Re: feathered ornithopods?

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

Mickey Mortimer (Mickey_Mortimer111@msn.com) wrote:

<Jaime Headden feels the probable coelurosaur Ozraptor is a basal
dromaeosaur->

  This is a tad bit more than what I suggested, which was to draw
comparisons between the holotype and that tibia of *Utahraptor* and
*Deinonychus*, permitting me to, if I chose, a single group to which the
tibia most conforms, it would be the dromaeosaurids.

<And that's it for the specimens referred to dromaeosaurids, but there are
a few more that should be mentioned- Timimus hermanni does look to be
maniraptoran, but not dromaeosaurid. The dorsal vertebrae NMV P186302 is
rather dromaeosaur-like, but was referred to the Oviraptorosauria by
Currie et al. (1996).>

  It also looks like *Chirostenotes* and *Microvenator*, and a few other
small coelurosaurs. The referal was, I beleive, precipitated on Currie's
recent work on *Chirostenotes* by Currie in the earlier decade.

<It could use further examination in my opinion.>

  There may not be that much m,ore that could be done for it. It is well
illustrated in multiple views, and even demonstrates CT scanning of its
internal structure. This permits excellent comparison till the bone can be
manually compared, which would be ideal, but may not demonstrate many
details. Both Currie's and Donna's stippling techiniques are excellent in
that they draw the cracks, fractures, holes, etc. in the specimen instead
of "patching them up". Next best thing to having photos.

<Kakuru kujani, though always said to be avimimid, has little evidence for
such an assignment.>

  This was based solely on on-list considerations and a comparison which
draw slenderness of its tibia. Otherwise, in the lit *Kakuru* has been
primarily identified with *Ingenia*. I beleive that I, several years ago,
suggested it was more similar to *Avimimus* based on tibial proportions,
but the proximal end is eroded, the exact shaft length is unknown (there
is at least one point in the shaft where the ends do not meet and thus do
not permit an accurate estimate of length. A minimum length is presented
by both Molnar and Pledge (1981) and Dann Pigdon on his site.

<Still, doesn't look dromaeosaur to me. A humerus from the Miria formation
(specimen number?) was presented as a possible dromaeosaurid, but Rutger's
right in that it looks more like a segnosaur.>

  This is the Giralia specimen, and there is work in progress on this.
Especially in light of John Long's preliminary work.

  Cheers,

=====
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.

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