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Full Text (PDF) Pruebas de imprenta Page proofs 2015 LIBROS XX9 Hornero 30(1):XX–XX, 2015 THE GAP BETWEEN STUDIES OF DINOSAURS AND LIVING BIRDS DYKE G & KAISER G (eds) (2011) Living dinosaurs. The ambiguous, that one can reliably evaluate a evolutionary history of modern birds. Wiley-Blackwell, hypothesis without proposing an alternative, Oxford. 422 pp. ISBN: 978-0-470-65666-2. Precio: and that many cladistic analyses claimed to US$ 129.95 (rústica) have tested the theropod origin of birds are flawed. New discoveries provide increasing evidence that at least three current groups of Editors Dyke and Kaiser have compiled 16 theropods (Dromaeosauridae, Troodontidae, chapters spanning several major areas of Oviraptorosauria; those with vaned feathers) ornithology, including the origin of birds, their might be birds, more derived than basal birds, subsequent evolution, relationships within as has been argued since 1988 by Gregory specific groups, and other topics. Their title Paul, who nevertheless holds that birds are confirms that they accept the prevailing theropods. Read this chapter as a detailed hypothesis that Neornithes (modern birds, summary of the “consensus” view. Then read the most recent common ancestor of living Paul 9 and Feduccia 10,11 for alternative views birds and all its descendants) are a clade of and ponder about whether you accept that the maniraptoran theropod dinosaurs that sur- principle of congruence can identify homolo- vived the Cretaceous–Paleogene (K–Pg) gous characters. In the second chapter, Ward extinction event 65 my ago. In their preface and Berner point out that estimated low they acknowledge that neither morphologi- atmospheric oxygen levels in the Late Triassic cal nor molecular approaches have so far may have favoured the evolution of bipedal produced a widely accepted tree of the rela- dinosaurs. High oxygen levels in the Creta- tionships among the major groups of living ceous were associated with high numbers of birds. For fossils, of course, only morphologi- dinosaur genera. O’Connor et al. present an cal approaches are available. As in other recent important summary of Mesozoic (premodern) edited books emphasizing avian paleonto- birds, demonstrating that various lineages logy 1–3, uncertainties associated with the acquired traits (reduced postorbital bone, theropod origin of birds are either omitted or reductions in the manus, flightlessness) that dismissed, but many chapters are unaffected we usually associate with Neornithes. Their by these uncertainties. cladistic analysis does not include Bremer sup- The book is organized into four parts: the port or bootstrap values. deep evolutionary history of modern birds Part 2 begins with a discussion by Livezey (before the K–Pg event), fossils and the avian about persistent problems with both morpho- tree of life for modern birds, the evolution of logical and molecular approaches to phylo- key avian attributes, and conservation and genetic analysis. He pleads for a future climate change. Three previous reviews are total-evidence approach that uses both. Dyke entirely positive 4–6, but the review by Camp- and Gardiner admit that the fossil record for bell 7 praises some chapters and criticizes modern bird lineages indicates that most of others. them originated after the K–Pg extinction. In Part 1, Makovicky and Zanno set the stage Their most extreme early limit of confidence for the rest of the volume. Their figure 1.1 is a is for Procellariiformes, at 76 my ago, and they ladderized tree showing key traits in avian predict that numerous Cretaceous neorni- evolution mapped stepwise onto a phylo- thine fossils will soon be found. In a summary genetic tree for Archosauria. The accompany- of the morphology and biology of fossil and ing Archeopteryx is portrayed like a walking extant penguins, Ksepka and Ando confirm 8 chicken. James and Pourtless are misquoted that the sister group of the Sphenisciformes here (p. 40) and in Chapter 3 as having placed is Procellariiformes. For crown group taxa Aves outside of dinosaurs. That paper actually (Spheniscidae), the basalmost genus differs contends that the origin of birds is currently according to the rooting used. Alvrenga et al. Pruebas de imprenta Page proofs XX10 LIBROS Hornero 30(1) summarize information about the extinct Paleognathae and Neognathae occurred flightless Phorusrhacidae, the terror birds that about 100 my ago, that the origins of the inhabited South America from the Paleocene Galliformes and Anseriformes occurred either until the end of the Pleistocene. Similarly, together or separately 95–90 my ago, that the Bourdon summarizes information about the basal diversification of Neoaves was 75–65 my extinct Odontopterygiformes, the pseudo- ago, and that the main diversification within toothed seabirds of the Paleocene to Pliocene, Neoaves occurred 65–55 my ago. Neverthe- some of which were twice the size of the less, only two fossils of Neornithes are widely largest extant