RE: Mesozoic Birds : Above the Heads of Dinosaurs; Gaia (un)availability

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

>>From: owner-dinosaur@usc.edu [mailto:owner-dinosaur@usc.edu]On Behalf Of Stacey Burgess
>

Witmer, L. M.  2002 (in press).  The debate on avian ancestry: phylogeny, function, and fossils. In Mesozoic Birds: Above the Heads of Dinosaurs, L. M. Chiappe and L. M. Witmer (eds.), University of California Press, Berkeley.  

>Does anyone know anything else about this book?

This will be a MUST BUY when it comes out; a whole lot of important papers.  This has been in process for longer than the editors would care to admit (I reviewed a chapter an office move or two ago, and reference a paper from this volume in the Gaia theropod volume (which came out late as it was).

 

However, in brief, the Chiappe & Witmer volume will be the single most concentrated source for Mesozoic paleornithology ever; lots of descriptive papers, summaries, etc.

 

Speaking of Gaia, and Jordan Mallon's recent question: to my knowledge, this volume remains as unavailable as ever.  There was a lot of local inter- and intrainstitutional politics going on while the volume was being finished, resulting in a) the volume coming out quite late and b) nearly unobtainable now that it is out.  I REALLY wish I could let you folks know where to order it, because I'd like that volume to get out there!!  If/when that happens, I will shout it out loud and clear on the list!

 

Take care,

 

                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