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All, Mikko’s Phylogeny Archive formally renounces three subfamily-names and I strongly recommend that people stop using them. While doing a long needed revision of Mikko’s Phylogeny Archive’s subpage on basal Ornithischians and Ornithopods, I came across a very bad taxonomic fumble created by myself. For a very long time (I think since 1995) I have used properly formatted subfamily-names for three subgroups of “Hypsilophodontids”. The three names used were (and are, until I put a revision online tomorrow);
Othnielinae, Zephyrosaurinae, and Hypsilophodontinae. These subgroups come from analysis of Weishampel and Heinrich (1992),
but they didn’t name these subgroups in that study. I did that when I was making the original subtree of Ornithopods. To my horror, I noticed today that these names, which were meant to be informal, have escaped to wider use in the net.
Renouncing these three “subfamilies” is especially important, since at least one of these groups has been formally named, as
Thescelosauridae: Orodrominae Brown, Evans, Ryan & Russell, 2013. I would also like to apologise Dr. David Weishampel and Dr. Ronald Heinrich of possible damage this fumble has caused to their scientific reputations. As I started Archive in the Dark Age of the Web, I had not idea that It would have such an influence on the field. Otherwise I should have been much more careful about using informal group names, and never, ever, should have used them as properly formatted as if they were true taxon names. My only excuse of creating this taxonomic fumble, is that I was young and stupid 3rd year student, with only preliminary knowledge of rules and principles of taxonomy, and had no clue how this would affect people. This can also serve as a remainder to us all, both professionals and hobbyist, not to blindly trust on webpage’s and always check the references on the page. There is a reason why the Archive has a disclaimer.
--Mikko Haaramo, Helsinki, 2019-03-21 Referenses: Mikko's Phylogeny Archive: Ornithopoda – ornithopods Weishampel, D. B. & Heinrich, R. E., 1992: Systematics of Hypsilophodontidae and basal Iguanodontia (Dinosauria: Ornithopoda). Brown, C. M., Evans, D. C., Ryan, M. J. & Russell, A. P., 2013: New Data on the Diversity and Abundance of Small-Bodied Ornithopods (Dinosauria, Ornithischia) from the Belly River Group (Campanian) of Alberta. |