Re: New troodontid in PLoS ONE

[Dann Pigdon <dannj@alphalink.com.au>]

On Fri, Dec 17th, 2010 at 11:17 AM, Matthew Martyniuk <martyniuk@gmail.com> 
wrote:

> The reporter seems to have gotten a little confused... From the paper:
> "Troodontid possessing a maxilla with extensive pneumatization
> internal to the antorbital fossa, inflating the bone so that it has a
> triangular cross-section;"
> 
> That is, the bone is inflated by a static pneumatic cavity. It was not
> inflatable like a balloon.

The article also states that Geminiraptor had feathers on its limbs. That's 
quite a feat of detective 
work if only maxillary fragments have been recovered.

I suspect the reported has mistaken a general description of tro-odintids as a 
description of 
Geminiraptor itseld.
 
> On Fri, Dec 17, 2010 at 5:42 AM, Brad McFeeters
> <archosauromorph2@hotmail.com> wrote:
> >
> > >From the Salt Lake Tribune
> (http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/home/50883308-76/utah-kirkland-dinosaur-species.html.csp):
> >
> >> State paleontologist Jim Kirkland, who co-authored the paper and was at 
> >> the site when the
> discovery was made,
> >> said the jawbone is hollow and could be inflated â??like a balloon.â??  
> >> Kirkland said he is
> unaware of such a
> >> characteristic in other fossilized dinosaurs and can only speculate on its 
> >> purpose.
> â??Thereâ??s no clue what it was
> >> used for,â?? he said. â??Maybe it was some kind of resonating chamber for 
vocalization.â??
> >
> > It's life imitating *Jurassic Park III*!  ;)
> >
> > Also, the "tro-odon" from Bakker's *Raptor Red* now corresponds to a real 
> > dinosaur.

-- 
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Dann Pigdon
Spatial Data Analyst               Australian Dinosaurs
Melbourne, Australia               http://home.alphalink.com.au/~dannj
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