Re: Hwang et al. dataset runs

["Mickey Mortimer" <Mickey_Mortimer111@msn.com>]

Nick Gardner wrote-

> I'm not sure what's up, I ran Hwang et al.'s original dataset in PAUP*
> 4.0b10 and I could not recover anything more than a large polytomy of any
> taxon more derived than the Tyrannosauridae.

I got 48195 MPT's when using the heuristic search, with the consensus being
identical to that in Hwang et al. (2002).

> Just to see what would happen, I deleted all taxa that were not discussed
in
> Paul 1988, and actually got something... I particularly am not saying this
> supports anything, just that's its interesting.  To say this right off, no
> other basal birds were included, which is possible that's why that
> _Archaeopteryx lithographica_ is so basal within Maniraptora.

Actually, Archaeopteryx isn't basal within Maniraptora in your consensus
tree.  It's just in a polytomy with Ornitholestes, segnosaurs, troodontids,
dromaeosaurids and oviraptorosaurs.
When I ran the analysis with only taxa known in Paul 1988, I got 90 MPT's-
|--+--Albertosaurus
|  `--Tyrannosaurus
`--+--+--Harpymimus
   |  |--Garudimimus
   |  `--+--Gallimimus
   |     `--Struthiomimus
   `--+--Ornitholestes
      `--+--+--+--Segnosaurus
         |  |  `--Erlikosaurus
         |  `--+--Avimimus
         |     `--+--Microvenator
         |        |--Oviraptor
         |        |--Conchoraptor
         |        |--Ingenia
         |        `--+--Citipati
         |           `--Chirostenotes
         `--+--Archaeopteryx
            `--+--+--Saurornithoides mongoliensis
               |  |--Saurornithoides junior
               |  `--Troodon
               `--+--Dromaeosaurus
                  |--Adasaurus
                  |--Deinonychus
                  |--Saurornitholestes
                  `--Velociraptor
Looks identical to Hwang et al.'s tree with all taxa included, except for
the Citipati + Chirostenotes clade.

Mickey Mortimer