J.B. Losos & R.E. Ricklefs, eds., 2009. The theory of island biogeography
revisited (Princeton University Press), 494pp
�
�
Robert H. MacArthur and Edward O. Wilson's The theory of island biogeography,
first published by Princeton in 1967, is one of the most influential books on
ecology and evolution to appear in the past half century. By developing a
general mathematical theory to explain a crucial ecological problem--the
regulation of species diversity in island populations--the book transformed the
science of biogeography and ecology as a whole. In The theory of island
biogeography revisited, some of today's most prominent biologists assess the
continuing impact of MacArthur and Wilson's book four decades after its
publication. Following an opening chapter in which Wilson reflects on island
biogeography in the 1960s, fifteen chapters evaluate and demonstrate how the
field has extended and confirmed--as well as challenged and modified--MacArthur
and Wilson's original ideas. Providing a broad picture of the fundamental ways
in which the science of island biogeography has
  been shaped by MacArthur and Wilson's landmark work, The theory of island
biogeography revisited also points the way toward exciting future research.
�
Jonathan B. Losos is professor in the Department of Organismic and Evolutionary
Biology and the curator of herpetology in the Museum of Comparative Zoology at
Harvard University. Robert E. Ricklefs is the Curators' Professor of Biology at
University of Missouri, St. Louis.
�
Endorsements:
"This wonderful and lively book provides a fitting forty-year retrospective on
MacArthur and Wilson's seminal volume. I can easily see it on the shelf of every
serious graduate student of community ecology. It has all the 'right' names in
it--many of them personal friends of MacArthur and Wilson--plus a bunch of
rising stars of the next generation. This book should create quite a ripple in
the field."--William H. Schlesinger, Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies
�
"The chapters are all written by leaders in the field, the historical reviews
are succinct and enlightening, and the perspectives are different enough to
prevent repetition. Every author here whose work I know well has presented
something new in the way of theoretical insight, data portraying an ecological
pattern, or synthetic perspective on the field."--Henry S. Horn, Princeton
University
�
TABLE OF CONTENTS:
Foreword by Robert M. May vii
Preface by Jonathan B. Losos and Robert E. Ricklefs xi
List of Contributors xv
Island Biogeography in the 1960s
Theory and Experiment by Edward O. Wilson 1

Island Biogeography Theory
Reticulations and Reintegration of "a Biogeography of the Species" by Mark V.
Lomolino, James H. Brown, and Dov. F. Sax 13

The MacArthur- Wilson Equilibrium Model
A Chronicle of What It Said and How It Was Tested by Thomas W. Schoener 52

A General Dynamic Theory of Oceanic Island Biogeography
Extending the MacArthur- Wilson Theory to Accommodate the Rise and Fall of
Volcanic Islands by Robert J. Whittaker, Kostas A. Triantis, and Richard J.
Ladle 88
The Trophic Cascade on Islands by John Terborgh 116

Toward a Trophic Island Biogeography
Reflections on the Interface of Island Biogeography and Food Web Ecology by
Robert D. Holt 143

The Theories of Island Biogeography and Metapopulation Dynamics
Science Marches Forward, but the Legacy of Good Ideas Lasts for a Long Time by
Ilkka Hanski 186

Beyond Island Biogeography Theory
Understanding Habitat Fragmentation in the Real World by William F. Laurance 214

Birds of the Solomon Islands
The Domain of the Dynamic Equilibrium Theory and Assembly Rules, with Comments
on the Taxon Cycle by Daniel Simberloff and Michael D. Collins 237

Neutral Theory and the Theory of Island Biogeography by Stephen P. Hubbell 264

Evolutionary Changes Following Island Colonization in Birds
Empirical Insights into the Roles of Microevolutionary Processes by Sonya Clegg
293

Sympatric Speciation, Immigration, and Hybridization in Island Birds by Peter R.
Grant and B. Rosemary Grant 326

Island Biogeography of Remote Archipelagoes

Interplay between Ecological and Evolutionary Processes by Rosemary G. Gillespie
and Bruce G. Baldwin 358
Dynamics of Colonization and Extinction on Islands
Insights from Lesser Antillean Birds by Robert E. Ricklefs 388
The Speciation- Area Relationship by Jonathan B. Losos and Christina E. Parent
415
Ecological and Ge ne tic Models of Diversity
Lessons across Disciplines by Mark Vellend and John L. Orrock 439

