Re: Transitional species

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

Amtoine Grant (ajgrant@eastlink.ca) wrote:

<Not to lessen the signifigance of Falcrius' discovery, but isn't Troodon more
of a transitional species? It's tooth morphology strongly resembles that of
other lines known to have direct canivorous ancestors, while still retaining
the carnivorous body plan. It seems to me the transitional species had already
been found.>

  *Falcarius* is referred to as a transitional carnivore/herbivore cross for
it's lineage, and the "broad" allusions to a carno/herbo transition was
neccessary for publication. That said, current agreement would imply that
troodontids maintained a pretty hefty meat intake in their diet, not even 50%
plant matter, and there is potential evidence to suggest that troodont teeth of
the "troodontines" from the Campano-Maastrichtian of Mongolia, China, and
Canada maintained a strongly carnivorous diet in strongly recurved and
blade-like teeth. However, this evidence is all based on weak tooth-shape data,
rather than preserved prey.

  I hope this helps.

  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)


                
__________________________________ 
Do you Yahoo!? 
Read only the mail you want - Yahoo! Mail SpamGuard. 
http://promotions.yahoo.com/new_mail