Re: Our current understanding of Mesozoic bird phylogeny

[Michael Mortimer <mickey_mortimer111@msn.com>]

David Marjanovic wrote-

> > As for Cuspirostrisornis-
> > [...] toothless maxilla
>
> Really? You didn't show that in your Dinosauricon reconstruction. Is it 
> visible in Hou's photo?

Hou mentions it in the description, which wasn't translated at the time I 
made my reconstruction.  I'm guessing I assumed maxillary teeth to be 
present and they were too small to make out of dotted lines.  Really my 
reconstructions of Hou's (2000) birds are hindered by optimistic placement 
of fragments and Hou's terrible illustrations.

> What has become of the sternal keel that extends over the entire length 
> (shared with *Neuquenornis* and Ornithurae sensu Gauthier & de Queiroz), 
> and the very large claw on the 1st toe (shared with *Neuquenornis* and IIRC 
> *Concornis*)?

I think the apparent sternal keel in the illustration is actually the 
sacrum.  Hou notes "Dorsal to the
sternum there are extremely well preserved impressions of five to six dorsal 
vertebrae ... Posterior to the dorsals are at least seven sacral vertebrae 
basically composing a synsacrum. The centra are fused although their count 
is still discernible. A single unified synsacrum is rare among the Early 
Cretaceous taxa. There is a narrow ventral crest on the synsacrum and a 
relatively deep longitudinal groove lies laterally on the centra between the 
relatively expanded parapophyses."
It's possible the hallucial ungual is enlarged.  There are other characters 
indicating it's more basal than Concornis and Neuquenornis though.

> > > >            `--Euornithes
> > > >               |--Aberratiodontus
> > [...]
>
> Ah, so we have a bird with bizarre dentition (for bird measures) lurking 
> around the origin of Ornithothoraces and biting you with its caniniforms if 
> you get too close. I hope the next specimen will not be split through all 
> bones.

I hope the holotype is described decently.  The main important features 
noted by the authors (prefrontal, postorbital-jugal contact) are probably 
not real.  Same goes for Dalingheornis and it's supposed heterodactly.  Then 
there's Dapingfangornis and it's supposed horn.  Ughh... what an annoying 
trend.

> > Ornithothoraces is only supported by the following, as far as this matrix 
> > goes- [...]
>
> You still have 11 characters in that list. Is that the longest branch in 
> your tree?

Nope.  Pygostylia, Ornithurae sensu Gauthier, Ornithuromorpha, 
Apsaravis+Passer, Ornithurae sensu Chiappe, Carinatae, Neornithes and 
Neognathae are longer, as far as internal nodes go.

Mickey Mortimer