tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8893026474426881196.post7532564558457726802..comments2024-03-10T06:42:57.798-07:00Comments on Raptormaniacs: Making Sense of Alvarezsaurid Paleobiology—I Think We're Doing Pretty Well, ActuallyAlbertonykushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00345306530772709064noreply@blogger.comBlogger11125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8893026474426881196.post-60849415386527152672020-08-24T13:19:59.619-07:002020-08-24T13:19:59.619-07:00Aha, glad to see you here! Thanks for the catch, I...Aha, glad to see you here! Thanks for the catch, I probably copy-pasted that from someplace without much thought. Fixed now.Albertonykushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00345306530772709064noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8893026474426881196.post-70201147301957969322020-08-24T12:38:14.877-07:002020-08-24T12:38:14.877-07:00either for creating a nest or to enhance copulatio...<i>either for creating a nest or to enhance copulation</i><br /><br />In most alvarezsaurids they're too short for that, I'd guess.<br /><br />And while "these odd appendages" were clearly good at opening eggs, they're overengineered for that, and perhaps again too short for the larger eggs; alvarezsaurids must have routinely done something more demanding.David Marjanovićnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8893026474426881196.post-82929814572133788252020-08-24T12:36:27.415-07:002020-08-24T12:36:27.415-07:00Many studies show
I'm sorry, that's like ...<i>Many studies show</i><br /><br />I'm sorry, that's like "many people are saying". To the best of my knowledge you've never cited any of those alleged studies.<br /><br />I do know that back in the 90s and early 00s there were papers misled by long-branch attraction. All those mistakes (mice & rats as basal placentals, Marsupionta etc.) have not been repeated for a long time.<br /><br />Of course analyses of molecular data are trait-based; they use molecular traits.<br /><br />And tenrecs isn't wrong! :-)David Marjanovićnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8893026474426881196.post-77471740188890463962020-08-24T12:33:37.945-07:002020-08-24T12:33:37.945-07:00^_^
All I can add is that I'm sure it's P...^_^<br /><br />All I can add is that I'm sure it's <i>Phataginus tetradactyl<b>us</b></i>; <i>Manis</i> is a she, <i>Phataginus</i> looks like a he.David Marjanovićnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8893026474426881196.post-73341767594023572442020-06-01T08:33:21.300-07:002020-06-01T08:33:21.300-07:00It might also be that such specialized limbs might...It might also be that such specialized limbs might be related to reproduction, either for creating a nest or to enhance copulation. Trying to find some way to make these odd appendages serve as procurers of food - even things like fungi - seems a stretch. I do agree that an egg diet is a possibility (for many a Mesozoic animal): dinosaurs laid eggs thus, for any mass gathering on the Mesozoic, eggs and juveniles were much more plentiful that one would ever see today (mammals give live birth, so adults always outnumber juveniles, not to mention a complete absence of eggs).Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8893026474426881196.post-34955834822647960352020-05-29T20:18:12.872-07:002020-05-29T20:18:12.872-07:00"Discredited Old Man Yells at Actual Science&..."Discredited Old Man Yells at Actual Science"Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8893026474426881196.post-49797940561667101232020-05-21T06:34:56.848-07:002020-05-21T06:34:56.848-07:00I remember. It means a lot to me that you found th...I remember. It means a lot to me that you found the article convincing! I was already in favor of the aardraptor model, but doing the background research for this certainly made it seem even more compelling to me.<br /><br />I actually had a section on claw size in my original outline for this post, inspired by our <a href="http://albertonykus.blogspot.com/2018/08/on-road-to-all-thumbs-bannykus-and.html?showComment=1536027970708#c8159104949001367062" rel="nofollow">last conversation</a> about this subject, however I ended up cutting it out because I couldn't find published measurements of digging claw length in <i>Cyclopes</i> (nor any figures with a scale bar focused on the claw). But the back-of-the-envelope calculations I made in my previous comment seem reasonable enough for now.Albertonykushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00345306530772709064noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8893026474426881196.post-59629458545637549152020-05-20T20:19:46.472-07:002020-05-20T20:19:46.472-07:00Thanks. So the claws of the smallest alvarezsaurs...Thanks. So the claws of the smallest alvarezsaurs (parvicursorines) might have been quite effective against termite nests.<br />I have to admit, I used to be skeptical of the 'aardraptor' hypothesis. (I even entertained the idea that alvarezsaurs were scavengers, and that their claws were used to rip into carcasses.) Your article has persuaded me that 'aardraptor' is the best hypothesis on offer.Timhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17837037454015036429noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8893026474426881196.post-80673808619454737392020-05-20T04:50:09.328-07:002020-05-20T04:50:09.328-07:00Afrotheria is a DNA-based clade. Many studies show...Afrotheria is a DNA-based clade. Many studies show that genomic clades don't match trait-based clades over deep time. Using a trait-based phylogenetic analysis sengis are not related to elephants but to anagalids, leptictids and tenrecs. D.P.https://www.blogger.com/profile/13009843520057633239noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8893026474426881196.post-13193462440113236882020-05-19T20:40:38.871-07:002020-05-19T20:40:38.871-07:00Glad you liked it! The preserved length of the rig...Glad you liked it! The preserved length of the right thumb claw in <i>Mononykus</i> is 2.67 cm. Considering the worn tip and assuming that the keratin sheath protruded beyond the bony claw by 15% of total claw length (as reported for raptor talons by <a href="https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rsbl.2005.0395" rel="nofollow">Manning et al., 2005</a>) would put the length of claw in life over 3 cm.<br /><br />The thumb claw of <i>Parvicursor</i> is unknown, but scaling down the estimated claw length of <i>Mononykus</i> (via femur lengths of 13.8 cm vs. 5.26 cm) suggests over 1.2 cm. Based on my rough measurements of figured specimens in <a href="https://academic.oup.com/zoolinnean/article-abstract/183/3/687/4716749" rel="nofollow">Miranda et al. (2018)</a>, that's comparable to the length of the digging claw in silky anteaters (whether measured as a straight line or along the curvature of the claw).Albertonykushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00345306530772709064noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8893026474426881196.post-37109379221053677342020-05-19T19:25:15.913-07:002020-05-19T19:25:15.913-07:00Nice article - very comprehensive.
Approximately ...Nice article - very comprehensive.<br /><br />Approximately what size was the hand-claw of a Parvicursor or Mononykus? How effective could such a tiny claw have been at breaking into rotting wood (to access wood-nesting termites)?Timhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17837037454015036429noreply@blogger.com