Index 463
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
STEPHAN PICKERING / Chofetz Chayim ben-Avraham
�
THE DINOSAUR FRACTALS PROJECT
2333 Portola Drive # 4
Santa Cruz, California 95062-4250
stephanpickering@...
�
website: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/paleo_bio_dinosaur_ontology
�
IN PROGRESS: Mutanda Dinosaurologica: in memory of Samuel Paul Welles (9
November 1909--6 August 1997)
IN PROGRESS: Dialects of a synaesthetic heart: poetics for Faline Pickering (23
January 1949--24 August 2008)
IN PROGRESS: Alfred Russel Wallace's KING KONG: the semioptics of Willis O'Brien
�
PARTNER IN THE UNIVERSE TO: FALINE PICKERING, MY BELOVED QUANTUM PISCES
MEMBER 13853: Society of Vertebrate Paleontology
�
One concept corrupts and confuses the others. I am not speaking of the Evil
whose limited sphere is ethics; I am speaking of the infinite. -- J.L. BORGES
You never know what's comin' for you. -- QUEENIE in ERIC ROTH'S �The curious
case of Benjamin Button
What if G-d didn't say it? -- BART EHRMAN
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Katja Tynkkynen, K.J. Raatikainen, Matti Hakkila, Elina Haukilehto, J.S.
Kotiaho, 2009. Alternative reproductive tactics and the propensity of
hybridization. Jour. Evolutionary Biology 22(12):2512-2518. ABSTRACT. One
explanation for hybridization between species is the fitness benefits it
occasionally confers to the hybridizing individuals. This explanation is
possible in species that have evolved alternative male reproductive tactics:
individuals with inferior tactics might be more prone to hybridization provided
it increases their reproductive success and fitness. Here we experimentally
tested whether the propensity of hybridization in the wild depends on male
reproductive tactic in Calopteryx splendens damselflies. Counter to our
expectation, it was males adopting the superior reproductive tactic
(territoriality) that had greatest propensity to hybridize than males adopting
the inferior tactics (sneakers and floaters). Moreover, among the territorial
  males, the most ornamented males had greatest propensity to hybridize whereas
the pattern was reversed in the sneaker males. Our results suggest that there is
fluctuating selection on male mate discrimination against heterospecific
females, depending on both ornament size and the male's reproductive tactic.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
STEPHAN PICKERING / Chofetz Chayim ben-Avraham
�
THE DINOSAUR FRACTALS PROJECT
2333 Portola Drive # 4
Santa Cruz, California 95062-4250
stephanpickering@...
�
website: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/paleo_bio_dinosaur_ontology
�
IN PROGRESS: Mutanda Dinosaurologica: in memory of Samuel Paul Welles (9
November 1909--6 August 1997)
IN PROGRESS: Dialects of a synaesthetic heart: poetics for Faline Pickering (23
January 1949--24 August 2008)
IN PROGRESS: Alfred Russel Wallace's KING KONG: the semioptics of Willis O'Brien
�
PARTNER IN THE UNIVERSE TO: FALINE PICKERING, MY BELOVED QUANTUM PISCES
MEMBER 13853: Society of Vertebrate Paleontology
�
One concept corrupts and confuses the others. I am not speaking of the Evil
whose limited sphere is ethics; I am speaking of the infinite. -- J.L. BORGES
You never know what's comin' for you. -- QUEENIE in ERIC ROTH'S �The curious
case of Benjamin Button
What if G-d didn't say it? -- BART EHRMAN
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C.K. Cornwallis, S.A. West, Ashleigh S. Griffin, 2009. Routes to indirect
fitness in cooperatively breeding vertebrates: kin discrimination and limited
dispersal. Jour. Evolutionary Biology 22(12):2445-2457. ABSTRACT. Hamilton
demonstrated that the evolution of cooperative behaviour is favoured by high
relatedness, which can arise through kin discrimination or limited dispersal
(population viscosity). These two processes are likely to operate with limited
overlap: kin discrimination is beneficial when variation in relatedness is
higher, whereas limited dispersal results in less variable and higher average
relatedness, reducing selection for kin discrimination. However, most empirical
work on eukaryotes has focused on kin discrimination. To address this bias, we
analysed how kin discrimination and limited dispersal interact to shape helping
behaviour across cooperatively breeding vertebrates. We show that kin
discrimination is greater in species where
  the: (i) average relatedness in groups is lower and more variable; (ii) effect
of helpers on breeders reproductive success is greater; and (iii) probability of
helping was measured, rather than the amount of help provided. There was also an
interaction between these effects with the correlation between the benefits of
helping and kin discrimination being stronger in species with higher variance in
relatedness. Overall, our results suggest that kin discrimination provides a
route to indirect benefits when relatedness is too variable within groups to
favour indiscriminate cooperation.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
STEPHAN PICKERING / Chofetz Chayim ben-Avraham
�
THE DINOSAUR FRACTALS PROJECT
2333 Portola Drive # 4
Santa Cruz, California 95062-4250
stephanpickering@...
�
website: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/paleo_bio_dinosaur_ontology
�
IN PROGRESS: Mutanda Dinosaurologica: in memory of Samuel Paul Welles (9
November 1909--6 August 1997)
IN PROGRESS: Dialects of a synaesthetic heart: poetics for Faline Pickering (23
January 1949--24 August 2008)
IN PROGRESS: Alfred Russel Wallace's KING KONG: the semioptics of Willis O'Brien
�
PARTNER IN THE UNIVERSE TO: FALINE PICKERING, MY BELOVED QUANTUM PISCES
MEMBER 13853: Society of Vertebrate Paleontology
�
One concept corrupts and confuses the others. I am not speaking of the Evil
whose limited sphere is ethics; I am speaking of the infinite. -- J.L. BORGES
You never know what's comin' for you. -- QUEENIE in ERIC ROTH'S �The curious
case of Benjamin Button
What if G-d didn't say it? -- BART EHRMAN
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A.P. Moller, 2009. Basal metabolic rate and risk-taking behaviour in birds.
Jour. Evolutionary Biology 22(12):2420-2429. ABSTRACT. Basal metabolic rate
(BMR) constitutes the minimal metabolic rate in the zone of thermo-neutrality,
where heat production is not elevated for temperature regulation. BMR thus
constitutes the minimum metabolic rate that is required for maintenance.
Interspecific variation in BMR in birds is correlated with food habits, climate,
habitat, flight activity, torpor, altitude, and migration, although the
selective forces involved in the evolution of these presumed adaptations are not
always obvious. I suggest that BMR constitutes the minimum level required for
maintenance, and that variation in this minimum level reflects the fitness costs
and benefits in terms of ability to respond to selective agents like predators,
implying that an elevated level of BMR is a cost of wariness towards predators.
This hypothesis predicts a positive
  relationship between BMR and measures of risk taking such as flight initiation
distance (FID) of individuals approached by a potential predator. Consistent
with this suggestion, I show in a comparative analysis of 76 bird species that
species with higher BMR for their body mass have longer FID when approached by a
potential predator. This effect was independent of potentially confounding
variables and similarity among species due to common phylogenetic descent. These
results imply that BMR is positively related to risk-taking behaviour, and that
predation constitutes a neglected factor in the evolution of BMR.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
STEPHAN PICKERING / Chofetz Chayim ben-Avraham
�
THE DINOSAUR FRACTALS PROJECT
2333 Portola Drive # 4
Santa Cruz, California 95062-4250
stephanpickering@...
�
website: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/paleo_bio_dinosaur_ontology
�
IN PROGRESS: Mutanda Dinosaurologica: in memory of Samuel Paul Welles (9
November 1909--6 August 1997)
IN PROGRESS: Dialects of a synaesthetic heart: poetics for Faline Pickering (23
January 1949--24 August 2008)
IN PROGRESS: Alfred Russel Wallace's KING KONG: the semioptics of Willis O'Brien
�
PARTNER IN THE UNIVERSE TO: FALINE PICKERING, MY BELOVED QUANTUM PISCES
MEMBER 13853: Society of Vertebrate Paleontology
�
One concept corrupts and confuses the others. I am not speaking of the Evil
whose limited sphere is ethics; I am speaking of the infinite. -- J.L. BORGES
You never know what's comin' for you. -- QUEENIE in ERIC ROTH'S �The curious
case of Benjamin Button
What if G-d didn't say it? -- BART EHRMAN
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R.A. Johnstone, S.A. Rands, M.R. Evans, 2009. Sexual selection and
condition-dependence. Jour. Evolutionary Biology 22(12):2387-2394. ABSTRACT. The
handicap theory of sexual selection suggests that females prefer mates who
display extravagant ornaments that advertise their quality or condition. It is
often assumed that as such ornamental traits undergo sexually-selected
exaggeration, they must inevitably become more sensitive to condition, and thus
more informative. Here, we show that this is not necessarily the case. Depending
on the precise form of the relationship between trait size and cost, expression
may become more or less condition-dependent as the trait undergoes exaggeration,
or may remain unchanged. This leads us to question how much of the information
content of sexual signals can be attributed to sexual selection, and how much to
pre-existing, naturally-selected condition-dependence.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
STEPHAN PICKERING / Chofetz Chayim ben-Avraham
�
THE DINOSAUR FRACTALS PROJECT
2333 Portola Drive # 4
Santa Cruz, California 95062-4250
stephanpickering@...
�
website: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/paleo_bio_dinosaur_ontology
�
IN PROGRESS: Mutanda Dinosaurologica: in memory of Samuel Paul Welles (9
November 1909--6 August 1997)
IN PROGRESS: Dialects of a synaesthetic heart: poetics for Faline Pickering (23
January 1949--24 August 2008)
IN PROGRESS: Alfred Russel Wallace's KING KONG: the semioptics of Willis O'Brien
�
PARTNER IN THE UNIVERSE TO: FALINE PICKERING, MY BELOVED QUANTUM PISCES
MEMBER 13853: Society of Vertebrate Paleontology
�
One concept corrupts and confuses the others. I am not speaking of the Evil
whose limited sphere is ethics; I am speaking of the infinite. -- J.L. BORGES
You never know what's comin' for you. -- QUEENIE in ERIC ROTH'S �The curious
case of Benjamin Button
What if G-d didn't say it? -- BART EHRMAN
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Elodie Briefer, T.S. Osiejuk, Fanny Rybak, Thierry Aubin, 2010. Are bird song
complexity and song sharing shaped by habitat structure? An information theory
and statistical approach. Jour. Theoretical Biology 262(1):151-164. ABSTRACT. In
songbirds, song complexity and song sharing are features of prime importance for
territorial defence and mate attraction. These aspects of song may be strongly
influenced by changes in social environment caused by habitat fragmentation. We
tested the hypothesis that habitat fragmentation induced by human activities
influences song complexity and song sharing in the skylark, a songbird with a
very large repertoire, and whose population recently underwent a large decline.
We applied powerful mathematical and statistical tools to assess and compare
song complexity and song sharing patterns of syllables and sequences of
syllables in two populations: a declining population in a fragmented habitat, in
which breeding areas are
  separated from each other by unsuitable surroundings, and a stable population
in a continuous habitat. Our results show that the structure of the habitat
influences song sharing, but not song complexity. Neighbouring birds shared more
syllables and sequences of syllables in the fragmented habitat than in the
continuous one. Habitat fragmentation seems, thus, to have an effect on the
composition of elements in songs, but not on the number and complexity of these
elements, which may be a fixed feature of song peculiar to skylarks.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
cf. Elodie Briefer, Thierry Aubin, Katia Lehongre, Fanny Rybak, 2008. How to
identify dear-enemies: the group signature in the complex song of the skylark
Alauda arvensis. Jour. Experimental Biology 211(3):317-326
�
STEPHAN PICKERING / Chofetz Chayim ben-Avraham
�
THE DINOSAUR FRACTALS PROJECT
2333 Portola Drive # 4
Santa Cruz, California 95062-4250
stephanpickering@...
�
website: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/paleo_bio_dinosaur_ontology
�
IN PROGRESS: Mutanda Dinosaurologica: in memory of Samuel Paul Welles (9
November 1909--6 August 1997)
IN PROGRESS: Dialects of a synaesthetic heart: poetics for Faline Pickering (23
January 1949--24 August 2008)
IN PROGRESS: Alfred Russel Wallace's KING KONG: the semioptics of Willis O'Brien
�
PARTNER IN THE UNIVERSE TO: FALINE PICKERING, MY BELOVED QUANTUM PISCES
MEMBER 13853: Society of Vertebrate Paleontology
�
One concept corrupts and confuses the others. I am not speaking of the Evil
whose limited sphere is ethics; I am speaking of the infinite. -- J.L. BORGES
You never know what's comin' for you. -- QUEENIE in ERIC ROTH'S �The curious
case of Benjamin Button
What if G-d didn't say it? -- BART EHRMAN
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P.J. van den Hout, Kimberley J. Mathot, L.R.M. Maas, Theunis Piersma, 2009.
Predator escape tactics in birds: linking ecology and aerodynamics. Behavioral
Ecology IN PRES. In most birds, flight is the most important means of escape
from predators. Impaired flight abilities due to increased wing loading may
increase vulnerability to predation. To compensate for an increase in wing
loading, birds are able to independently decrease body mass (BM), or increase
pectoral muscle mass (PMM). Comparing nearshore and farshore foraging shorebird
species, we develop a theory as to which of these responses should be the most
appropriate. We hypothesize that nearshore foragers should respond to increased
predation by increasing their PMM in order to promote speed-based escape.
Instead, farshore foragers should decrease BM in order to improve agility for
maneuvering escape. Experiments on 2 shorebird species are consistent with these
predictions, but on the basis of
  the theoretical framework for evaluating effect size and biological
significance developed here, more experiments are clearly needed.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
STEPHAN PICKERING / Chofetz Chayim ben-Avraham
�
THE DINOSAUR FRACTALS PROJECT
2333 Portola Drive # 4
Santa Cruz, California 95062-4250
stephanpickering@...
�
website: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/paleo_bio_dinosaur_ontology
�
IN PROGRESS: Mutanda Dinosaurologica: in memory of Samuel Paul Welles (9
November 1909--6 August 1997)
IN PROGRESS: Dialects of a synaesthetic heart: poetics for Faline Pickering (23
January 1949--24 August 2008)
IN PROGRESS: Alfred Russel Wallace's KING KONG: the semioptics of Willis O'Brien
�
PARTNER IN THE UNIVERSE TO: FALINE PICKERING, MY BELOVED QUANTUM PISCES
MEMBER 13853: Society of Vertebrate Paleontology
�
One concept corrupts and confuses the others. I am not speaking of the Evil
whose limited sphere is ethics; I am speaking of the infinite. -- J.L. BORGES
You never know what's comin' for you. -- QUEENIE in ERIC ROTH'S �The curious
case of Benjamin Button
What if G-d didn't say it? -- BART EHRMAN
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Kimberly S. Bostwick, D.O. Elias, Andrew Mason, Fernando Montealegre-Z, 2009.
Resonating feathers produce courtship song. Proc. Royal Soc. London B� IN PRESS.
ABSTRACT. Male club-winged manakins, Machaeropterus deliciosus (Aves: Pipridae),
produce a sustained tonal sound with specialized wing feathers. The fundamental
frequency of the sound produced in nature is approximately 1500 Hz and is
hypothesized to result from excitation of resonance in the feathers'
hypertrophied shafts. We used laser Doppler vibrometry to determine the resonant
properties of male club-winged manakin's wing feathers, as well as those of two
unspecialized manakin species. The modified wing feathers exhibit a response
peak near 1500 Hz, and unusually high Q-values (a measure of resonant tuning)
for biological objects (Q up to 27). The unmodified wing feathers of the
club-winged manakin do not exhibit strong resonant properties when measured in
isolation. However, when measured
  still attached to the modified feathers (nine feathers held adjacent by an
intact ligament), they resonate together as a unit near 1500 Hz, and the wing
produces a second harmonic of similar or greater amplitude than the fundamental.
The feathers of the control species also exhibit resonant peaks around 1500 Hz,
but these are significantly weaker, the wing does not resonate as a unit and no
harmonics are produced. These results lend critical support to the resonant
stridulation hypothesis of sound production in M. deliciosus.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
STEPHAN PICKERING / Chofetz Chayim ben-Avraham
�
THE DINOSAUR FRACTALS PROJECT
2333 Portola Drive # 4
Santa Cruz, California 95062-4250
stephanpickering@...
�
website: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/paleo_bio_dinosaur_ontology
�
IN PROGRESS: Mutanda Dinosaurologica: in memory of Samuel Paul Welles (9
November 1909--6 August 1997)
IN PROGRESS: Dialects of a synaesthetic heart: poetics for Faline Pickering (23
January 1949--24 August 2008)
IN PROGRESS: Alfred Russel Wallace's KING KONG: the semioptics of Willis O'Brien
�
PARTNER IN THE UNIVERSE TO: FALINE PICKERING, MY BELOVED QUANTUM PISCES
MEMBER 13853: Society of Vertebrate Paleontology
�
One concept corrupts and confuses the others. I am not speaking of the Evil
whose limited sphere is ethics; I am speaking of the infinite. -- J.L. BORGES
You never know what's comin' for you. -- QUEENIE in ERIC ROTH'S �The curious
case of Benjamin Button
What if G-d didn't say it? -- BART EHRMAN
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Christian Barron, 2009. Epistemic values in the Burgess Shale debate. Studies in
History & Philosophy of Biological & Biomedical Sciences 40(4):286-295.
ABSTRACT. Focusing primarily on papers and books discussing the evolutionary and
systematic interpretation of the Cambrian animal fossils from the Burgess Shale
fauna, this paper explores the role of epistemic values in the context of a
discipline (paleontology) striving to establish scientific authority within a
larger domain of epistemic problems and issues (evolutionary biology). The focal
point of this analysis is the repeated claims by paleontologists that the study
of fossils gives their discipline a unique ‘historical dimension’ that makes
it possible for them to unravel important aspects of evolution invisible to
scientists who study the extant biosphere. The first part of the paper explores
the shifting of emphasis in the writings of paleontologists between two
strategies that employ
  opposing views on the classical positivist and physicalist ideal of science.
The second part analyzes paleontologists’ claims of privileged access to
life’s historical dimension in a situation where a theoretical upheaval
occurring independent of the epistemical problem at hand completely shifts the
standards for evaluating the legitimacy of various knowledge claims. Though the
various strategies employed in defending the privileged historical perspective
of paleontology have been disparate, and, to an extent contradictory, each
impinges on the acceptance of a specific epistemic ideal or set of values, and
success or failure of each depends on the compatibility of this ideal with the
surrounding community of scientists.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
STEPHAN PICKERING / Chofetz Chayim ben-Avraham
 
