re: Dodos, Swifts and Quetzalcoatlus.

["Jaime A. Headden" <qilongia@yahoo.com>]

Swifts are easily identified on the basis of a humerus by is short, squat,
stubby appearance. The pterosaur humerus in general would be similar to
this, even relative to the rest of the wing, but this is related to the
generally short arm in swifts relative to most birds. Gerhard Mayr has
identified swifts from the Eocene of the Messell and the London Clay beds
on the basis of their humerus shape and proportions, so has done much work
among "land birds" in swift arm anatomy in comparison. One might wish to
follow up on his work to clarify.

=====
Jaime A. Headden

  Little steps are often the hardest to take.  We are too used to making leaps 
in the face of adversity, that a simple skip is so hard to do.  We should all 
learn to walk soft, walk small, see the world around us rather than zoom by it.

"Innocent, unbiased observation is a myth." --- P.B. Medawar (1969)

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