Re: Dinosaur Genera List corrections #156

["Ken Kinman" <kinman@hotmail.com>]

    I think Deuterosaurus may be a somewhat "transitional" form, so it may 
well depend on your particular cladogram and/or how inclusive your families 
are.
    In my manuscript classification of 1980, as was common back then, 
Family Deuterosauridae was classified as a distinctive monogeneric family, 
considered slightly closer to Tapinocephalidae than to either Anteosauridae 
or Brithopodidae.
    Today I think it more commonly thought to be closer to the latter two 
families (perhaps intermediate between them).  Deuterosauridae is perhaps a 
sister group to Anteosauridae, so one could combine them into a single 
family.  However, Brithopodidae is probably paraphyletic with respect to 
such a grouping, so I think cladists would prefer to recognize a larger 
holophyletic Family Brithopodidae (including anteosaurines and 
deuterosaurines).
    And being a lumper myself, I would go the cladistic route and put 
Deuterosaurus in Family Brithopodidae.  Of course, if it turns out to be 
closer to Tapinocephalidae (as was once thought), that would be a whole 
different matter.
    So my present preference for the family placement of genus 
Deuterosaurus would be Brithopodidae (followed by Deuterosauridae, 
Anteosauridae, and the least preferable Tapinocephalidae).  One could 
probably justify any of these four placements.  "Flux" is a pretty good way 
to describe the situation.
             ----------Ken Kinman
********************************************************
> From: Dinogeorge@aol.com
> Reply-To: Dinogeorge@aol.com
> To: dinosaur@usc.edu
> Subject: Re: Dinosaur Genera List corrections #156
> Date: Mon, 5 Feb 2001 18:15:00 EST
>
> In a message dated 2/5/01 5:34:42 PM EST, cfkammer@midway.uchicago.edu 
> writes:
>
> << Just a little nitpicking here--Deuterosaurus is not currently considered
>  an anteosaurid, but rather a tapinocephalid (-oid, -ine...or whatever 
> your
>  favorite ending is...the Dinocephalian subgroups are still in somewhat of
>  a flux as far as names are concerned). >>
>
> That's where Tracy Ford's list currently has it.
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