Avian Evolution
SMason8@aol.com
Mon, 5 Jun 1995 18:53:21 -0400An article in the June 1995 Scientific American called *Flying in the Face of
Tradition* reports on an unpopular proposal by ornithologist Alan Feduccia
that modern birds did not evolve from dinosaurs and that they all appeared
withing the last 5 to 10 million years. He says the shorter timescale
suggests a major revolution in our thinking about how evolution occurs. The
article also suggests that this would cause phylogeneticists using geologic
timescales to recalibrate their molecular clocks. It also said the theory
would preclude attributing modern orders, such as the large South American
flightless birds, to drifting continents. The article also referenced Philip
Gingerich's work on the rapid morphological change in the 10 million year
evolution of whales from land animals.
Are these shortened timescales (for the divergence of modern species)
becoming more accepted in evolutionary circles?