Re: FEATHERY LITTLE TYRANNOSAURS

[Nick Longrich <longrich@phoenix.Princeton.EDU>]

On Fri, 1 Nov 1996 gpb6845@msu.oscs.montana.edu wrote:

> Either way, the point still is that compsognathids aren't closer to birds
> than Tyrannosaurs, so Tyrannosaurs still fall within the feather-bearing
> clade.  I would even argue that Arctomets could be closer to birds than
> Archaeopterygids are because they seem to share a derived V1 olfactory nerve
> anotomy with birds that Archaeopterigids might not have (I'll know one way or
> the other when and if Witmer publishes something about it in the new
> Deinonychus material).

        I'd guess that dromaeosaurs did have that. I think segnosaurs are
supposed to have that character too, so unless they're reverted arctomets,
this might imply that it's a pretty common maniraptoran feature. 
 There is one feature of dromaeosaurs and archaeopterygians that is not,
to my knowledge, found in other dinosaurs besides birds, and that's a
methesmoid bone. I believe that it's the same bone that you see if you
look into a bird's orbits- the little bone septum running between them. 
        Mr. Holtz?

[That's *Dr.* Tim to you, buddy :-) -- MR ]