Re: New Cretaceous bird fills fossil gap

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

Dann Pigdon (dannj@alphalink.com.au) wrote:

<Yet another sweeping statement prompted by a single fossil?>

  From a host of different groups of ornithureans that showed that modern birds
derived from serially nesting groups of aquatic avians. The new fossils of
*Gansus* (providing in _three_ more specimens -- plus the type pes -- nearly
all of the skeleton sans neck and head) allows a more concrete placement of the
taxon relative to other taxa, and support of the cladistic relationship of it
overall and the placement of the extant avian lineage from such birds, all
aquatic. The press releases using terms like "waterfowl" seems improper as the
term is used ornithologically for anseriforms, if I am not mistaken.

  Cheers,

Jaime A. Headden
http://bitestuff.blogspot.com/

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

__________________________________________________
Do You Yahoo!?
Tired of spam?  Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around 
http://mail.yahoo.com