THE DINOSAUR FRACTALS PROJECT
2333 Portola Drive # 4
Santa Cruz, California 95062-4250
stephanpickering@...
 
website: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/paleo_bio_dinosaur_ontology
 
IN PROGRESS: Mutanda Dinosaurologica: in memory of Samuel Paul Welles (9
November 1909--6 August 1997)
IN PROGRESS: Dialects of a synaesthetic heart: poetics for Faline Pickering (23
January 1949--24 August 2008)
IN PROGRESS: Alfred Russel Wallace's KING KONG: the semioptics of Willis O'Brien
 
PARTNER IN THE UNIVERSE TO: FALINE PICKERING, MY BELOVED QUANTUM PISCES
MEMBER 13853: Society of Vertebrate Paleontology
 
One concept corrupts and confuses the others. I am not speaking of the Evil
whose limited sphere is ethics; I am speaking of the infinite. -- J.L. BORGES
You never know what's comin' for you. -- QUEENIE in ERIC ROTH'S  The curious
case of Benjamin Button
What if G-d didn't say it? -- BART EHRMAN
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Xing Xu & Guo Yu, 2009. The origin and early evolution of feathers: insights
from recent paleontological and neontological data. Vertebrata PalAsiatica
47(4):311-329 [English text/abstract, Chinese abstract]. ABSTRACT. Recent
paleontological and neontological studies on feathers and feather-like
integumentary structures have improved greatly our
understanding of the origin and early evolution of feathers. New observations on
some non-avian dinosaur specimens preserving integumentary structures, in
combination with recent paleontological and neontological data, provide
additional insights into this important evolutionary issue. Five major
morphogenesis events are inferred to have occurred sequentially early in feather
evolution before the origin of the Aves, and they are: 1) appearance of
filamentous and tubular morphology, 2) formation of follicle and barb ridges, 3)
appearance of rachis, 4) appearance of planar form, and 5) formation of
pennaceous barbules. These events produce several morphotypes of feathers that
are common among non-avian archosaurs but are probably lost later in avian
evolution, and they also produced several morphotypes of feathers that are
nearly identical or identical to those of modern birds. While feathers of
non-avian dinosaurs exhibit many unique features of modern
  feathers, some of them also possess striking features unknown in modern
feathers. Several models of evolutionary origin of feathers based on
developmental data suggest that the origin of feathers is a completely
innovative event, and the first feathers have nothing to do with reptilian
scales. We believe, however, that the defining features of modern feathers might
have evolved in an incremental manner rather than in a sudden way. Consequently,
an evolutionary model characteristic of both transformation and innovation is
more acceptable for feather evolution. The function of the first feather is
inferred to be neither related to flight nor to insulation. Display or heat
dissipation, among others, remains viable
hypotheses for initial function of feathers. An integrative study is promising
to provide much new insights into the origin of feathers.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
STEPHAN PICKERING / Chofetz Chayim ben-Avraham
�
THE DINOSAUR FRACTALS PROJECT
2333 Portola Drive # 4
Santa Cruz, California 95062-4250
stephanpickering@...
�
website: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/paleo_bio_dinosaur_ontology
�
IN PROGRESS: Mutanda Dinosaurologica: in memory of Samuel Paul Welles (9
November 1909--6 August 1997)
IN PROGRESS: Dialects of a synaesthetic heart: poetics for Faline Pickering (23
January 1949--24 August 2008)
IN PROGRESS: Alfred Russel Wallace's KING KONG: the semioptics of Willis O'Brien
�
PARTNER IN THE UNIVERSE TO: FALINE PICKERING, MY BELOVED QUANTUM PISCES
MEMBER 13853: Society of Vertebrate Paleontology
�
One concept corrupts and confuses the others. I am not speaking of the Evil
whose limited sphere is ethics; I am speaking of the infinite. -- J.L. BORGES
You never know what's comin' for you. -- QUEENIE in ERIC ROTH'S �The curious
case of Benjamin Button
What if G-d didn't say it? -- BART EHRMAN

