Re: Darwin's young dead pet from Messel

["K and T Dykes" <ktdykes@arcor.de>]

<<Aside, why all this profitful discussion occurred with Darwinius and not 
with all the other previously published genera?
Perhaps just because of the name honoring Darwin?>>

There are also several other possibilities.  In this case, there's just been 
an enormous amount of coverage in the general press and, secondly, a natural 
history museum has paid a lot of money for the A-plate of the holotype.  The 
amount isn't public knowledge but the original asking price was reportedly 
$1 million (press report in The Guardian 19.5.2009).  Anyway, there's 
presumably a certain level of interest for getting that specimen on display 
after its short meet-the-press tour, and having any unnecessary 
complications (such as technically invalid names) ironed out.

Of course, none of those factors can possibly have anything to do with any 
nifty footwork involved in formalising the name.  That's obviously happened 
for puerly scientific reasons.