albatrosses. Her analysis places recognized from the Mesozoic (Vegavis and the group as the sister group to the Anseri- Teviornis) and even those have been disputed. formes. After pointing out that the osteologi- Kaiser’s chapter on marine and aquatic birds cal synapomorphies of the Galloanserae are compares various classifications and points entirely cranial, she offers a sobering wake- out striking cases of convergence. Loons and up call to her colleagues studying early grebes always come out together in morpho- neornithine evolution (pp. 218–220). Barker’s logical analyses. chapter about the Passeriformes, one of the Part 4, on avian conservation, extinction, and most notable radiations of vertebrates remain- climate change, seems to be misplaced in this ing on the planet, compares studies of biogeo- volume, but its single chapter by Thomas is a graphy and patterns of diversification based good introduction to the literature on these largely on molecular data and ends on an subjects. optimistic note. I sympathize with Dyke and Kaiser, who Part 3 is a mixture of papers on functional wanted to bridge the gap between ornithol- morphology, comparative morphology, and ogy as the study of living birds and the phylogenetic inferences from molecular data. paleontology/systematics community, but I First, Tobalske et al. address morphological must agree with Campbell 7 that the student and behavioural correlates of flapping flight, should approach the book with a critical eye. contending that they have a testable model While admitting many of the uncertainties for the origin of flight based on the develop- about avian evolution, it has avoided the most ment of precocial birds. Walsh and Milner important one of all. My personal view is that describe the modern avian brain and compare its first chapter falsely asserts that cladistics, micro X-ray computer tomography of fossil as it has been applied to morphological data endocasts. Avian brains were almost modern from fossils, has correctly settled the issue of in size and morphology by 55 my ago, and the origin of birds. even the brain of the oldest fossil bird, Archaeopteryx, shows that it was well equipped 1 CURRIE PJ, KOPPELHUS EB, SHUGAR MA AND WRIGHT for flight (although why a flightless theropod JL (eds) (2004) Feathered dragons. Studies on the tran- would have a bird-like expanded telen- sition from dinosaurs to birds. Indiana University cephalon and cerebellum is unknown). Brown Press, Bloomington 2 and Van Tuinen address the contentious issue CHIAPPE LM AND WITMER LM (eds) (2002) Mesozoic of the disparity between molecular and fossil birds. Above the heads of dinosaurs. University of Cali- evidence about the antiquity of the modern fornia Press, Berkeley 3 avian phylogenetic tree. They anticipate fur- GAUTHIER J AND GALL LF (eds) (2001) New perspec- ther development of Bayesian relaxed-clock tives on the origin and early evolution of birds. Proceed- models that use both and admit that a reliable ings of an international symposium in honor of John H. phylochronological signal is not yet available. Ostrom. Yale Peabody Museum of Natural History, 12 New Haven The most recent example is Jarvis et al. , who 4 found a strong molecular signal for the radia- HOLTZ TR JR (2012) Living dinosaurs. The evolution- tion of Neornithes that is post the K–Pg event. ary history of modern birds, edited by Gareth Dyke and Gary Kaiser. Quarterly Review of Biology 87:374 Organ and Edwards discuss major events in 5 NAISH D (2012) Dyke & Kaiser’s Living dinosaurs: the the evolution of the avian genome and varia- evolutionary history of modern birds. Scientific Ameri- tion in genome size and chromosome number can Tetrapod Zoology Blog, New York (URL: http:/ in various taxa. Summarizing the results of /blogs.scientific american.com/tetrapod-zoology/ molecular studies, Lindow concludes with 2012/08/26/dyke-kaiser-living-dinosaurs-the-evolu- some confidence that the division between the tionary-history-of-modern-birds/) Pruebas de imprenta Page proofs 2015 LIBROS 11XX 6 O’CONNOR PM (2014) Book review (DYKE & KAISER: BERTELSEN F, S HELDON FH, BRUMFIELD RT, MELLO CV, Living dinosaurs. The evolutionary history of modern LOVELL PV, WIRTHLIN M, CRUZ SCHNEIDER MP, birds). Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology 34:241–242 PROSDOCIMI F, S AMANIEGO JA, VARGAS VELAZQUEZ 7 CAMPBELL KE JR (2012) Book review (DYKE & KAISER: AM, ALFARO-NÚÑEZ A, CAMPOS PF, PETERSEN B, Living dinosaurs. The evolutionary history of modern SICHERITZ-PONTEN T, P AS A, BAILEY T, S COFIELD P, birds). Auk 129:568–569 BUNCE M, LAMBERT DM, ZHOU Q, PERELMAN P, 8 JAMES FC AND POURTLESS JA IV (2009) Cladistics and DRISKELL AC, SHAPIRO B, XIONG Z, ZENG Y, L IU S, LI the origin of birds: a review and two new analyses. Z, LIU B, WU K, XIAO J, YINQI X, ZHENG Q, ZHANG Y, Ornithological Monographs 66:1–78 YANG H, WANG J, SMEDS L, RHEINDT FE, BRAUN M, 9 FJELDSA J, ORLANDO L, BARKER FK, JØNSSON KA, PAUL GS (2002) Dinosaurs of the air.
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