Gastroliths in Chinese theropods

["Thomas R. Holtz, Jr." <th81@umail.umd.edu>]

>Not if it was a swimmer. A new specimen has been found with gastroliths.
This could weigh the animal down, and maybe it 'flew' underwater like some
liveing birds do today.

Hold on there, Tracy!

Gastroliths are a primitive archosaurian feature: birds have'm, crocs
have'm, and by using phylogenetic bracketing, all other archosaurs probably
had them.  It is no more an aquatic feature than is the antorbital fenestra!

Thomas R. Holtz, Jr.
Vertebrate Paleontologist     Webpage: http://www.geol.umd.edu
Dept. of Geology              Email:th81@umail.umd.edu
University of Maryland        Phone:301-405-4084
College Park, MD  20742       Fax:  301-314-9661