Morphological features of Oviraptorosauria, a group of non-avian dinosaurs, and extant birds have made the evolutionary placement of this group with respect to birds difficult to discern. This study seeks to provide a robust hypothesis of these evolutionary relationships through a phylogenetic analysis. The resulting phylogenetic tree will be used along with appropriate statistical methods to address questions concerning changes in the central nervous system (CNS) leading to the origin of flight. Since the endocranial cavity approximates the morphology of the brain, creating endocasts of this space with CT scanning technology will allow the investigators to study how the CNS changes morphologically along this important lineage, as well as how it changes through the life history of these organisms.
Given the public interest in dinosaurs and the origination of characters associated with flight, this study provides an appealing model for teaching evolutionary theory to the public. A hypothesis of evolutionary relationships will be generated that can be used in future studies interested in biological questions concerning this group. The study will generate a large body of detailed morphological descriptions of new specimens and novel anatomical systems. Additionally, digitally generated endocranial casts will provide invaluable data for researchers studying the neuroanatomy of dinosaurs.
