinosaur tales by @davehone.bsky.social and @markwitton.bsky.social , Mesozoic art II by @tetzoo.bsky.social and @sharkbitesteve.bsky.social
December 17, 2025 at 9:44 AM
markwitton.bsky.social
This is really gross: a book full of plagiarised #paleoart published by a legit UK publisher. As if we don't have enough problems with AI! There is no excuse for the author/artist not knowing better, either: this isn't the first time they've been caught committing major acts of plagiarism.
joschuaknuppe.bsky.social Joschua Knüppe @joschuaknuppe.bsky.social · 24d
it appears plagiorizer William Toosey tries his shit again, that's my Propalorchestes in his "Journey through the Cenozoic".
I suspect this is just the tip of it. Many of these are just other people's work with a new texture slapped on top.
Lots of JRC art here.
December 16, 2025 at 4:28 PM
markwitton.bsky.social
Fresh off the digital canvas, my take on the Carboniferous verte... arthro... mollu... er... bilaterally symmetrical animal Tullimonstrum gregarium. Tully monsters are true palaeontological enigmas: 70 years after they were named, we still don't know what they are. #paleoart #sciart #fossil
Vignette of a Tully monster, a strange swimming animal from the Carboniferous. They say working on it makes you mad, but I've been painting this all afternoon and I'm... fine. Just fine. That said, I have been working hard alongside my janitorial duties at this hotel. And thinking about this little beast a lot. I... I see it when I close my eyes. I see ITS eyes when I close my eyes. But I'm just working too hard. Just take a break! You know what they say: all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. All work and no play makes
December 12, 2025 at 6:29 PM
markwitton.bsky.social
New #paleoart on #FossilFriday: #Tiktaalik sees the world. Discussions of early #tetrapods often focus on limbs and lungs, but major changes also took place in their eyes. Seeing further and clearer than any animal before, they were the first to clearly see sunsets, stars, and the moon. #sciart
Tiktaalik slugs its way over a muddy bank in a flooded Devonian landscape while the sun sets over the horizon. Banks of pink and purple clouds loom in front of distant streaks of orange as clear turquoise sky peeks through cloudless regions. Various trees and shrubs stand tall above purple water glistening with gold wavelets. With vision that could probably see in the UV spectrum and eyes beginning to adapt for the infinite visual range provided in aerial habitats, Titaalik pauses to take this all in, being among the first animals that can see the natural world in such detail. All which is to say - the next time you admire sunsets or the night sky, consider what this owes to events of 375 million years ago. When the first vertebrates struggled out of the water they rapidly developed eyes that were much sharper and clearer than those of their fishy ancestors, vision being of variable utility in most freshwater habitats. Millions of years on, what probably started as a means to navigate and find prey allows us to observe and enjoy the natural world with a sense of awe and wonder.
December 12, 2025 at 2:32 PM
markwitton.bsky.social
Tetrapoda*: how it started vs. how it's going.

*OK, OK: stem-Tetrapoda. But it's not as snappy.
Kolby the greyhound snoozes next to a 3D printed skull of the stem-tetrapod Tiktaalik. As a dog that avoids entering all water, even puddles, Kolby represents the final product of the water to land transition started by Tiktaalik et al. in the Devonian. Good job, Kolbs.
December 9, 2025 at 10:49 PM
Reposted by Mark Witton
mmarcosaurus.bsky.social
#FossilFriday
There's a big 5-star customer review of this new dinosaur book by great paleontologists @davehone.bsky.social and @markwitton.bsky.social!
Can't wait to read Spinosaur Tales, but the day will come in two weeks. ^^
www.nhbs.com/spinosaur-ta...
Spinosaur Tales: The Biology and Ecology of the Spinosaurs
Buy Spinosaur Tales (9781399412469): The Biology and Ecology of the Spinosaurs: NHBS - David Hone, Mark P Witton, Bloomsbury Sigma (Bloomsbury imprint)
www.nhbs.com
December 6, 2025 at 1:10 AM
markwitton.bsky.social
New #paleoart for #FossilFriday: the giant Meganeuropsis hawks Dunbaria in Early Permian Kansas, reaching to trap it with long, spiny legs. This image is set at the coast to reflect the marine occurrences of Meganeuropsis and Dunbaria fossils - not all Carbo-Permian insects lived in swamps! #sciart
A freakin' huge griffenfly with a c. 70 cm wingspan, Meganeuropsis, flies vertically in pursuit of the comparatively tiny palaeodictyopteran herbivore Dunbaria fasciipennis. The long, spined legs of Meganeuropsis are reaching forward to trap the smaller insect, while a large wave crashes over rocks behind them. The pattern on Dunbaria is known from fossils, although the colours are not. It's suspected that Meganeuropsis, like other Palaeozoic members of the dragon/damselfly lineage, sported clear wings.
December 5, 2025 at 3:40 PM
Reposted by Mark Witton
davehone.bsky.social
Here's a nice 30 mins on #Spinosaurus that I recorded with @markwitton.bsky.social for the BBC Instant Genius Podcast.

open.spotify.com/episode/7hWf...