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Zhou Zhong-He, Zhang Fu-Cheng, Li Zhi-Heng, 2009. A new basal ornithurine bird
(Jianchangornis microdonta gen. et sp. nov.) from the Lower Cretaceous of China.
Vertebrata PalAsiatica 47(4):299-310 [English text/abstract, Chinese abstract].
ABSTRACT. A new genus and species of a basal ornithurine bird is reported from
the Lower Cretaceous skeleton of a sub-adult individual. It is distinguishable
from other known ornithurines by possessing a combination of features including
at least 16 small and conical teeth on the dentary, scapula strongly curved,
metacarpal I robust and wider than other metacarpals, first manual digit long
and extending beyond distal metacarpal II, and length ratio of
humerus+ulna+metacarpal II to femur+tibiotarsus+tarsometatarsus is approximately
1.1. Phylogenetic analysis indicates that the the new taxon is a basal
ornithurine. Jianchangornis represents the second Early Cretaceous bird with the
preservation of a predentary bone, which may further confirm that a predentary
could be a feature common to Mesozoic ornithurines. The advanced features of the
pectoral girdle, sternum, �and wings of the new bird indicate its powerful
flight capability, and the hindlimb bone and toe proportions, as well as the
ungual morphology, suggest a terrestrial locomotion similar to Yanornis and
Yixianornis. The associated fish fragments may
indicate a piscivorous diet consistent with the dentation of the new bird. The
discovery of a new basal ornithurine further shows that the diversification of
the Ornithurae is probably no less than the enantiornithes, and the near
lakeshore adaptation had definitely played a key
role in the early ornithurine radiation.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Panaves Gauthier & de Queiroz 2001
Dinosauria Owen 1842
Saurischia Seeley 1887
Theropoda Marsh 1881
Coelurosauria von Huene 1914
Maniraptora Gauthier 1984
Avifilopluma Gauthier & de Queiroz 2001
Avialae Gauthier 1984
Aves Linnaeus 1758 (Converted Clade Name)
Pygostylia Chiappe 2002
Ornithurae Haeckel 1866 incertae sedis
�
Jianchangornis Zhou, Zhang, Li 2009
Jianchangornis micrododonta Zhou, Zhang, Li 2009
STEPHAN PICKERING / Chofetz Chayim ben-Avraham
�
THE DINOSAUR FRACTALS PROJECT
2333 Portola Drive # 4
Santa Cruz, California 95062-4250
stephanpickering@...
�
website: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/paleo_bio_dinosaur_ontology
�
IN PROGRESS: Mutanda Dinosaurologica: in memory of Samuel Paul Welles (9
November 1909--6 August 1997)
IN PROGRESS: Dialects of a synaesthetic heart: poetics for Faline Pickering (23
January 1949--24 August 2008)
IN PROGRESS: Alfred Russel Wallace's KING KONG: the semioptics of Willis O'Brien
�
PARTNER IN THE UNIVERSE TO: FALINE PICKERING, MY BELOVED QUANTUM PISCES
MEMBER 13853: Society of Vertebrate Paleontology
�
One concept corrupts and confuses the others. I am not speaking of the Evil
whose limited sphere is ethics; I am speaking of the infinite. -- J.L. BORGES
You never know what's comin' for you. -- QUEENIE in ERIC ROTH'S �The curious
case of Benjamin Button
What if G-d didn't say it? -- BART EHRMAN

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Xiaolin Wang, A.W.A. Kellner, Shunxing Jiang, Xi Meng, 2009. An unsual
long-tailed pterosaur with elongated neck from western Liaoning of China. Anais
de Academia Brasileira de Ciencias 81(4):793-812. ABSTRACT. A new long-tailed
pterosaur, Wukongopterus lii gen. et sp. nov, is described based on an almost
complete skeleton (IVPP V15113) representing an individual with an estimated
wing span of 730 mm. The specimen was discovered in strata that possibly
represent the Daohugou Bed (or Daohugou Formation) at Linglongta, Jianchang,
Liaoning Province, China. Wukongopterus lii is a non-pterodactyloid pterosaur
diagnosed by the first two pairs of premaxillary teeth protruding beyond the
dentary, elongated cervical vertebrae (convergent with Pterodactyloidea), and a
strongly curved second pedal phalanx of the fifth toe. The specimen further has
a broken tibia that indicates an injury occurred while the individual was still
alive. Taphonomic aspects provide
  indirect evidence of an uropatagium, supporting the general hypothesis that at
least all non-pterodactyloid pterosaurs show a membrane between the hind limbs.
A phylogenetic analysis including most non-pterodactyloid pterosaurs shows that
Wukongopterus lii gen. et sp. nov. lies outside the Novialoidea, being
cladistically more primitive than the Rhamphorhynchidae and Capylognathoides.
This analysis differs from previous studies, and indicates that more work is
needed before a stable picture of non-pterodactyloid pterosaur relationships is
achieved.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
STEPHAN PICKERING / Chofetz Chayim ben-Avraham
�
THE DINOSAUR FRACTALS PROJECT
2333 Portola Drive # 4
Santa Cruz, California 95062-4250
stephanpickering@...
�
website: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/paleo_bio_dinosaur_ontology
�
IN PROGRESS: Mutanda Dinosaurologica: in memory of Samuel Paul Welles (9
November 1909--6 August 1997)
IN PROGRESS: Dialects of a synaesthetic heart: poetics for Faline Pickering (23
January 1949--24 August 2008)
IN PROGRESS: Alfred Russel Wallace's KING KONG: the semioptics of Willis O'Brien
�
PARTNER IN THE UNIVERSE TO: FALINE PICKERING, MY BELOVED QUANTUM PISCES
MEMBER 13853: Society of Vertebrate Paleontology
�
One concept corrupts and confuses the others. I am not speaking of the Evil
whose limited sphere is ethics; I am speaking of the infinite. -- J.L. BORGES
You never know what's comin' for you. -- QUEENIE in ERIC ROTH'S �The curious
case of Benjamin Button
What if G-d didn't say it? -- BART EHRMAN
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P.C. Sereno & S.L. Brusatte, 2009. Comparative assessment of tyrannosaurid
relationships. Jour. Systematic Palaeontology 7(4):455-470. ABSTRACT. We employ
a new comparative method to four cladistic analyses of tyrannosaurid dinosaurs
to identify root causes for differences between phylogenetic results. The
comparative method is a three-step procedure that (1) adjusts competing
hypotheses so they share equivalent taxonomic scope, (2) isolates the character
data relevant to the common problem, and (3) divides relevant character data
into shared and novel partitions. It is then possible to quantify the degree of
similarity between character data using three indices (ancestor similarity
index, character similarity index and character state similarity index).
The most parsimonious cladograms generated by the four analyses of
tyrannosaurids appear fairly congruent, with two subclades present in all four
analyses (Albertosaurus and Gorgosaurus versus Daspletosaurus, Tarbosaurus and
Tyrannosaurus). A comparative examination of the underlying character data,
however, highlights striking differences in character selection and significant
differences in character state scores. Character selection and differences in
scoring are root causes for phylogenetic incongruence. Comparative analysis
reveals the existence of many data-level differences that remain largely
obscured when comparison is limited to the most parsimonious cladograms.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
STEPHAN PICKERING / Chofetz Chayim ben-Avraham
�
THE DINOSAUR FRACTALS PROJECT
2333 Portola Drive # 4
Santa Cruz, California 95062-4250
stephanpickering@...
�
website: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/paleo_bio_dinosaur_ontology
�
IN PROGRESS: Mutanda Dinosaurologica: in memory of Samuel Paul Welles (9
November 1909--6 August 1997)
IN PROGRESS: Dialects of a synaesthetic heart: poetics for Faline Pickering (23
January 1949--24 August 2008)
IN PROGRESS: Alfred Russel Wallace's KING KONG: the semioptics of Willis O'Brien
�
PARTNER IN THE UNIVERSE TO: FALINE PICKERING, MY BELOVED QUANTUM PISCES
MEMBER 13853: Society of Vertebrate Paleontology
�
One concept corrupts and confuses the others. I am not speaking of the Evil
whose limited sphere is ethics; I am speaking of the infinite. -- J.L. BORGES
You never know what's comin' for you. -- QUEENIE in ERIC ROTH'S �The curious
case of Benjamin Button
What if G-d didn't say it? -- BART EHRMAN




[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

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now:
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I created this cool friends network and added you to my friends network. Hit-up
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Herman Pontzer, Vivian Allen, J.R. Hutchinson, 2009. Biomechanics of running
indicates endothermy in bipedal dinosaurs. Public Library of Science ONE
4(11):e7783 [9pp] + Supporting Information [Text S1, Tables S1-S3, Figs.
S1-S2]  ABSTRACT:
 
BACKGROUND  One of the great unresolved controversies in paleobiology is
whether extinct dinosaurs were endothermic, ectothermic, or some combination
thereof, and when endothermy first evolved in the lineage leading to birds.
Although it is well established that high, sustained growth rates and,
presumably, high activity levels are ancestral for dinosaurs and pterosaurs
(clade Ornithodira), other independent lines of evidence for high metabolic
rates, locomotor costs, or endothermy are needed. For example, some studies have
suggested that, because large dinosaurs may have been homeothermic due to their
size alone and could have had heat loss problems, ectothermy would be a more
plausible metabolic strategy for such animals.
METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS  Here we describe two new biomechanical
approaches for reconstructing the metabolic rate of 14 extinct bipedal
dinosauriforms during walking and running. These methods, well validated for
extant animals, indicate that during walking and slow running the metabolic rate
of at least the larger extinct dinosaurs exceeded the maximum aerobic
capabilities of modern ectotherms, falling instead within the range of modern
birds and mammals. Estimated metabolic rates for smaller dinosaurs are more
ambiguous, but generally approach or exceed the ectotherm boundary.
CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE Our results support the hypothesis that endothermy was
widespread in at least larger non-avian dinosaurs. It was plausibly ancestral
for all dinosauriforms (perhaps Ornithodira), but this is perhaps more strongly
indicated by high growth rates than by locomotor costs. The polarity of the
evolution of endothermy indicates that rapid growth, insulation, erect postures,
and perhaps aerobic power predated advanced “avian” lung structure and high
locomotor costs.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
STEPHAN PICKERING / Chofetz Chayim ben-Avraham
 
