Re: What is a Dinosaur? and semilunate carpal

[Dinogeorge@aol.com]

In a message dated 9/6/01 1:20:34 PM EST, twilliams_alpha@hotmail.com writes:

<< I wonder if this feature, like the increasingly inflexible wrist of 
 tetanurines, was designed to prevent the forelimb and hand from "wobbling" 
 while gripping prey - in other words, providing a more stable and secure 
 grip while engaging struggling prey. >>

No, it was "designed" to prevent wobbling while the animal was winging its 
way through the air. Wobbling wings don't work very well, and any 
anti-wobbling adaptations would be selected for in the evolution of flight. 
The anti-wobbling features of the forelimb were later inherited by the 
flightless descendants of the winged ancestral tetanurans and exapted for 
other purposes.