(Note it has a ton of ads at the start, talking begins after 3 minutes)
The real story behind Jurassic Park’s most controversial dinosaur
open.spotify.com
December 5, 2025 at 10:37 AM
markwitton.bsky.social
Hark! @davehone.bsky.social and I have been interviewed about spinosaurs for the Instant Genius podcast, created by BBC Science Focus. If you need a listen for your commute home, we may not be your worst option.

#dinosaurs #fossils #paleontology #scicomm

open.spotify.com/episode/7hWf...
The real story behind Jurassic Park’s most controversial dinosaur
open.spotify.com
December 5, 2025 at 3:27 PM
Reposted by Mark Witton
tetzoo.bsky.social
Very nearly done on a long review of this spectacular book, King Tyrant by @markwitton.bsky.social, published by @princetonupress.bsky.social Cannot recommend it enough, buy it now! #dinosaurs #books
Cover of book King Tyrant. Pages within the book, showing text, diagrams, photos. Pages within the book, showing text, diagrams. Pages within the book, showing text, diagrams.
December 3, 2025 at 11:26 AM
markwitton.bsky.social
More images in a scientific paper that can be described as low quality, of questionable accuracy, environmentally damaging, job stealing and copyright infringing.

Hey, maybe it's time for scientific journals to just stop accepting AI-generated images?
lemoustier.bsky.social Dr Rebecca Wragg Sykes @lemoustier.bsky.social · 24d
e.g. to produce these two – which are still problematic – took at least 80 batches of DALL-E 2 generation (each batch making multiple images), and on top of that, required direct editing of the #AI images themselves.
Paper: Magnani & Clindaniel 2023
🏺🧪

www.cambridge.org/core/journal...
December 3, 2025 at 10:46 AM
markwitton.bsky.social
New at #Patreon: an illustrated review of what we know, and some of what we don't, about the colours and patterns of ancient marine invertebrates (ft. trilobites, orthoceratoids, ammonites and Cambrian critters). Check it out at www.patreon.com/c/markwitton #paleoart #fossils #paleontology #sciart
The orthoceratoid Michelinoceras anguliferum, sporting a natty set of zigzags along its shelll, is probably better dressed than most of us today. Here, it's inflicting a fashion attack on a buried worm. Cambrian polychaete Canadia spinosa is shiny, thanks to structural colouration. A minor pile up between three migrating trilobites, Eldredgeops rana. The red dots on these animals are strange translucent lenses that might, it's speculated, be windows for pigmentation through their carapaces. Two Dieneroceras subquadratum conversing about life as drifters in Triassic plankton. The banding pattern on their shells is fossil accurate, although the exact colours are unknown.
December 1, 2025 at 12:06 PM
markwitton.bsky.social
Strong review of Spinosaur Tales from The Inquisitive Biologist: "Spinosaur Tales is a thoughtful and accessible book about these enigmatic dinosaurs... presenting a nuanced overview of what we know, what we can reasonably infer, and what is spin."

inquisitivebiologist.com/2025/11/26/b...
Book review – Spinosaur Tales: The Biology and Ecology of the Spinosaurs
Spinosaur Tales brings together two of the finest popular palaeontology writers for a nuanced and detailed overview of this challenging group of dinosaurs.
inquisitivebiologist.com
November 28, 2025 at 9:58 AM
markwitton.bsky.social
An inspiring article for National Illustration Day: www.theguardian.com/artanddesign....

Most #paleoart is probably "illustration" rather than "art" (if, indeed, these are distinct categories) and is an excellent example of how images augment written/verbal communication and democratise #scicomm.
Informative, beautiful and deeply human: it’s time to cheer the underrated art of illustration | Oliver Jeffers
We do judge books by their covers. Illustrations spark young imaginations, solve problems, present information - and shape our world, says the children’s author on National Illustration Day
www.theguardian.com
November 28, 2025 at 9:34 AM
markwitton.bsky.social
I didn't have "Southern Rail openly adopts Skynet policies" on today's bingo card.
November 26, 2025 at 4:14 PM
Reposted by Mark Witton
dsrovinsky.bsky.social
Just received Down Under:

Looking forward to reading the spinosaur science from @davehone.bsky.social and @markwitton.bsky.social
November 26, 2025 at 5:23 AM
Reposted by Mark Witton
eriorguez.bsky.social
Well, christmas came a month early this year; skimming through, @markwitton.bsky.social 's work is impresively thorough. Shame on the shifting consensus on juveniles mere months after publication of this edition, but still a must have.
November 25, 2025 at 5:59 PM
markwitton.bsky.social
Working on invertebrate #paleoart at the moment, knowing I'm probably making mistakes despite best efforts, consulting primary literature etc. Inverts are much like fossil plants: there are few accessible resources on their appearance so we must wing it, or go down deep rabbit holes to restore them.
Detail of a larger painting showing the trilobites Eldredgeops rana.
November 24, 2025 at 1:56 PM
markwitton.bsky.social
Thanks to Marc for a great review of our new book! "...a tremendous amount of work went into this book... there’s no other work that unites everything we know about them, their palaeoenvironments, and their modern day afterlife like Spinosaur Tales..". #dinosaurs #books
@chiffchat.bsky.social
November 24, 2025 at 10:18 AM
markwitton.bsky.social
Brain work bad thanks to some sort of flu, so you'll have to write your own amusing #FossilFriday post about this giant #azhdarchid #pterosaur #paleoart.
November 21, 2025 at 3:58 PM