THE DINOSAUR FRACTALS PROJECT
2333 Portola Drive # 4
Santa Cruz, California 95062-4250
stephanpickering@...
 
website: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/paleo_bio_dinosaur_ontology
 
IN PROGRESS: Mutanda Dinosaurologica: in memory of Samuel Paul Welles (9
November 1909--6 August 1997)
IN PROGRESS: Dialects of a synaesthetic heart: poetics for Faline Pickering (23
January 1949--24 August 2008)
IN PROGRESS: Alfred Russel Wallace's KING KONG: the semioptics of Willis O'Brien
 
PARTNER IN THE UNIVERSE TO: FALINE PICKERING, MY BELOVED QUANTUM PISCES
MEMBER 13853: Society of Vertebrate Paleontology
 
One concept corrupts and confuses the others. I am not speaking of the Evil
whose limited sphere is ethics; I am speaking of the infinite. -- J.L. BORGES
You never know what's comin' for you. -- QUEENIE in ERIC ROTH'S  The curious
case of Benjamin Button
What if G-d didn't say it? -- BART EHRMAN
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Mohan Matthen & Andrew Ariew, 2009. Selection and causation. Philosophy of
Science 76(2):201-224. ABSTRACT. We have argued elsewhere that natural selection
is not a cause of evolution, and that a resolution‐of‐forces (or vector
addition) model does not provide us with a proper understanding of how natural
selection combines with other evolutionary influences. These propositions have
come in for criticism recently, and here we clarify and defend them. We do so
within the broad framework of our own ‘hierarchical realization model’ of
how evolutionary influences combine.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
cf. Mohan Matthen & Andre Ariew, 2002. Two ways of thinking about fitness and
natural selection. Jour. Philosophy 99(2):55-83
 
Alex Rosenberg & Frederic Bouchard, 2005. Matthen and Ariew's obituary for
fitness: reports of its death have been greatly exaggerated. Biology &
Philosophy 20(2-3):343-353
 
Mohan Matthen & Andre Ariew, 2005. How to understand causal relations in natural
selection: reply to Rosenberg and Bouchard. Biology & Philosophy 20(2-3):355-364
 
Roberta L. Millstein, 2006. Natural selection as a population-level causal
process. British Jour. Philosophy of Science 57(4):627-653
 
Peter Godfrey-Smith, 2007. Conditions for evolution by natural selection. Jour.
Philosophy 104(10):489-516
 
STEPHAN PICKERING / Chofetz Chayim ben-Avraham
 
THE DINOSAUR FRACTALS PROJECT
2333 Portola Drive # 4
Santa Cruz, California 95062-4250
stephanpickering@...
 
website: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/paleo_bio_dinosaur_ontology
 
IN PROGRESS: Mutanda Dinosaurologica: in memory of Samuel Paul Welles (9
November 1909--6 August 1997)
IN PROGRESS: Dialects of a synaesthetic heart: poetics for Faline Pickering (23
January 1949--24 August 2008)
IN PROGRESS: Alfred Russel Wallace's KING KONG: the semioptics of Willis O'Brien
 
PARTNER IN THE UNIVERSE TO: FALINE PICKERING, MY BELOVED QUANTUM PISCES
MEMBER 13853: Society of Vertebrate Paleontology
 
One concept corrupts and confuses the others. I am not speaking of the Evil
whose limited sphere is ethics; I am speaking of the infinite. -- J.L. BORGES
You never know what's comin' for you. -- QUEENIE in ERIC ROTH'S  The curious
case of Benjamin Button
What if G-d didn't say it? -- BART EHRMAN
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Lorenzo Mari, Marino Gatto, Renato Casagrandi, 2009. Central-place seed foraging
and vegetation patterns. Theoretical Population Biology 76(4):229-240. ABSTRACT.
We investigate how central-place seed foragers with a nest in the proximity of
one or more seed sources determine the formation of different vegetation
patterns. In particular, we discuss the ecological conditions that lead to the
formation of hump-shaped (Janzen–Connell) patterns in a two-dimensional
landscape. Our analysis shows that central-place predation can generate
Janzen–Connell patterns even if predators’ movement strategies are
exclusively based on resource abundance, both in the single-plant/single-nest
case, and in a forest with several seed sources. We also show that social
foraging may either promote or work against the formation of Janzen–Connell
patterns, depending upon the way foragers take advantage of social interactions.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
STEPHAN PICKERING / Chofetz Chayim ben-Avraham
 
THE DINOSAUR FRACTALS PROJECT
2333 Portola Drive # 4
Santa Cruz, California 95062-4250
stephanpickering@...
 
website: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/paleo_bio_dinosaur_ontology
 
IN PROGRESS: Mutanda Dinosaurologica: in memory of Samuel Paul Welles (9
November 1909--6 August 1997)
IN PROGRESS: Dialects of a synaesthetic heart: poetics for Faline Pickering (23
January 1949--24 August 2008)
IN PROGRESS: Alfred Russel Wallace's KING KONG: the semioptics of Willis O'Brien
 
PARTNER IN THE UNIVERSE TO: FALINE PICKERING, MY BELOVED QUANTUM PISCES
MEMBER 13853: Society of Vertebrate Paleontology
 
One concept corrupts and confuses the others. I am not speaking of the Evil
whose limited sphere is ethics; I am speaking of the infinite. -- J.L. BORGES
You never know what's comin' for you. -- QUEENIE in ERIC ROTH'S  The curious
case of Benjamin Button
What if G-d didn't say it? -- BART EHRMAN
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Ross Cressman & Jozsef Garay, 2009. A predator-prey refuge system: evolutionary
stability in ecological systems. Theoretical Population Biology 76(4):248-257.
ABSTRACT. A refuge model is developed for a single predator species and either
one or two prey species where no predators are present in the prey refuge. An
individual’s fitness depends on its strategy choice or ecotype (predators
decide which prey species to pursue, and prey decide what proportion of their
time to spend in the refuge) as well as on the population sizes of all three
species. It is shown that, when there is a single prey species with a refuge, or
two prey species with no refuge, compete only indirectly (i.e. there is only
apparent competition between prey species), that stable resident systems where
all individuals in each species have the same ecotype cannot be destabilized by
the introduction of mutant ecotypes that are initially selectively neutral. In
game-theoretic terms,
  this means that stable monomorphic resident systems, with ecotypes given by a
Nash equilibrium, are both ecologically and evolutionarily stable. However, we
show that this is no longer the case when the two indirectly-competing prey
species have a refuge. This illustrates theoretically that two ecological
factors, that are separately stabilizing (apparent competition and refuge use),
may have a combined destabilizing effect from the evolutionary perspective.
These results generalize the concept of an evolutionarily stable strategy (ESS)
to models in evolutionary ecology. Several biological examples of
predator–prey systems are discussed from this perspective.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
cf. Ross Cressman & Jozsef Garay, 2006. A game-theoretic model for punctuated
equilibrium: species invasion and stasis through coevolution. Biosystems
84(1):1-14
 
STEPHAN PICKERING / Chofetz Chayim ben-Avraham
 
THE DINOSAUR FRACTALS PROJECT
2333 Portola Drive # 4
Santa Cruz, California 95062-4250
stephanpickering@...
 
website: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/paleo_bio_dinosaur_ontology
 
IN PROGRESS: Mutanda Dinosaurologica: in memory of Samuel Paul Welles (9
November 1909--6 August 1997)
IN PROGRESS: Dialects of a synaesthetic heart: poetics for Faline Pickering (23
January 1949--24 August 2008)
IN PROGRESS: Alfred Russel Wallace's KING KONG: the semioptics of Willis O'Brien
 
PARTNER IN THE UNIVERSE TO: FALINE PICKERING, MY BELOVED QUANTUM PISCES
MEMBER 13853: Society of Vertebrate Paleontology
 
One concept corrupts and confuses the others. I am not speaking of the Evil
whose limited sphere is ethics; I am speaking of the infinite. -- J.L. BORGES
You never know what's comin' for you. -- QUEENIE in ERIC ROTH'S  The curious
case of Benjamin Button
What if G-d didn't say it? -- BART EHRMAN




