Re: Iguanodon(?) sp. and Jixiangornis

["David Marjanovic" <david.marjanovic@gmx.at>]

> The preserved ulna is a 25.5 cm long bone. In lateral view, its posterior
> margin is right[?]

Straight.

> If the two bones described previously are clearly identifiable like

As.

> pertaining to Iguanodontidae, [...]

> The genus Rhabdodon [ 17 ], is [the] only Iguanodontidae

Ouch! Like my Lambert book from 1983.

> known in the higher Cretaceous (Campanien and Maastrichtien) of Western
> Europe. Although it is present in many European layers [ 1, 4, 11, 15,
27 ],
> its membership of Iguanodontidae only was recently suggested [ 29 ].

What's that ref?

> Ji Qiang, Ji Shu[']an, Zhang Hongbin, You Hailu,
> Zhang Jianping, Wang Lixia, Yuan Changri,

Chongxi.

> the antorbital fenestra has not been lost.

Birds never lose it. Though in derived birds it is connected to the
orbit. -- The authors label both the aof and the naris "antorbital
fenestra".

> There are quadrangular lateral processes on sternum.  The sternal plates
are
> ossified and co-fused with a midline keel.

Now a kind soul sent me a scan of the paper, and I still can't see the keel.
:-( The skull looks, superficially, quite oviraptorosaurian.

> The superficial surfaces of coracoid face anteriorly.

Instead of laterally, which means that the coracoids articulate with the
cranial instead of lateral margins of the sternum. As expected.

>  There are ossified uncinate processes.

Not fused to the ribs, as usual.

> Only III-3 and the ungual [are preserved] as far as the phalanges go for
manual digit III.

The rest could be hidden underneath digit II.

> The metatarsus is proximally fused to each other and to the distal
tarsals.

Interestingly the 3rd metatarsal could, judging from the drawing, be
broadened proximally, like in *Hulsanpes*, *Yandangornis*, *Sapeornis* and
Pygostylia, but no other theropod I know of. If entered into my matrix,
*Jixiangornis* would differ by this character (and the keel) from
*Shenzhouraptor* and would screw that part of the tree up.

> Pedal ungual II is larger and more curved than III.

As expected. I coded *Shenzhouraptor* as uncertain for this (either III or
II largest; the alternative would be I as in avisaurids and neornithine
birds of prey).

> Pedal digit IV is [...] much longer than II.

Like *Shenzhouraptor* in my matrix.

>       `-- Orthavialae
>           |-- Shenzhouraptor
>           `-- Euavialae

No definitions offered. At least I can't find Avialae in the Chinese text.
They put "bird/s" between quotation marks several times, though (unlike
"dinosaur/s"), and probably discuss the problem of defining "birds".