Gingers have been around for 10 million years.
Gingers have existed for 10 million years
Scientists have discovered fragments of phaeomelanin, the pigment that produces ginger colouration - in fossilised frogs.
The team, led by boffins at University College Cork, say that the findings will help palaeontologists to reconstruct the original colours of long-extinct species.
The experts performed lab experiments on black, ginger and white bird feathers to track how the pigments degrade during the fossilisation process.
The results were applied to the fossils of Pelophylax pueyoi - an extinct species of frog - which confirmed that high concentrations of the ginger pigment were present.
Researcher Dr. Tiffany Slater said: "This finding is so exciting because it puts palaeontologists in a better place to detect different melanin pigments in many more fossils.
"This will paint a more accurate picture of ancient animal colour and will answer important questions about the evolution of colours in animals."