[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

F.A.C.C. Chalub & M.O. Souza, 2009. From discrete to continuous evolution
models: a unifying approach to drift-diffusion and replicator dynamics.
Theoretical Population Biology 76(4):268-277. ABSTRACT. We study the large
population limit of the Moran process, under the assumption of weak-selection,
and for different scalings. Depending on the particular choice of scalings, we
obtain a continuous model that may highlight the genetic-drift (neutral
evolution) or natural selection; for one precise scaling, both effects are
present. For the scalings that take the genetic-drift into account, the
continuous model is given by a singular diffusion equation, together with two
conservation laws that are already present at the discrete level. For scalings
that take into account only natural selection, we obtain a hyperbolic singular
equation that embeds the Replicator Dynamics, and satisfies only one
conservation law. The derivation is made in two steps: a formal
  one, where the candidate limit model is obtained, and a rigorous one, where
convergence of the probability density is proved. Additional results on the
fixation probabilities are also presented.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
STEPHAN PICKERING / Chofetz Chayim ben-Avraham
�
THE DINOSAUR FRACTALS PROJECT
2333 Portola Drive # 4
Santa Cruz, California 95062-4250
stephanpickering@...
�
website: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/paleo_bio_dinosaur_ontology
�
IN PROGRESS: Mutanda Dinosaurologica: in memory of Samuel Paul Welles (9
November 1909--6 August 1997)
IN PROGRESS: Dialects of a synaesthetic heart: poetics for Faline Pickering (23
January 1949--24 August 2008)
IN PROGRESS: Alfred Russel Wallace's KING KONG: the semioptics of Willis O'Brien
�
PARTNER IN THE UNIVERSE TO: FALINE PICKERING, MY BELOVED QUANTUM PISCES
MEMBER 13853: Society of Vertebrate Paleontology
�
One concept corrupts and confuses the others. I am not speaking of the Evil
whose limited sphere is ethics; I am speaking of the infinite. -- J.L. BORGES
You never know what's comin' for you. -- QUEENIE in ERIC ROTH'S �The curious
case of Benjamin Button
What if G-d didn't say it? -- BART EHRMAN
#AOLMsgPart_2_58c2033e-7be2-4f57-8754-444baaee42c3 .AOLWebSuite
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A.M. Yates, M.F. Bonnan, Johann Neveling, Anusuya Chinsamy[-Turan], M.G.
Blackbeard, 2010. A new transitional sauropodomorph dinosaur from the Early
Jurassic of South Africa and the evolution of sauropod feeding and
quadrupedalism. Proc. Royal Soc. London B: IN PRESS + Electronic Supplementary
Material [70pp]. ABSTRACT. Aardonyx celestae gen. et sp. nov. is described from
the upper Elliot Formation (Early Jurassic) of South Africa. It can be diagnosed
by autapomorphies of the skull, particularly the jaws, cervical column, forearm,
and pes. It is found to be the sister group of a clade of obligatory quadrupedal
sauropodomorphs (Melanorosaurus + Sauropoda), and thus lies at the heart of the
basal sauropodomorph–sauropod transition. The narrow jaws of A. celestae
retain a pointed symphysis, but appear to have lacked fleshy cheeks. Broad,
U-shaped jaws were previously thought to have evolved prior to the loss of
gape-restricting cheeks. However, the narrow
  jaws of A. celestae retain a pointed symphysis, but appear to have lacked
fleshy cheeks, demonstrating unappreciated homoplasy in the evolution of the
sauropod bulk-browsing apparatus. The limbs of A. celestae indicate that it
retained a habitual bipedal gait, although incipient characters associated with
the pronation of the manus and the adoption of a quadrupedal gait are evident
through geometric morphometric analysis (using thin-plate splines) of the ulna
and femur. Cursorial ability appears to have been reduced, and the weight
bearing axis of the pes shifted to a medial, entaxonic position, falsifying the
hypothesis that entaxony evolved in sauropods only after an obligate quadrupedal
gait had been adopted.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
STEPHAN PICKERING / Chofetz Chayim ben-Avraham
 
THE DINOSAUR FRACTALS PROJECT
2333 Portola Drive # 4
Santa Cruz, California 95062-4250
stephanpickering@...
 
website: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/paleo_bio_dinosaur_ontology
 
IN PROGRESS: Mutanda Dinosaurologica: in memory of Samuel Paul Welles (9
November 1909--6 August 1997)
IN PROGRESS: Dialects of a synaesthetic heart: poetics for Faline Pickering (23
January 1949--24 August 2008)
IN PROGRESS: Alfred Russel Wallace's KING KONG: the semioptics of Willis O'Brien
 
PARTNER IN THE UNIVERSE TO: FALINE PICKERING, MY BELOVED QUANTUM PISCES
MEMBER 13853: Society of Vertebrate Paleontology
 
One concept corrupts and confuses the others. I am not speaking of the Evil
whose limited sphere is ethics; I am speaking of the infinite. -- J.L. BORGES
You never know what's comin' for you. -- QUEENIE in ERIC ROTH'S  The curious
case of Benjamin Button
What if G-d didn't say it? -- BART EHRMAN
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C.P. Doncaster, 2009. Ecological equivalence: a realistic assumption for niche
theory as a testable alternative to neutral theory. Public Library of Science
ONE 4(10):e7460 (8pp) + Supporting Information [Text S1 (3pp)]� ABSTRACT:
�
�
BACKGROUND. Hubbell's 2001 neutral theory unifies biodiversity and biogeography
by modelling steady-state distributions of species richness and abundances
across spatio-temporal scales. Accurate predictions have issued from its core
premise that all species have identical vital rates. Yet no ecologist believes
that species are identical in reality. Here I explain this paradox in terms of
the ecological equivalence that species must achieve at their coexistence
equilibrium, defined by zero net fitness for all regardless of intrinsic
differences between them. I show that the distinction of realised from intrinsic
vital rates is crucial to evaluating community resilience.
�
PRINCIPAL FINDINGS. An analysis of competitive interactions reveals how zero-sum
patterns of abundance emerge for species with contrasting life-history traits as
for identical species. I develop a stochastic model to simulate community
assembly from a random drift of invasions sustaining the dynamics of recruitment
following deaths and extinctions. Species are allocated identical intrinsic
vital rates for neutral dynamics, or random intrinsic vital rates and
competitive abilities for niche dynamics either on a continuous scale or between
dominant-fugitive extremes. Resulting communities have steady-state
distributions of the same type for more or less extremely differentiated species
as for identical species. All produce negatively skewed log-normal distributions
of species abundance, zero-sum relationships of total abundance to area, and
Arrhenius relationships of species to area. Intrinsically identical species
nevertheless support fewer total
  individuals, because their densities impact as strongly on each other as on
themselves. Truly neutral communities have measurably lower abundance/area and
higher species/abundance ratios.
�
CONCLUSIONS. Neutral scenarios can be parameterized as null hypotheses for
testing competitive release, which is a sure signal of niche dynamics. Ignoring
the true strength of interactions between and within species risks a substantial
misrepresentation of community resilience to habitat loss.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
cf. Da-Yong Zhang & Kui Lin, 1997. The effects of� competitive assymetry on the
rate of competitive displacement: how robust is Hubbell's community drift model?
Jour. Theoretical Biology 183(3):361-367
�
Shu-Rong Zhou & Da-Yong Zhang, 2008. Neutral theory in community ecology.
Frontiters of Biology in China 3(1);1-8
�
Shu-Rong Zhou & Da-Yong Zhang, 2008. A nearly neutral model of biodiversity.
Ecology 89(1):248-258 + Appendices [Ecological Archives E0-89-A1, A2, A3]
�
�
STEPHAN PICKERING / Chofetz Chayim ben-Avraham
�
THE DINOSAUR FRACTALS PROJECT
2333 Portola Drive # 4
Santa Cruz, California 95062-4250
stephanpickering@...
�
website: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/paleo_bio_dinosaur_ontology
�
IN PROGRESS: Mutanda Dinosaurologica: in memory of Samuel Paul Welles (9
November 1909--6 August 1997)
IN PROGRESS: Dialects of a synaesthetic heart: poetics for Faline Pickering (23
January 1949--24 August 2008)
IN PROGRESS: Alfred Russel Wallace's KING KONG: the semioptics of Willis O'Brien
�
PARTNER IN THE UNIVERSE TO: FALINE PICKERING, MY BELOVED QUANTUM PISCES
MEMBER 13853: Society of Vertebrate Paleontology
�
One concept corrupts and confuses the others. I am not speaking of the Evil
whose limited sphere is ethics; I am speaking of the infinite. -- J.L. BORGES
You never know what's comin' for you. -- QUEENIE in ERIC ROTH'S �The curious
case of Benjamin Button
What if G-d didn't say it? -- BART EHRMAN
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Kui Lin, Da-Yong Zhang, Fangliang He, 2009. Demographic trade-offs in a neutral
model explain death-rate-abundance-rank relationship. Ecology 90(1):31-38.
ABSTRACT. The neutral theory of biodiversity has been criticized for its neglect
of species differences. Yet it is much less heeded that S. P. Hubbell's
definition of neutrality allows species to differ in their birth and death
rates, as long as they have an equal per capita fitness. Using the lottery model
of competition, we find that fitness equalization through birth–death
trade-offs can make species coexist longer than expected for demographically
identical species, whereas the probability of monodominance for a species under
zero-sum neutral dynamics is equal to its initial relative abundance.
Furthermore, if newly arising species in a community survive preferentially,
they are more likely to slip through the quagmire of rareness, thus creating a
strong selective bias favoring their community
  membership. On the other hand, high-mortality species, once having gained a
footing in the community, are more likely to become abundant due to their
compensatory high birth rates. This unexpected result explains why a positive
association between species abundance and per capita death rate can be seen in
tropical-forest communities. An explicit incorporation of interspecific
trade-offs between birth and death into the neutral theory increases the
theory's realism as well as its predictive power.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
STEPHAN PICKERING / Chofetz Chayim ben-Avraham
 
