sinosauropteryx: birds of a proto-feather evolve together?

From Daniel James Devine in World...

In recent decades, a dominant portion of paleontologists have taught that birds evolved from dinosaurs. The popular theory of bird origins has been bolstered by fossils showing filamentous patterns interpreted to be "protofeathers," or evolutionary precursors to modern feathers. But a controversial new study published in the Proceedings of the Royal Society B challenges this view.

The hubbub centers on a theropod called Sinosauropteryx, a turkey-sized dinosaur related to Tyrannosaurus rex. First discovered in 1994, Sinosauropteryx was hailed as an ancestor to birds after it was observed to sport a mane of fibrous structures along its spine—rudimentary feathers intended to keep the animal warm, as the theory went. But Alan Feduccia, a University of North Carolina professor and co-author of the Proceedings B paper, argues that a microscopic examination of the alleged "protofeather" fibers shows otherwise.

"We found what I would consider to be definitive evidence—based on the structure of these fibers and their position and so forth—to show that they are in fact degraded skin collagen fibers," Feduccia told WORLD. "[They] have nothing to do with feathers or protofeathers."
Feduccia and his colleagues believe the collagen, a connective protein found in bone, once supported a frill along the dinosaur's back and tail. They say their discovery challenges the idea that dinosaurs evolved into modern birds.

Other scientists disagree, claiming the link between dinosaurs and birds has already been firmly established. And some dispute the Sinosauropteryx study itself: "It is appalling that Proceedings B chose to publish this nonsense," Kevin Padian, curator at the University of California's Museum of Paleontology, told National Geographic News.

But Feduccia is sticking by his guns. "There are too many problems with the current dogma of the dinosaurian origin of birds," he said. "I'm willing to go wherever the evidence leads us."
Missing the rain for the trees: Global-warming models fail to account for moisture