Re: Mesozoic mammals

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

----- Original Message -----
From: "Mickey Mortimer" <Mickey_Mortimer111@msn.com>

> I recommend downloading http://www.paleo.pan.pl/acta/acta47/app47â001.pdf
> for the most recent comprehensive cladistic analysis of basal mammals.

Ah, now it works! Great!!!

> Multituberculates appear to be basal theriiformes,

Isn't Theriiformes defined that way?

> Triconodonts consist of at
> least three separately evolving taxa as well- the basal mammalian
> morganucodontids and Sinoconodon, and the basal theriiform eutriconodonts
> (gobiconodontids, amphilestids, Jeholodens, triconodontids).

Oh, yeah, _old-style_ Triconodonta. Usually I think nobody uses anymore
anyway (Mikko Haaramo doesn't), so I hardly mentioned it yesterday, but then
there's a paper in the JVP of September (22 August) 2001 that describes the
megazostrodontid (basal docodont?) *Indozostrodon* as a triconodont because
it has, well, three cusps in line on its molars -- the plesiomorphy.

> Symmetrodonta has been broken up into at least three groups-
kuehneotheriids
> below the australosphenid-theriiform split,

which is the crown-group Mammalia,

> the basal theriiform Tinodon,

Wow... so they managed to get a tooth taxon into an interesting place!

> --Mammaliamorpha
>   |--+--Tritylodontidae
>   |  `--Haramyidae

Really interesting.

>   `--+--Trithelodontidae

Trithel_e_dontidae, don't ask me why.

>      `--+--Adelobasileus
>         `--Mammalia

Aw... not another definition for Mammalia. :.-(