Re: Chimeras (was Re: Protoavis & Drepanosauridae (sensu Renesto, 1999)

["T. Mike Keesey" <tmk@dinosauricon.com>]

On Mon, 30 Apr 2001 Dinogeorge@aol.com wrote:

> In a message dated 4/30/01 2:45:34 PM EST, tmk@dinosauricon.com writes:
>
> << BTW, since Chatterjee places _Protoavis_ in Clade(_Passer_ <--
>  _Archeopteryx_), it hardly seems like support for BCF, unless you place it
>  somewhere else. >>
>
> Actually, Protoavis might demonstrate that >birds< (and not just dinobirds)
> came first. BCF has no problem with this.

But Chatterjee's model still has the usual topology, just with everything
pushed back further. Chatterjee doesn't think that theropods are
ancestrally volant.

If _Protoavis_ is within a clade (_Aves_:  Clade(_Archaeopteryx_ +
_Passer_)) which flight is already known for, then it doesn't support (or
detract from) BCF. BCF requires that flying forms exist outside _Avialae_
(Clade(_Passer_ <-- _Deinonychus_)), so if _Protoavis_ is to be used in
support of BCF, you must disagree with Chatterjee's phylogeny. (Perhaps
agreeing with Paul's tentative placement of _Protoavis_ as a basal
theropod in PDW?)

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