RE: noasaurids strikes back

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

Mike Keesey (mightyodinn@yahoo.com) wrote:

<Wouldn't it be better if that were "including the velocisaurines"?>

  I presume here that Noasauridae included Velocisauridae as a synonym.
Both type species are sister taxa for the most part, in a sense that all
noasaurs/velocisaurs are equally weighted and equidistant from one
another, without internal nodes. The brevity of material in all taxa save
for *Masiakasaurus* makes it difficult to assess synapomorphies that may
only be held by two taxa observationally ... other taxa cannot even be
assessed based on lack of material. ONLY *Noasaurus* has been determined
to have a "raptorial" pedal claw of all these, despite that *Ligabueino,*
a more basal form, has a similar non-ungual phalanx it too does not
determine ability to hyperflex (this is also true of the non-ungual
phalanx in *Noasaurus,* although it is relatively shorter than in
*Velocisaurus* or *Masiakasaurus*). This determines to me that the
composition of "Noasauridae" includes "velocisaurids" and "noasaurids,"
without I think any differentiation of a subgroup without more complete
material. *Noasaurus* itself has a maxilla largely identical to that of
*Masiakasaurus,* which form does not have any similar ungual to
*Noasaurus'.* This I consider to be compelling in that IF the ungual is
pedal, the feature is unique to *Noasaurus,* without more material or more
similar taxa. Dividing subgroups would be premature, in my opinion.

  Comments from  Nick Longrich on *Deltadromeus,* among other subjects,
are to be had here:  http://www.cmnh.org/dinoarch/2000Nov/msg00067.html.

  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.

"Innocent, unbiased observation is a myth." --- P.B. Medawar (1969)


        
                
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