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Re: More on Birds, dinosaurs, and digits (oops!)



Not wishing to again be chided by Bill Adlam (quite correctly) for
inaccuracy, I checked my reference to I-II-III in ceratopsids:
Peter Dodson, *The Horned Dinosaurs* pp. 229, 234 (Psittacosaurus), c.f 201
(similar pattern in Triceratops).  Interestingly, Dodson refers to
metacarpal III in Chasmosaurus as "the central axis of the forefoot."  p.
41.  Looks like you're really on to something!

Now the interesting question: is a II-III-IV pattern ever observed in
ceratopsids?  That is, has the pattern ever been seen to reverse?  No sign
of it in Dodson's book.  However, if the I-II-III pattern in ceratopsids
shows that this is a feature buried *deeply* in the Dinosauria, almost any
dinosaur with II-III-IV would be a very useful beast to find.  Anyone?

  --Toby White