Re: Segnosaurs ejected from AVES

["David Marjanovic" <david.marjanovic@gmx.at>]

> Yes, how crazy of me to think that the two of you (actually more) actually
> look at the specimens. I really must have my head examined. Really, I was
> thinking along the lines that since you said 'I promise this is a 'real'
> semilunate carpal!  Just give me a chance!", ment, and I know this is
> totally nuts of me, that you SAW the specimen [...]

HP Tim Williams was, after all, _quoting_ his fictional *Beipiaosaurus*
_who_ said "_I_ promise [...] Just give _me_ a chance!". This was, IMHO
obviously, a joke referring to a _possible_ situation in the actual fossil.

> look at
> the specimen...
>
> You do realize that the two of you (and more) will just keep going back
and
> forth and nothing will get resolved.

Yes, erm, just an attempt to stay in your tone -- "just organize a few 1000
$ and fly over to China". Of course this thread won't resolve what that bone
really looks like. So far all we, er, I have is the original description.
        "Five carpals are preserved. The largest distal carpal, the
semilunate (Fig. 2c, d), is smaller than but otherwise identical tto that of
*Deinonychus*[...]. It primarily contacts metacarpal II but also touches
metacarpal I (Fig. 2d), unlike the condition in *Alxasaurus*, in which the
largest carpal is the distal carpal I[...]. Distal carpal I is large and
oval (Fig. 2c)." In Fig. 2c and d both dc2 are seen in proximal view, so
it's difficult to see just how semilunate they are. They definitely have the
trochlear surface. The element labelled dc1 is only preserved in the left
hand and lies at some distance from dc2, which is labelled as the
semilunate. So *Beipiaosaurus* may have the same condition as other
segnosaurs, namely, an unfused semilunate composed of dc1 and 2. In the
absence of accessible evidence to the contrary.

> By the way, anyone see the DML lately? I can't find it. I think I've
> accidentally gotten the cladagram list run by Ken, Tim, David and Mickey
> (and others).

Thanks a lot, erm, I'd mention HP philidor11. He has started the thread
about "classification"; on the PhyloCode mailing list there are no such
discussions because all participants I know already _agree_ that the
PhyloCode should be finished, enforced, and used ASAP.