Re: MJ coelurosaurians

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

At 04:47 PM 2/10/99 -0500, TJW wrote:
>>   On the subject of Middle and Late Jurassic coelurosaurians...I was
>>under the impression that *Chuandongocoelurus* was considered to be a
>>possible coelurosaurian by some.
>
>I was under the impression that _Chuandongocoelurus_ was too primitive to
>be a coelurosaurian - and I'm basing this on Norman's chapter in _The
>Dinosauria_.  The ascending process of the astragalus is not prominent
>(unlike coelurosaurians), and the scapula is broad rather than straplike
>(unlike tetanurines) (Norman, 1990).

The affinities of _Chuandongocoelurus_ have yet to be worked out.  Nothing
new on this animal has been found.

Please remember, too, that prior to 1986 "coelurosaur" simply meant "small
theropod" to most people: _Coelophysis_ and _Iliosuchus_ and _Podokesaurus_
were all "coelurosaurs".

But thanks for jogging my memory: regardless of its phylogenetic position,
_Chuandongocoelurus_ *is* a small theropod (femur length c. 20 cm) from the
Middle J.

Still not a lot to go on, though.

>_Gasosaurus_, I've heard, may be a basal coelurosaurian, but I don't have a
>reference.  Same goes for the British genus _Proceratosaurus_.

The reference for these, I'm afraid, is as yet still not published (Holtz,
in press, A new phylogeny of the carnivorous dinosaurs.  GAIA).

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