Re: Letters in the new Discover issue

[jrc <jrccea@bellsouth.net>]

I thought it was interesting exchange.  Asymmetric feathers are NOT required 
for flight.  What they do do, when present, is allow the feather shaft of a 
flight feather to be slightly less robust, and they also reduce the 
biological cost of the moult.  In other words, there is a selective pressure 
that drives their development, but it is a convenience for flight, not a 
requirement, and its presence is not an indicator of flight.  Nor is its 
absence necessarily an indicator of flightlessness.
JimC

----- Original Message ----- 
From: <mkirkaldy@aol.com>
To: <dinosaur@usc.edu>
Sent: Monday, July 25, 2005 3:45 PM
Subject: Letters in the new Discover issue


> Check out the letters section of the August Discover Magazine - "Preparing 
> for Takeoff"
> http://www.discover.com/issues/aug-05/departments/rs/
> for a delicious exchange of ideas between Stephen Czerkas and Mark Norell.
>
> Mary