Re: Taxonomic levels in birds

[Dinogeorge@aol.com]

In a message dated 96-02-04 10:18:38 EST, ornstn@inforamp.net (Ronald
Orenstein) writes:

>I think that there is a practical issue that debates on what birds "are" on
>this list have ignored.  This is the effect of trying to force an
>evolutionary tree, however derived, into the LInnaean system (or vice
>versa).  Doing so creates  a practical problem that will differ depending on
>your specialty.

The archosaurian taxonomy presented in _Mesozoic Meanderings_ #2 wraps the
Linnaean taxa around a reasonable cladogram of dinosaurs and birds and leaves
all the extant orders intact within avian superorder Avialae. Taxa prefixed
with "para" are paraphyletic; if you insist on all monophyletic taxa, then
you have to ditch the Linnaean ranks.

Class Archosauria
  Parasubclass Thecodontia
        Paraorder Proterosuchia
        Order Proterochampsia
        Order Ornithosuchia
        Order Parasuchia
        Order Aetosauria
        Paraorder Pseudosuchia
          Suborder Prestosuchia
          Parasuborder Rauisuchia
          Parasuborder Poposauria
        Order Crocodylia
          (lots of [para]suborders)
  Subclass Pterosauria
        Order Sharovipterygia
        Paraorder Rhamphorhynchoidia
        Order Pterodactyloidia
  Subclass Dinosauria
    Infraclass Phytodinosauria
      Parasuperorder Sauropodomorpha
        Order Brontosauria
          Suborder Sauropoda
          Suborder Prosauropoda
        Order Segnosauria
      Superorder Ornithischia
        Paraorder Lesothosauria
        Order Ankylosauria
        Order Stegosauria
        Paraorder Heterodontosauria
          Suborder Euheterodontosauria
          Suborder Pachycephalosauria
        Order Ceratopia
        Order Ornithopoda
          Parasuborder Hypsilophodontia
          Suborder Iguanodontia
    Infraclass Aves
      Parasuperorder Theropodomorpha
        Order Basitheropoda
        Order Lagosuchia
        Order Herrerasauria
        Paraorder Theropoda
          (12 suborders)
      Superorder Avialae
          (all birds from at least Hesperornis to extant)

I hope I haven't left anything out...