Re: ?

[Dinogeorge@aol.com]

In a message dated 96-01-02 13:25:35 EST, NJusa@aol.com writes:

>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.
>
>

Provided you believe _Archaeopteryx_ is a bird, then the dromeys are
definitely more closely related to birds than is _Compsognathus_. I have
found a few characters linking _Compsognathus_ to tyrannosaurids, not the
least of which is the two-fingered hand. Imagine tiny _Compsognathus_
evolving into a giant theropod predator, and you come up
with..._Tyrannosaurus_, pretty straightforwardly. Of course, the
arctometatarsalian pes would then have had to evolve at least twice (details,
details).