Well, I thought I was in a much better place than I was. After quite a while of pouring over phylogenic articles and chasing links, I thought I came up with a list of the entirety of Tetanurae, heavily based on a paper I had found that only truly encompassed what is now considered carnosauria, and not the larger colelurosaur group. Or at the very least the sections I thought I would do. Therapoda makes up a huge portion of Dinosauria, and Tetanurae is a large group within Theropoda. It includes the entirety of birds, as well as classics like Spinosaurus aegyptiacus, the Velociraptors, and of course, Tyrannosaurus rex. Even knowing that, I was unprepared for the scope of this group. I thought that I might be about to do less then 100 as an achievable fellows goal. However, my list contained over 170 genera, much more than I expected. Now, having my list, I have been looking through the contact information that I recorded earlier in the month (in addition to the resources I was able to find in my list making research). I found one older site (if one were to say that 2015 was "old") and after I filtered out nomen nudem, or names of organisms without official descriptions, I was left with about 250 genera.
I think it is unfeasible, unfortunately, to be able to thoroughly research and draw potentially 250 genera, within a year. However, I prepared for this. While I chose a larger group, the nature of cladistics mean that there are dozens of nodes throughout Tetanurae where I can break it down further. I had initially chosen this group because it contains the Carnosaurs and the Coelurosaurs, the carnosaurs containing the Spinosaurs and Allosaurs (Baryonyx and Spinosaurs being personal favorites), and the coelurosaurs containing tyrannosaurs, raptors, birds, oviraptors, ornithomimids, and many others. Instead of trying to research all of the dinosaurs in both groups, I think what I may do (and have already started to do, although this plan and my initial plan would have began the same), is to research to the end of one branch, do the art, and then move on. In my initial lists, I broke it in 7-10 stopping points. A 2012 phylogenic analysis had Megalosauriodea split from the Avetheropoda, and so I could start by researching all of the Megalosauriodea. Then, Avetheropoda is broken into the Allosauroidea and the Coelurosaurs, and so I would start with the smaller Allosauroidea. After that, the Tyrannosauriodea, etc. T. rex, unfortuantely, is within that aforementioned group, so it might take time to get there. This project may end up smaller than I had initially predicted, but is already showing me the vast amounts of resources out there to access, which I am enjoying. The good thing is also that the more basal dinosaurs (the ones I will get to first), are the ones most identifiable as dinosaurs. As I would move down the Coelurosaurs, they would become more and more bird-like (there really isn't an easy line to draw between "dinosaurs" and "birds", birds themselves being derived dinosaurs), until I would reach organisms that some have argued should or could count as birds themselves, including the Oviraptorids and even the classic 'raptors (which are really just one step above being birds, and newer reconstructions have them appearing pretty bird-like, feathers and all. Except for, of course, their teeth, signature claw, and size). The summer research, and the first step in a research-draw plan, is Carnosauria. I have a much better understanding of the limits of this project, though, which is a good position to be in right now. While COVID-19 is definitely impacting parts of it (no visiting museums!) its also will probably give me time during the online schooling and hybrid schedule that I need to devote to this.
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This past month I have compiled contact information for a variety of institutions and paleoartists in case I have questions or want to reach out during the process later in the year. I have also found a number of sites and resources that will help me find papers related to what I need, many for free.
A key paper that I have been using analyses the specific phylogeny of Tetanurae, Bensen et al. 2012, and while I am not creating a work that deals specifically with phylogeny and the complexity of the theropod family tree, it has served as a useful starting point for identifying species. Because it dealt with many different genera and fragments, it needed to analyze many specific traits and specimens to organize them into ideally monophyletic clades. As such, not only does it provide a list of genera, on which I have researched and added to/subtracted from with more data if I've encountered it (such as new species being found, or new specimens found of species with little evidence), it provides brief information and references for each species it discusses. While this month has been busier then I had expected, I have a good list of what species I will include, and contacts and resources I can reach out too. I also bought Mark Witton's book on Paleo-Art, which has proven itself a valuable resource in the process and what features I should look out for. I have begun researching some species and hope to post more about that by the end of the month. A neat debate I learned about, for now: Tyrannosaurus Rex is a member of this group, and there is some debate about whether or not it had lips. or at least soft tissue that could cover its teeth. The charging, poor-sighted, teeth flashing predator of Jurassic Park may have been more terrifying then its real-life counterpart! Below are some notes and the start of a list of species and phylogentic placement based on the Bensen paper, as I went through and verified each species/that there were not more species within listed genera. Last Thursday, at 1pm, I was able to meet with my mentor for the project, Ms. Johnson, our digital arts teacher who will be able to guild my digital arts and book making process as my Fellows develops.
During the meeting we were able to clarify not only the summer goals but also the project itself. During the summer, all the research and non-image content should be completed. She also introduced me to the program InDesign, which will be useful for the completion of my project later. This past week the first official Fellows meeting was held over Zoom, a consequence of the global Coronavirus pandemic that will uniquely affect all of our projects this coming summer and year. The Fellows Leadership Lab, hosted by Mrs. Carsley, explained the needs and requirement of the Fellows program, as well as guided us through the beginning stages of not only our project, but this very website.
Going into this program, my project was just a hazy idea in my mind, but during the lab I was able to articulate a proper explanation of what I was trying to do, formulating a "pitch" that can be read on the home page of this site. The most important thing I need to do as of now to truly begin my project to narrow down my scope to a group that I want to focus on. While in an ideal world I could create some grand catalog of all known dinosaur species, or even genus, there is too much uncertainty. Too much uncertainty in phylogeny and speculation in species, as well as constant debates over the very existence of entire genus. Lists on different sites, blogs, and books are complicated, and the amount of genus within dinosauria might range between several hundred into the thousands. So my first step is to choose a subsection, a clade, within. One large enough to be worth such a project, and yet small enough to be manageable within a year. My greatest concern, as of now, is not related to the information gathering but to the art works I hope to include within the book. I have little experience drawing animals and have a limited understanding of both non-mammalian anatomy and paleo art as a whole. Why I am confident I will be able to improve in the time I study, I am concerned that I will be be able produce the quantity I may expect, while maintaining their quality. However, if necessary, this can be addressed by further narrowing the scope of my project and therefore the amount of drawings. We shall see in the fall, when I start the artworks and anatomical studies. |
AuthorJulia Youssef Archives
April 2021
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