Re: Hippo-whale paper

[Tim Williams <twilliams_alpha@hotmail.com>]

David Marjanovic wrote:

> Every node must be named, don't you remember (from the late 80s)? If in 
> doubt whether a node has already been named, name it anyway (Supraprimates 
> = Euarchontoglires; Boreotheria = Boreoeutheria).

Also, with molecular-based phylogenies, no node can really be diagnosed by 
morphological characters.

> BTW, this is the Generally Approved List Of the Eighteen Plus/Minus Zero 
> Placental Orders:
> Afrosoricida, Macroscelidea, Tubulidentata, Hyracoidea, Proboscidea, 
> Sirenia, Xenarthra,
> Lagomorpha, Rodentia, Scandentia, Dermoptera, Primates, Eulipotyphla, 
> Chiroptera,
> Carnivora, Pholidota, Perissodactyla, Cetartiodactyla

These are the extant placental orders, yes.  To this we can add seven extant 
marsupial orders: Didelphimorphia, Paucituberculata, Microbiotheria, 
Dasyuromorphia, Notoryctemorphia, Peramelina (=Peramelemorphia), and 
Diprotodontia.  I've also seen the monotremes split into two orders: 
Platypoda and Tachyglossa.  I'm not a huge fan of "orders"; and most of them 
break down completely when you throw fossil taxa into the mix.


Tim