Re: Dinosaurs and birds

[dinoboygraphics@aol.com]

The short version is that there were no fake feathers, ever.  There was 
a composite specimen the was made up of a feathered dromeaosaur and a 
primitive bird.  The specimen was put together by chinese farmer who 
was trying to make a more complete specimen to feed his family, and 
didn't realize (or perhaps didn't care) that he had combinded two 
different animals.

Since the specimen (formerly called "Archaeoraptor") contained a 
primitive bird very like its dinosaur ancestors, and a feathered 
dromaeosaur clearly close to the orgin of birds, it's hard to fathom 
how anyone could possible think that this specimen was anything but 
strong evididence for the dinosaurian origin of birds.

Along with the dozens of other feathered dinosaur fossils from China, 
these finds have only reinforced the very strong consensus amongst 
professionals that birds are a kind of dinosaur.

Scott Hartman
Science Director
Wyoming Dinosaur Center
110 Carter Ranch Rd.
Thermopolis, WY 82443
(800) 455-3466 ext. 230
Cell: (307) 921-8333

www.skeletaldrawing.com

-----Original Message-----
From: adbinc@arn.net
To: DINOSAUR@usc.edu
Sent: Tue, 3 Apr 2007 8:41 AM
Subject: Dinosaurs and birds

Ok, I really don't want to touch off a creationist mess (and no, I 
don't believe that junk any more than anyone else around here) but I 
bumped into an old friend who is a creationist (and has some outlandish 
theories) and he insists that "even all of the non-creationist 
dinsosaur paleontologists realized that birds are not related to 
dinosaurs after the fake feather scandal of 1999".Â
Â
Now, I've been gone from the hobby for a while, but did I really miss 
this?Â
Â
Do you real VPs ((I mean, other than Olshevsky) no longer believe birds 
descend from Archy and his cousins?Â
Â


________________________________________________________________________
AOL now offers free email to everyone.  Find out more about what's free 
from AOL at AOL.com.
=0