Re: Mysticete evolution (was Re: Speculative dino species)

[Graydon <graydon@dsl.ca>]

On Tue, Jul 31, 2001 at 06:31:59PM -0500, christian farrell kammerer
scripsit:
> Finally, a brand spankin' new paper on krill evolution (I don't have
> the ref handy, but I can find it) claims that, based on molecular
> data, the swarming krill family Euphausiidae dates back to the Early
> Cretaceous. If this is true (and admittedly, there's a good chance it
> isn't, and even if so, we can't know the behavior of ur-krill for
> sure), then why weren't the Cretaceous reptiles taking advantage of
> it? Perhaps they were, albeit not in a mysticetimorph form? Who knows,
> maybe the closest reptiles got to suspesion feeding was in things like
> Aristonectes. Now if only we could figure out what Shonisaurus was
> eating back in the Triassic...

Well, *could* aquatic reptiles evole a strainer?  Baleen is modified
hair, rather than modified teeth; I don't know what whale sharks use,
but they do have the advantage of continuous water flow to work with.

Perhaps there just wasn't anything to exapt into the filter.

-- 
                           graydon@dsl.ca
               To maintain the end is to uphold the means.