Re: Pedopenna daohugouensis n gen sp

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

Wow.

Unfortunately, nothing but that foot, the distal part of the (partially 
fused) tibiotarsus and the distal part of a possible fibula is preserved.

Diagnosis:
"A small eumaniraptoran apomorphically has a very slender pedal phalanx I-1 
(length/mid-shaft-diameter ratio about 7.2). It differs from the 
dromaeosaurids and troodontids in having a less specialized pedal digit II 
and pedal phalanx II-2 longer than II-1, from the dromaeosaurids in having a 
short metatarsal V and lacking a postomedial flange on metatarsal IV, from 
the Aves including *Epidendrosaurus* in having a hallux which is not 
reversed and a pedal phalangeal portion shorter than the metatarsus."

That latter feature should probably become a character in my matrix.

The toe proportions are, off the top of my head, similar to *Archaeopteryx*.

The foot feathers are narrower and fewer than in *Microraptor*, and 
seemingly symmetric. Their shafts are IMHO not thicker than normal. The 
entire "wing" has a round shape.

Consensus tree of 1616 MPTs. 259 characters! (AMNH dataset.) Species-level 
OTUs were used throughout; they can be found in the supplementary 
information 
http://www.springerlink.com/media/M3T1FAWHLG3XQGQHLK1P/Contributions/C/1/C/K/C1CKUT785MH2HQJ8_html/MediaObjects/114_2004_604_ESM_supp.pdf. 
The tree is called a majority consensus; however, all but 3 of the nodes 
shown below are marked "100" in the supp. inf., which most probably means 
that they appear in 100 % of the trees:

--+--*Allosaurus fragilis*
 `--+--Tyrannosauridae
    `--+--Ornithomimosauria
       `--+--*Ornitholestes hermanni*
          `--+--Alvarezsauridae
             `--+--+--Therizinosauroidea
                |  `--Oviraptorosauria
                `--+--*Pedopenna daohugouensis*
                   |--Aves 79
                   |    |--*Archaeopteryx lithographica*
                   |    |--*Epidendrosaurus ningchengensis*
                   |    `--93--*Rahonavis ostromi*
                   |       `--53--*Confuciusornis sanctus*
                   |          `--*Jeholornis [sic] prima [sic]*
                   `--+--+--*Sinovenator changii [sic]*
                      |  `--other troodontids
                      `--+--other dromaeosaurids
                         `--+--*Sinornithosaurus millenni [sic]*
                            |--*Microraptor zhaoianus*
                            `--*Graciliraptor lujiatunensis*

The supp. inf. also contains a list of unambiguous synapomorphies of the 
larger named clades. Strangely enough, "Avialae" is mentioned, which doesn't 
turn up in the text! "Avialae" has two (hallux distally located, phalanx I-1 
extending to level of distal end of metatarsal III; ascending process of 
astragalus tall and relatively narrow, covering lateral half of anterior 
surface of tibia including calcaneum), "Aves" has just one (mt I attaches to 
posterior surface of distal quarter of mt II).