Re: How are columbiformes (doves and pigeons) related to psittaciformes?

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

>   These would be Loriidae, not Lorisidae (Primates).

Sorry, true.

>   The presence of a beaked jaw with loriid synapomorphies may likely be
> convergent. There is a lot to say for this, and this is almost ENTIRELY
> stratigraphic as David supports (but doesn't tell me what Gerald Mayr
> actually said).

I'll look it up... was a Nature comment & reply...

> if this form bears those synapomorphies
> (as both Clarke and Stidham have said)

it does

> and is avian,

we don't know if it is

> and is a higher land bird,

no evidence whatsoever either way -- except that it's toothless

> That said, the distinctive vascularization is suggestive of loriid
> affinities: parrots MAY have an incredibly old lineage.

Would imply pretty weird fossilization conditions for them... and all
Neornithes older than Eocene.

>From another post:

> As for nomenclature, since the stem is _kleo-_ it would
> be _kleidae_. "Key," as in _kleidos_, becomes _kleidi-_
> (as I'm sure David knows)

I assume it (via analogy from Latin and from other scientific names), but I
don't know it -- I haven't learned Greek.