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RE: VERY Stupid question, but I dont know the answer...
T. Mike Keesey wrote:
>There are, however, cases where seniority seems to be ignored
>(Deinodontidae vs. Tyrannosauridae).
and
>Actually, since _Deinodon_ was placed in a
>new family, Deinodontidae, that's probably the correct name by ICZN >rules,
but I never see anyone use it.
_Deinodon horridus_ Leidy 1856 is based on indeterminate teeth, and so is a
_nomen dubium_. Hence, the family Deinodontidae is "fruit of the poisonous
tree", and cannot be considered a valid name either. Tyrannosauridae Osborn
1905 is therefore the first available name for the family containing
_Tyrannosaurus_ and its close relatives.
Having said this, Ceratopsidae and Hadrosauridae should probably be
considered invalid family names, since the name-giving taxa are probably
_nomina dubia_ - and perhaps Troodontidae and Titanosauridae as well, for
the same reason. Hopefully PhyloCode will sort all this out.
Tim
------------------------------------------------------------
Timothy J. Williams
USDA-ARS Researcher
Agronomy Hall
Iowa State University
Ames IA 50014
Phone: 515 294 9233
Fax: 515 294 3163