RE: Archaeoraptor still a nomen nudum

["Thomas R. Holtz, Jr." <tholtz@geol.umd.edu>]

> From: owner-dinosaur@usc.edu [mailto:owner-dinosaur@usc.edu]On Behalf Of
> Dave B
>
> Has the bird (the body of the origin "Archaeoraptor" chimera)
> been described
> yet? Where is this specimen currently?

Don't know where it is located at present, but I do want to point something
out:
The front end of "archaeoraptor" has never been described in detail, and
although I think it is quite likely a bird (i.e., an avialian closer to
modern birds than to _Archaeopteryx_) we really DON'T know that it is such.
It could concievably be outside Archie + later birds: there simply is not
sufficient information provided yet for us to know.

                Thomas R. Holtz, Jr.
                Vertebrate Paleontologist
Department of Geology           Director, Earth, Life & Time Program
University of Maryland          College Park Scholars
                College Park, MD  20742
http://www.geol.umd.edu/~tholtz/tholtz.htm
http://www.geol.umd.edu/~jmerck/eltsite
Phone:  301-405-4084    Email:  tholtz@geol.umd.edu
Fax (Geol):  301-314-9661       Fax (CPS-ELT): 301-405-0796