Re: re:?

[Thomas_R_HOLTZ@umail.umd.edu (th81)]

>I have recently purchased the book "The Dinosauria" It is suggested that
>Dromaeosauridae is closely related to Avialae and shows comsognathus quite a
>bit away from that stem. Is Deinonychus and others of this family more
>closely related to Avialae than compsognathus? I don't know about you but
>this is the first time this concept has been suggested to me.

Every recent phylogenetic analysis has shown either Dromaeosauridae,
Troodontidae, or both as the closest relatives to birds.

(Indeed, it is strange that you use the term "Avialae", a term coined in the
1986 paper by Gauthier which showed this!)

Similarly, all these analyses show that Compsognathus is quite distant from
birds.

Characters shared by birds and dromaeosaurids (and some other coelurosaurs)
include the backwards turned pubis, a tail which is mobile proximally but
stiff distally, the semilunate carpal block, the configuration of the hand,
and many others.

Thomas R. Holtz, Jr.
Vertebrate Paleontologist
Dept. of Geology
University of Maryland
College Park, MD  20742
Email:Thomas_R_HOLTZ@umail.umd.edu (th81)
Fax: 301-314-9661
Phone:301-405-4084