Alvarezsauroidea

tags: evolutionary biology, convergent evolution, paleontology, taxonomy, zoology, basal birds, theropods, dinosaurs, ornithology, birds, Alvarezsauroidea, Haplocheirus sollers, Maniraptora, Archaeopteryx, researchblogging.org,peer-reviewed research, peer-reviewed paper A Newly Discovered Basal Alvarezsauroid Theropod from the Early Late Jurassic. Artwork: Portia Sloan [larger view] DOI: 10.1126/science.1182143 A long-standing scientific debate focuses on the origins of birds: did they evolve from reptiles or dinosaurs? Currently, most scientists think that birds are modern dinosaurs,…