To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! New Papers

["Jerry D. Harris" <jharris@dixie.edu>]

Kim, J.Y., Kim, K.S., Lockley, M.G., Yang, S.Y., Seo, S.J., Choi, H.I., and
Lim, J.D. 2008. New didactyl dinosaur footprints (Dromaeosauripus hamanensis
ichnogen. et ichnosp. nov.) from the Early Cretaceous Haman Formation, south
coast of Korea. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology
262(1-2):72-78. doi: 10.1016/j.palaeo.2008.02.003.

ABSTRACT: Didactyl dinosaur footprints in fine-grained sandstone of the
Early Cretaceous Haman Formation, Namhae area, Korea are herein described.
The tracks are ~ 15 cm long and ~ 9.0 cm wide and consist only of
impressions of digits III and IV, which show well-developed pad impressions.
Digit impressions are narrow (about 2.0 cm), and terminate in sharp claw
traces. Trackway width is very narrow, about 10.0 cm. Step length is about
92 cm and stride is about 185 cm. Pace angulation is about 180°, i.e.,
consecutive tracks are nearly in a straight line. The tracks are thought to
have been made by a dromaeosaurid characterized by a strongly recurved, pes
digit II that did not register on the substrate.
     The didactyl trackway is attributed to a small dromaeosaurid
(Deinonychosauria) running bipedally with a speed of 17.5 km/h on a lake
margin. The didactyl tracks, described herein as Dromaeosauripus hamanensis
ichnogen. et ichnosp. nov. represent only the fourth convincing record of
didactyl tracks attributable to a member of the Deinonychosauria in the
world, and the first in Korea. The report also provides significant
information about the hip height, body size, foot morphology, walking or
running speed, paleoecology, and paleogeography of dromaeosaurids that
flourished during the Early Cretaceous in northeast Asia.




da Silva, R.C., Ferigolo, J., de Souza Carvalho, I., and Sequeira Fernandes,
A.C. 2008. Lacertoid footprints from the Upper Triassic (Santa Maria
Formation) of southern Brazil. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology,
Palaeoecology 262(3-4):140-156. doi: 10.1016/j.palaeo.2008.02.006.

ABSTRACT: The Triassic of Southern Brazil is well-known for its rich
tetrapod body fossils. However, trace fossils such as tetrapod trackways and
trails were discovered only recently from the Predebon outcrop (upper part
of the Alemoa Member, Santa Maria Formation), providing new information on
small-sized animals. The trackways can be identified as Rhynchosauroides
retroversipes isp. nov., Rhynchosauroides isp., Rhynchosauroides? isp. and
drag marks produced by swimming animals of lacertoid affinity. The
preservation of the tracks and trackways was influenced by the water level
whilst they were being made and subsequent subaerial exposure. The
trackmaker of R. retroversipes isp. nov. corresponds to a lacertoid
quadruped tetrapod with primitive autopodia, a sprawling gait and possibly a
long tail, whilst the pes was directed postero-laterally. The trackmaker may
have been a climbing animal, with adaptations that include curved claws and
reversion of the pes. On the ground this animal would have had a slow,
lumbering locomotion, although it could attain higher speeds over short
distances using a bipedal gait. These trackways can be attributed to
lacertoid reptiles, possibly sphenodontids, whose skeletons are encountered
in the Caturrita Formation, which overlies the Santa Maria Formation.



Marzoli, A., Bertrand, H., Knight, K.B., Cirilli, S., Nomade, S., Renne,
P.R., Vérati, C., Youbi, N., Martini, R., and Bellieni, G. 2008. Comment on
?Synchrony between the Central Atlantic magmatic province and the
Triassic?Jurassic mass-extinction event? By Whiteside et al. (2007)?.
Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 262(3-4):189-193. doi:
10.1016/j.palaeo.2008.01.016.



Whiteside, J.H., Olsen, P.E., Kent, D.V., Fowell, S.J., and Et-Touhami, M.
2008. Synchrony between the Central Atlantic magmatic province and the
Triassic?Jurassic mass-extinction event? Reply to Marzoli et al.
Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 262(3-4):194-198. doi:
10.1016/j.palaeo.2008.02.010.





