Re: problem with interpretation of models in avian phylogeny

[Nick Pharris <npharris@umich.edu>]

Quoting Dora Smith <villandra@austin.rr.com>:

>                          i------ Ostriches and Rheas
>                          i
>                   i------
>                   i      i
>                   i      i------ Chickens and ducks
>         i--------
>         i         i
>         i         i----- Falcon
> ------i
>        i
>        i
>        i---------   Passerines
>
> This model does not show that Passerines are basal to all other birds.   It
> shows that Passerines were the first group to diverge from the other birds.

It's common practice to use the term "basal" for 'early-diverging', rather than
'ancestral'.

Nick Pharris
Department of Linguistics
University of Michigan