RE: Microraptor and Birds

["T. Michael Keesey" <mightyodinn@yahoo.com>]

--- Tim Williams <twilliams_alpha@hotmail.com> wrote:
> T. Michael Keesey wrote:
> 
> >Or, as I suggested a while back on the list, "Enigmoraptora" ("enigmatic
> >raiders")or "Enigmodracones" (sp? "enigmatic dragons"). "-sauria" is so
> >overused (and kinda inaccurate....)
> 
> I would suggest resurrecting the names Caenagnathiformes (taxa closer to 
> _Caenagnathus_ than to _Archaeopteryx_) and Archaeopterygiformes (taxa 
> closer to _Archaeopteryx_ than to _Caenagnathus_) to subdivide the "higher" 
> Maniraptora.

You seriously wouldn't mind sparrows, eagles, ostriches, penguins, etc. being
archaeopterygiforms? Personally, I think Archaeopterygiformes would be better
for Clade(_Archaeopteryx lithographica_ <- [insert favorite neornithean species
here]), especially since your suggested Archaeopterygiformes is a
heterodefinitional synonym of _Paraves_.

(Caenagnathiformes, though -- that could work....)

> The pitfall with descriptive names (e.g., Arctometatarsalia, Maniraptora, 
> Saurischia) is that some or most of the constituent taxa may lack the 
> nominative characters.

If they lack it because it's secondarily lost, I don't think this is a big deal
(unless perhaps, the majority of members have lost it).

This is why it might be a good idea to makes names based on apomorphies refer
to apomorphy-based taxa. (_Saurischia_ is excluded, since it is based on a
plesiomorphy.) Defining _Arctometatarsalia_ as Clade("arctometatarsalian pes"
in _Ornithomimus velox_) might be better than allowing the possibility of,
e.g., therizinosaurs being arctometatarsalians, despite not having an
arctometatarsalian pes. (Although I have to admit it's nice to have a name for
Clade(_O. velox_ <-- [insert favorite neornithean species here]). And of
course, there are some problems with apomorphy-based taxa -- such as questions
like, "At what point is a pes truly 'arctometatarsalian'?")

"Enigmoraptora", "Enigmodracones" (sp?), "Aenigmosauria", etc. don't refer to a
dubious genus (or any genus), and don't refer to any character -- they are
suitable for any node- or stem-based definition.


=====
=====> T. Michael Keesey <keesey@bigfoot.com>
=====> The Dinosauricon <http://dinosauricon.com>
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