There are gaps between reptile-bird

From EvoWiki

Contents 1 Claim 2 Source 3 Responses 4 References 5 Further Reading 6 See Also

Claim

There are no transitional fossils between reptiles and birds.

Source

1. Anon, 1985. Life--How Did It Get Here? Watchtower Bible and Tract Society of New York, Inc., 75.

Responses

1. One word - Archaeopteryx.
2. Birds are reptiles, so there is no way to claim a gap. They are not commonly referred to as reptiles, and Reptilia is kept paraphyletic, out of tradition, and not so much good biology. Aves must be included within Reptilia to make it monophyletic.
3. Birds and the only other living archosaurs, the crocodiles, share a great number of anatomical similarities, including a 4-chambered heart.
4. add more responses

References

1. Ji Q., Currie, P. J., Norell, M. A., & Ji S. 1998. Two feathered dinosaurs from northeastern China. Nature 393:753-761.
2. Norell, Mark A. and Clarke, Julia A., 2001. Fossil that fills a critical gap in avian evolution. Nature 409: 181-184.
3. Normile, Dennis, 2000. New feathered dino firms up bird links. Science 288: 1721.
4. Pei-ji C., Zhi-ming D., & Shuo-nan Z. 1998. An exceptionally well-preserved theropod dinosaur from the Yixian Formation of China. Nature 391:147-152.
5. Sereno, P., & Rao C. 1992. Early Evolution of Avian Flight and Perching: New Evidence from the Lower Creates of China. Science 255:845-848.
6. Xing X., Zhonghe Z., Xiaolin W., Xuewen K., Fucheng Z., & Xiangke D. 2003. Four-winged dinosaurs from China. Nature 421:335-340.
7. Xu, Xing, Zhong-He Zhou & Richard O. Prum, 2001. Branched integumental structures in Sinornithosaurus and the origin of feathers. Nature 410: 200-204.

Further Reading

1. Dingus, L., & Rowe, T. 1997. The mistaken extinction: dinosaur evolution and the origin of birds. New York: Freeman and Company.
2. Chiappe, Luis M. and Gareth J. Dyke, 2002. The Mesozoic radiation of birds. Annual Review of Ecology and Systematics 33: 91-124.
3. Novas, F.E. & Puerta, P.F., 1997. New evidence concerning avian origins from the Late Cretaceous of Patagonia. Nature 387: 390-392. See also Witmer, L.M., 1997, A new missing link. Nature 387: 349-350; Anon., 1997 (24 May), Missing link. New Scientist 154: 13.
4. Pojeta, John Jr. and Springer, Dale A., 2001. Evolution and the Fossil Record, American Geological Institute, Alexandria, VA. http://www.agiweb.org/news/spot_06apr01_evolutionbk.htm , http://www.agiweb.org/news/evolution.pdf .
5. Hetcht, J., 1997 (Apr 19). China unveils first bird's feathered cousin. New Scientist 154: 6.
6. Wang, Justin, 1998. Scientists flock to explore China's 'site of the century'. Science 279: 1626-1627.
7. Bird Evolution Wikipedia
8. http://www.pbs.org/lifeofbirds/evolution/index.html

See Also

• Why is Creationism not a Scientific Theory?
• Theory of Evolution