David Peters

8 Questions 6 Answers 0 Followers

Questions related from David Peters

Given that Mesozoic placentals were largely arboreal (with fingers), do you know of any studies that illustrate the finger-to-hoof transition?

I'm interested in the earliest days of placental terrestrial locomotion in large herbivorous taxa. Phenacodus seems to be transitional in this regard. Any others?

07 June 2024 5,368 2 View

Seen: http://reptileevolution.com/MPUM6009-3.htm (pterosaur tree) and http://reptileevolution.com/reptile-tree.htm (where pterosaurs fit in tetrapods?

Just wondering if you have explored all the possibilities for pterosaur ancestry, and if you include many specimens of various genera within your pterosaur tree? In my studies no two specimens...

19 October 2018 4,926 1 View

What is the proximal outgroup for multituberculates?

I found they nest within the Placentalia between Carpolestes and rodents. So their rodent-like traits are not convergent, but homologous, despite their antiquity.

17 March 2018 5,874 0 View

Why is Pappochelys considered basal to turtles when better candidates are known?

In phylogenetic analysis I found turtles to be derived from pareiasaurs. See attached. Pappochelys, given the opportunity to nest with turtles, nests with basal placodonts, far from turtles.

01 January 1970 6,279 8 View

Taxon exclusion mars this study

The Early Origin of Feathers Adding taxa separates pterosaurs (lepidosaurs) from dinosaurs (archosaurs). Their last common ancestor was a Viséan basal reptile. Moreover, adding taxa clarifies...

01 January 1970 6,643 0 View

The authors chose the wrong phylogenetic bracket.

Prenatal development in pterosaurs and its implications for ... Unwin and Deeming follow the invalidated hypothesis that pterosaurs were archosaurs/archosauromorphs that laid and buried their eggs...

01 January 1970 7,711 0 View

Adding taxa nests Llanocetus apart from Mysticeti

Gigantism Precedes Filter Feeding in Baleen Whale Evolution I added Llanocetus to a large and growing taxon list (see below) and found it nested between Mystacodon and Zygorhiza, all arising from...

01 January 1970 3,774 0 View

AMNH: time to update your iconic Pteranodon mount

Several myths promoted by the American Museum of Natural History (AMNH) in their iconic and traditional mount of Pteranodon (Fig 1) need to stop. I commented on the AMNH FB page with this pic on...

01 January 1970 5,025 0 View