THE DINOSAUR FRACTALS PROJECT
2333 Portola Drive # 4
Santa Cruz, California 95062-4250
stephanpickering@...
 
website: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/paleo_bio_dinosaur_ontology
 
IN PROGRESS: Mutanda Dinosaurologica: in memory of Samuel Paul Welles (9
November 1909--6 August 1997)
IN PROGRESS: Dialects of a synaesthetic heart: poetics for Faline Pickering (23
January 1949--24 August 2008)
IN PROGRESS: Alfred Russel Wallace's KING KONG: the semioptics of Willis O'Brien
 
PARTNER IN THE UNIVERSE TO: FALINE PICKERING, MY BELOVED QUANTUM PISCES
MEMBER 13853: Society of Vertebrate Paleontology
 
One concept corrupts and confuses the others. I am not speaking of the Evil
whose limited sphere is ethics; I am speaking of the infinite. -- J.L. BORGES
You never know what's comin' for you. -- QUEENIE in ERIC ROTH'S  The curious
case of Benjamin Button
What if G-d didn't say it? -- BART EHRMAN
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Omri Allouche & Ronen Kadmon, 2009. A general framework for neutral models of
community dynamics. Ecology Letters 12(12):1287-1297. ABSTRACT. Neutral models
of community dynamics are a powerful tool for ecological research, but their
applications are currently limited to unrealistically simple types of dynamics,
and ignore much of the complexity that characterize natural ecosystems. Here, we
present a new analytical framework for neutral models that unifies existing
models of neutral communities, and extends the applicability of existing models
to a much wider spectrum of ecological phenomena. The new framework extends the
concept of neutrality to fitness equivalence, and, in spite of its simplicity,
explains a wide spectrum of empirical patterns of species diversity including
positive, negative, and unimodal productivity–diversity relationships; gradual
and highly delayed declines in species diversity with habitat loss; and positive
and negative
  responses of species diversity to habitat heterogeneity. Surprisingly, the
abundance distribution in all of these cases is given by the dispersal limited
multinomial (DLM), the abundance distribution in Hubbell's zero-sum model,
showing DLM's robustness, and demonstrating that it cannot be used to infer the
underlying community dynamics. These results support the hypothesis that
ecological communities are regulated by a limited set of fundamental mechanisms
much simpler than could be expected from their immense complexity.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
cf. Omri Allouche & Ronen Kadmon, 2009. Demographic analysis of Hubbell's
neutral theory of biodiversity. Jour. Theoretical Biology 258(2):274-280
 
STEPHAN PICKERING / Chofetz Chayim ben-Avraham
 
THE DINOSAUR FRACTALS PROJECT
2333 Portola Drive # 4
Santa Cruz, California 95062-4250
stephanpickering@...
 
website: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/paleo_bio_dinosaur_ontology
 
IN PROGRESS: Mutanda Dinosaurologica: in memory of Samuel Paul Welles (9
November 1909--6 August 1997)
IN PROGRESS: Dialects of a synaesthetic heart: poetics for Faline Pickering (23
January 1949--24 August 2008)
IN PROGRESS: Alfred Russel Wallace's KING KONG: the semioptics of Willis O'Brien
 
PARTNER IN THE UNIVERSE TO: FALINE PICKERING, MY BELOVED QUANTUM PISCES
MEMBER 13853: Society of Vertebrate Paleontology
 
One concept corrupts and confuses the others. I am not speaking of the Evil
whose limited sphere is ethics; I am speaking of the infinite. -- J.L. BORGES
You never know what's comin' for you. -- QUEENIE in ERIC ROTH'S  The curious
case of Benjamin Button
What if G-d didn't say it? -- BART EHRMAN
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J.N. Holland & D.L. DeAngelis, 2009. Consumer-resource theory predicts dynamic
transitions between outcomes of interspecific interactions. Ecology Letters
12(12):1357-1366. ABSTRACT. Interactions between two populations are often
defined by their interaction outcomes; that is, the positive, neutral, or
negative effects of species on one another. Yet, signs of outcomes are not
absolute, but vary with the biotic and abiotic contexts of interactions. Here,
we develop a general theory for transitions between outcomes based on
consumer–resource (C–R) interactions in which one or both species exploit
the other as a resource. Simple models of C–R interactions revealed multiple
equilibria, including one for species coexistence and others for extinction of
one or both species, indicating that species' densities alone could determine
the fate of interactions. All possible outcomes [(+ +), (+ −), (−−), (+
0), (− 0), (0 0)] of species coexistence
  emerged merely through changes in parameter values of C–R interactions,
indicating that variation in C–R interactions resulting from biotic and
abiotic conditions could determine shifts in outcomes. These results suggest
that C–R interactions can provide a broad mechanism for understanding context-
and density-dependent transitions between interaction outcomes.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
cf. J.N. Holland & D.L. DeAngelis, 2010. A consumer-resource approach to the
density-dependent population dynamics of mutualism. Ecology IN PRESS
 
STEPHAN PICKERING / Chofetz Chayim ben-Avraham
 
THE DINOSAUR FRACTALS PROJECT
2333 Portola Drive # 4
Santa Cruz, California 95062-4250
stephanpickering@...
 
website: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/paleo_bio_dinosaur_ontology
 
IN PROGRESS: Mutanda Dinosaurologica: in memory of Samuel Paul Welles (9
November 1909--6 August 1997)
IN PROGRESS: Dialects of a synaesthetic heart: poetics for Faline Pickering (23
January 1949--24 August 2008)
IN PROGRESS: Alfred Russel Wallace's KING KONG: the semioptics of Willis O'Brien
 
PARTNER IN THE UNIVERSE TO: FALINE PICKERING, MY BELOVED QUANTUM PISCES
MEMBER 13853: Society of Vertebrate Paleontology
 
One concept corrupts and confuses the others. I am not speaking of the Evil
whose limited sphere is ethics; I am speaking of the infinite. -- J.L. BORGES
You never know what's comin' for you. -- QUEENIE in ERIC ROTH'S  The curious
case of Benjamin Button
What if G-d didn't say it? -- BART EHRMAN




[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

D.R. Macnulty, D.W. Smith, J.A. Vucetich, L.D. Mech, D.R. Stahler, Craig Packer,
2009. Predatory senescence in ageing wolves. Ecology Letters 12(12):1347-1356.
ABSTRACT. It is well established that ageing handicaps the ability of prey to
escape predators, yet surprisingly little is known about how ageing affects the
ability of predators to catch prey. Research into long-lived predators has
assumed that adults have uniform impacts on prey regardless of age. Here we use
longitudinal data from repeated observations of individually-known wolves (Canis
lupus) hunting elk (Cervus elaphus) in Yellowstone National Park to demonstrate
that adult predatory performance declines with age, and that an increasing ratio
of senescent individuals in the wolf population depresses the rate of prey
offtake. Because this ratio fluctuates independently of population size,
predatory senescence may cause wolf populations of equal size but different age
structure to have
  different impacts on prey populations. These findings suggest that predatory
senescence is an important, though overlooked, factor affecting predator-prey
dynamics.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
STEPHAN PICKERING / Chofetz Chayim ben-Avraham
�
THE DINOSAUR FRACTALS PROJECT
2333 Portola Drive # 4
Santa Cruz, California 95062-4250
stephanpickering@...
�
website: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/paleo_bio_dinosaur_ontology
�
IN PROGRESS: Mutanda Dinosaurologica: in memory of Samuel Paul Welles (9
November 1909--6 August 1997)
IN PROGRESS: Dialects of a synaesthetic heart: poetics for Faline Pickering (23
January 1949--24 August 2008)
IN PROGRESS: Alfred Russel Wallace's KING KONG: the semioptics of Willis O'Brien
�
PARTNER IN THE UNIVERSE TO: FALINE PICKERING, MY BELOVED QUANTUM PISCES
MEMBER 13853: Society of Vertebrate Paleontology
�
One concept corrupts and confuses the others. I am not speaking of the Evil
whose limited sphere is ethics; I am speaking of the infinite. -- J.L. BORGES
You never know what's comin' for you. -- QUEENIE in ERIC ROTH'S �The curious
case of Benjamin Button
What if G-d didn't say it? -- BART EHRMAN
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Celine Clabaut, Anthony Herrel, T.J. Sanger, T.B. Smith, Arhat Abzhanov, 2009.
Development of beak polymorphism in the African seedcracker, Pyrenestes ostinus.
Evolution & Development 11(6):636-646. ABSTRACT. The black-bellied African
seedcracker, Pyrenestes ostrinus, exhibits a non-sex-related polymorphism in
beak size that enables the small-, large-, and mega-billed morphs to utilize
different trophic niches. The bill polymorphism between small- and large-billed
individuals was previously shown to be under genetic control of a single
autosomal locus, with the allele for a large bill being dominant. African
seedcrackers offer a novel opportunity to study the genetic basis of an adaptive
polymorphism driven by disruptive selection and differential niche use in wild
populations. In this study, we further explore the morphology and molecular
development of the beak skeleton, and of the cranial musculature in all morphs,
both in adults and juveniles
  (nestlings). We find a close correlation in growth between the two tissues,
even though juvenile birds (nestlings) of all morphs are fed a soft mostly
insect diet by their parents until they fledge and become independent. Molecular
and histological analyses suggest a heterochronic co-option of the
mechanotransduction pathway into beak development program to produce the
resource polymorphism. We also find that this plasticity is diminished after the
nestling period. We suggest that a mutation affecting cranial muscle mass led to
a corresponding change in jawbone morphology, allowing for apparent rapid
evolution of novel functional adaptations of multiple tissues, a mechanism
previously thought to be hard to achieve.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
STEPHAN PICKERING / Chofetz Chayim ben-Avraham
�
THE DINOSAUR FRACTALS PROJECT
2333 Portola Drive # 4
Santa Cruz, California 95062-4250
stephanpickering@...
�
website: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/paleo_bio_dinosaur_ontology
�
IN PROGRESS: Mutanda Dinosaurologica: in memory of Samuel Paul Welles (9
November 1909--6 August 1997)
IN PROGRESS: Dialects of a synaesthetic heart: poetics for Faline Pickering (23
January 1949--24 August 2008)
IN PROGRESS: Alfred Russel Wallace's KING KONG: the semioptics of Willis O'Brien
�
PARTNER IN THE UNIVERSE TO: FALINE PICKERING, MY BELOVED QUANTUM PISCES
MEMBER 13853: Society of Vertebrate Paleontology
�
One concept corrupts and confuses the others. I am not speaking of the Evil
whose limited sphere is ethics; I am speaking of the infinite. -- J.L. BORGES
You never know what's comin' for you. -- QUEENIE in ERIC ROTH'S �The curious
case of Benjamin Button
What if G-d didn't say it? -- BART EHRMAN
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J.M. McNamara & A.I. Houston, 2009. Integrating function and mechanism. Trends
in Ecology & Evolution 24(12):670-675. ABSTRACT. Behavioural ecology often makes
the assumption that animals can respond flexibly by adopting the optimal
behaviour for each circumstance. However, as ethologists have long known,
behaviour is determined by mechanisms that are not optimal in every
circumstance. As we discuss here, we believe that it is necessary to integrate
these separate traditions by considering the evolution of mechanisms, an
approach referred to as ‘Evo-mecho’. This integration is timely because
there is a growing awareness of the importance of environmental complexity in
shaping behaviour; there are established and effective computational procedures
for simulating evolution, and there is rapidly increasing knowledge of the
neuronal basis of decision-making. Although behavioural ecologists have built
complex models of optimal behaviour in simple
  environments, we argue that they need to focus on simple mechanisms that
perform well in complex environments.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
cf. J.M. McNamara & A.I. Houston, 2005. If animals know their own fighting
ability, the evolutionarily stable level of fighting is reduced. Jour.
Theoretical Biology 232(1):1-6
 