Morgan-Richards, M., Trewick, S.A., Bartosch-Harlid, A., Kardailsky, O.,
Phillips, M.J., McLenachan, P.A., and Penny, D. 2008. Bird evolution:
testing the Metaves clade with six new mitochondrial genomes. BMC
Evolutionary Biology 8:20. doi: 10.1186/1471-2148-8-20.

ABSTRACT:
Background
Evolutionary biologists are often misled by convergence of morphology and
this has been common in the study of bird evolution. However, the use of
molecular data sets have their own problems and phylogenies based on short
DNA sequences have the potential to mislead us too. The relationships among
clades and timing of the evolution of modern birds (Neoaves) has not yet
been well resolved. Evidence of convergence of morphology remain
controversial. With six new bird mitochondrial genomes (hummingbird, swift,
kagu, rail, flamingo and grebe) we test the proposed Metaves/Coronaves
division within Neoaves and the parallel radiations in this primary avian
clade.
Results
Our mitochondrial trees did not return the Metaves clade that had been
proposed based on one nuclear intron sequence. We suggest that the high
number of indels within the seventh intron of the ß-fibrinogen gene at this
phylogenetic level, which left a dataset with not a single site across the
alignment shared by all taxa, resulted in artifacts during analysis. With
respect to the overall avian tree, we find the flamingo and grebe are sister
taxa and basal to the shorebirds (Charadriiformes). Using a novel
site-stripping technique for noise-reduction we found this relationship to
be stable. The hummingbird/swift clade is outside the large and very diverse
group of raptors, shore and sea birds. Unexpectedly the kagu is not closely
related to the rail in our analysis, but because neither the kagu nor the
rail have close affinity to any taxa within this dataset of 41 birds, their
placement is not yet resolved.
Conclusion
Our phylogenetic hypothesis based on 41 avian mitochondrial genomes (13,229
bp) rejects monophyly of seven Metaves species and we therefore conclude
that the members of Metaves do not share a common evolutionary history
within the Neoaves.




Parker, W.G. 2008. Description of new material of the aetosaur Desmatosuchus
spurensis (Archosauria: Suchia) from the Chinle Formation of Arizona and a
revision of the genus Desmatosuchus. PaleoBios 28(1):1-40.

ABSTRACT: A new specimen of Desmatosuchus from northeastern Arizona (MNA
V9300) preserves almost the entire vertebral column, the pelvis, and the
majority of the armor carapace, allowing for an unprecedented detailed
description of the taxon. Articulation and reconstruction of the armor
carapace demonstrates that previous reconstructions of Desmatosuchus are
erroneous in the orientation and position of the lateral armor. Lateral
plates of the anterior dorsal region possess low rounded knobs instead of
developed spines. The dorsal flange of the lateral plates of the dorsal
region is longer than the lateral or ventral flange making the carapace
transversely wider than previously thought. As a result, previous
reconstructions articulate the lateral armor not only backwards but also on
the wrong sides of the body. Posterior presacral vertebrae are extremely
robust and possess fused ribs and the last presacral vertebra has been fused
to the sacrum, a character that may be taxonomically useful. A prefrontal
bone is also present in Desmatosuchus, contrary to previous descriptions.
Reinvestigation of the genus Desmatosuchus suggests that there are only two
valid species, D. spurensis and D. smalli. The lectotype of Episcoposaurus
haplocerus is referable to Desmatosuchus but indeterminate at the species
level, and therefore represents a nomen dubium. Accordingly, D. spurensis is
reinstated as the type species of Desmatosuchus and the new Arizona specimen
is assigned to this taxon. Acaenasuchus geoffreyi, a purported juvenile form
of Desmatosuchus, is not referable to Desmatosuchus.



~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Jerry D. Harris
Director of Paleontology
Dixie State College
Science Building
225 South 700 East
St. George, UT  84770   USA
Phone: (435) 652-7758
Fax: (435) 656-4022
E-mail: jharris@dixie.edu
 and     dinogami@gmail.com
http://cactus.dixie.edu/jharris/

"There's a saying that goes 'people who live in glass houses shouldn't throw
stones'... OK. How about...NOBODY should throw stones. That's crappy
behavior! My policy is 'no stone-throwing regardless of housing situation.'
There's an exception, though. If you're TRAPPED in a glass house...and you
have a stone, then throw it! What are you, an idiot? It's really 'ONLY
people in glass houses should throw stones'... provided they're trapped, in
a house... with a stone. It's a little longer, but you know..."
                                 --- Demetri Martin