STEPHAN PICKERING / Chofetz Chayim ben-Avraham
 
THE DINOSAUR FRACTALS PROJECT
2333 Portola Drive # 4
Santa Cruz, California 95062-4250
stephanpickering@...
 
website: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/paleo_bio_dinosaur_ontology
 
IN PROGRESS: Mutanda Dinosaurologica: in memory of Samuel Paul Welles (9
November 1909--6 August 1997)
IN PROGRESS: Dialects of a synaesthetic heart: poetics for Faline Pickering (23
January 1949--24 August 2008)
IN PROGRESS: Alfred Russel Wallace's KING KONG: the semioptics of Willis O'Brien
 
PARTNER IN THE UNIVERSE TO: FALINE PICKERING, MY BELOVED QUANTUM PISCES
MEMBER 13853: Society of Vertebrate Paleontology
 
One concept corrupts and confuses the others. I am not speaking of the Evil
whose limited sphere is ethics; I am speaking of the infinite. -- J.L. BORGES
You never know what's comin' for you. -- QUEENIE in ERIC ROTH'S  The curious
case of Benjamin Button
What if G-d didn't say it? -- BART EHRMAN
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Elise Nowbahari, Alexandra Scohier, Jean-Luc Durand, Karen L. Hollis, 2009.
Ants, Cataglyphis cursor, use precisely directed rescue beahvior to free
entrapped relatives. Public Library of Science ONE 4(8):e6573 [4pp] + Supporting
Information [Table S1, Figs. S1-S2, Video S1-S2]. AZBSTRACT. Although helping
behavior is ubiquitous throughout the animal kingdom, actual rescue activity is
particularly rare. Nonetheless, here we report the first experimental evidence
that ants, Cataglyphis cursor, use precisely directed rescue behavior to free
entrapped victims; equally important, they carefully discriminate between
individuals in distress, offering aid only to nestmates. Our experiments
simulate a natural situation, which we often observed in the field when
collecting Catagyphis ants, causing sand to collapse in the process. Using a
novel experimental technique that binds victims experimentally, we observed the
behavior of separate, randomly chosen groups of
  5 C. cursor nestmates under one of six conditions. In five of these conditions,
a test stimulus (the “victim”) was ensnared with nylon thread and held
partially beneath the sand. The test stimulus was either (1) an individual from
the same colony; (2) an individual from a different colony of C cursor; (3) an
ant from a different ant species; (4) a common prey item; or, (5) a motionless
(chilled) nestmate. In the final condition, the test stimulus (6) consisted of
the empty snare apparatus. Our results demonstrate that ants are able to
recognize what, exactly, holds their relative in place, and direct their
behavior to that object, the snare, in particular. They begin by excavating
sand, which exposes the nylon snare, transporting sand away from it, and then
biting at the snare itself. Snare biting, a behavior never before reported in
the literature, demonstrates that rescue behavior is far more sophisticated,
exact, and complexly organized than the
  simple forms of helping behavior already known, namely limb pulling and sand
digging. That is, limb pulling and sand digging could be released directly by a
chemical call for help, and thus result from a very simple mechanism. However,
it's difficult to see how this same releasing mechanism could guide rescuers to
the precise location of the nylon thread, and enable them to target their bites
to the thread itself.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
cf. L.A. Dugatkin, 1997, Cooperation among animals: an evolutionary perspective
(Oxford University Press), 221pp
 
L.A. Dugatkin, 1998. A model for coalition formation in animals. Proc. Royal
Soc. London B265:433-437
 
L.A. Dugatkin, 2002. Animal cooperation among unrelated individuals.
Naturwissenschaften 89(12):533-541
 
L.A. Dugatkin, 2002. Cooperation in animals: an evolutionary overview. Biology &
Philosophy 17(4):459-476
 
 
 
STEPHAN PICKERING / Chofetz Chayim ben-Avraham
 
THE DINOSAUR FRACTALS PROJECT
2333 Portola Drive # 4
Santa Cruz, California 95062-4250
stephanpickering@...
 
website: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/paleo_bio_dinosaur_ontology
 
IN PROGRESS: Mutanda Dinosaurologica: in memory of Samuel Paul Welles (9
November 1909--6 August 1997)
IN PROGRESS: Dialects of a synaesthetic heart: poetics for Faline Pickering (23
January 1949--24 August 2008)
IN PROGRESS: Alfred Russel Wallace's KING KONG: the semioptics of Willis O'Brien
 
PARTNER IN THE UNIVERSE TO: FALINE PICKERING, MY BELOVED QUANTUM PISCES
MEMBER 13853: Society of Vertebrate Paleontology
 
One concept corrupts and confuses the others. I am not speaking of the Evil
whose limited sphere is ethics; I am speaking of the infinite. -- J.L. BORGES
You never know what's comin' for you. -- QUEENIE in ERIC ROTH'S  The curious
case of Benjamin Button
What if G-d didn't say it? -- BART EHRMAN
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Xing Lida, Wu Jianghao, Lu Yi, Lu Junchang, Ji Qiang, 2009. Aerodynamic
characteristics of the crest with membrane attachment in Cretaceous
pterodactyloid Nyctosaurus. Acta Geologica Sinica [English edition] 83(1):25-32.
ABSTRACT. The Nyctosaurus specimen KJ1 is reconstructed under the hypothesis
that there is a membrane attached to the crest, the so-called headsail crest.
The aerodynamic forces and moments acting on the headsail crest are then
analyzed. It is shown that KJ1 might adjust the angle of the headsail crest
relative to the air current as one way to generate thrust (one of the
aerodynamic forces used to overcome body drag in forward flight), and that the
magnitude of the thrust and moment could vary with the gesture angle, and the
relative location between the aerodynamic center of the headsail crest and the
body’s center of gravity. Three scenarios are tested for comparison to each
other: the crest with a membrane attachment, the crest
  without a membrane attachment, and the absence of a cranial crest. It is shown
that the aerodynamic characteristics (increasing, maintaining, and decreasing
thrusts and moments) would almost disappear in flight for the crest without
membrane attachment, and none exist without the cranial crest. It is suggested
from aerodynamics evidence alone that Nyctosaurus specimen KJ1 had a membrane
attached to the crest, and used this reconstructed form for auxiliary flight
control.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
cf. S. Christopher Bennett, 2003. New crested specimens of the Late Cretaceous
pterosaur  Nyctosaurus. Palaeontologische Zeitschrift 77(1):61-75
 
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