ORCID Profile
0000-0002-3779-8277
Current Organisations
UNSW Sydney
,
Australian National University
,
Kyoto University
,
University of Zurich
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Research Topics
In Research Link Australia (RLA), "Research Topics" refer to ANZSRC FOR and SEO codes. These topics are either sourced from ANZSRC FOR and SEO codes listed in researchers' related grants or generated by a large language model (LLM) based on their publications.
Top 5 Research Topics
ANZSRC Field of Research (FoR)
Biological Adaptation | Palaeontology (incl. Palynology) | Animal Structure and Function | Manufacturing Engineering | Geology | Manufacturing Processes and Technologies (excl. Textiles) | Conservation and Biodiversity | Evolutionary Biology | Petroleum and Reservoir Engineering | Timber, Pulp and Paper |
ANZSRC Socio-Economic Objective (SEO)
Flora, Fauna and Biodiversity at Regional or Larger Scales | Oil and Gas Extraction | Expanding Knowledge in the Earth Sciences | Wood, Wood Products and Paper not elsewhere classified | Understanding Australia's Past | Expanding Knowledge in the Biological Sciences | Fabricated Metal Products not elsewhere classified
Related Links
Publications
The evolution of ontogenetic allometric trajectories in mammalian domestication
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 25-03-2018
DOI: 10.1111/EVO.13464
Abstract: Morphological ergence of domesticated as compared to wild forms must result from changes in the ontogenetic process. Species-specific tests for heterochrony have rejected a single explanation of domestic forms representing juveniles of their wild relatives. Ontogenetic allometric trajectories for 12 pairs of wild and domestic mammals were examined using skull growth data for 1070 specimens, including representatives from all lineages in which domestication has occurred. A suite of tests were performed to quantify allometric disparity in wild and domestic forms and assess the extent and patterning of modification to allometric trajectories. Domestication has modified postnatal ontogenetic allometric trajectories in mammals, and has generated disparity, achieved through lengthening of trajectory slopes and alteration to slope angles. Allometric disparity was similar for domestic forms compared to their wild relatives, whereas the magnitude of dispersion along allometric vectors differed between precocial mammals and altricial mammals, underscoring the importance of life history and shared evolutionary history in patterns of ontogenetic variation. The results verify the importance of scaling in the morphological changes associated with domestication. The response to domestication for all measured trajectory parameters was variable across species, suggesting multiple pathways of change.
Raptor talon shape and biomechanical performance are controlled by relative prey size but not by allometry
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 08-05-2019
DOI: 10.1038/S41598-019-43654-0
Abstract: Most birds of prey (raptors), rely heavily on their talons for capturing prey. However, the relationship between talon shape and the ability to take prey is poorly understood. In this study we investigate whether raptor talons have evolved primarily in response to adaptive pressures exerted by different dietary demands, or if talon morphology is largely constrained by allometric or phylogenetic factors. We focus on the hallux talon and include 21 species in total varying greatly in body mass and feeding ecology, ranging from active predation on relatively large prey to obligate scavenging. To quantify the variation in talon shape and biomechanical performance within a phylogenetic framework, we combined three dimensional (3D) geometric morphometrics, finite element modelling and phylogenetic comparative methods. Our results indicate that relative prey size plays a key role in shaping the raptorial talon. Species that hunt larger prey are characterised by both distinct talon shape and mechanical performance when compared to species that predate smaller prey, even when accounting for phylogeny. In contrast to previous results of skull-based analysis, allometry had no significant effect. In conclusion, we found that raptor talon evolution has been strongly influenced by relative prey size, but not allometry and, that talon shape and mechanical performance are good indicators of feeding ecology.
Resurrecting Darwin’s Niata - anatomical, biomechanical, genetic, and morphometric studies of morphological novelty in cattle
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 14-06-2018
DOI: 10.1038/S41598-018-27384-3
Abstract: The Niata was a cattle variety from South America that figured prominently in writings on evolution by Charles Darwin. Its shortened head and other aspects of its unusual morphology have been subject of unsettled discussions since Darwin’s time. Here, we examine the anatomy, cranial shape, skull biomechanics, and population genetics of the Niata. Our results show that the Niata was a viable variety of cattle and exhibited anatomical differences to known chondrodysplastic forms. In cranial shape and genetic analysis, the Niata occupies an isolated position clearly separated from other cattle. Computational biomechanical model comparison reveals that the shorter face of the Niata resulted in a restricted distribution and lower magnitude of stress during biting. Morphological and genetic data illustrate the acquisition of novelty in the domestication process and confirm the distinct nature of the Niata cattle, validating Darwin’s view that it was a true breed.
Evolution and phylogenetic signal of growth trajectories: the case of chelid turtles
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 22-10-2010
DOI: 10.1002/JEZ.B.21380
Abstract: Morphological and molecular data yield incongruent hypotheses concerning the interrelationships of chelid side-necked turtles, neither of which is widely accepted. Molecular studies recognize monophyletic South American and Australasian clades, whereas morphological characters distinguish a long-necked clade and a short-necked clade. We take a developmental approach to exploring chelid interrelationships. None of the nine species studied have the same growth pattern for all measurements examined, indicating changes in ontogenetic scaling of cranial characters was common during chelid evolution. The variability in scaling relationships precludes overwhelming support for either hypothesis. Scaling patterns are most similar between the geographically separate clades promoted by molecular analyses, and hence our data favor an independent origin of the long neck in South American and Australasian species. A close relationship between Hydromedusa and Chelus, rather than Chelodina, is supported by scaling patterns associated with a relative widening of the cranium. Our study exemplifies the utility of comparative ontogenetic trajectory data to test phylogenetic hypotheses.
Sex differences in allometry for mouse phenotypic traits indicate that females are not scaled males
Publisher: Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
Date: 30-03-2022
DOI: 10.1101/2022.03.29.486193
Abstract: Sex differences in the lifetime risk and expression of disease are well-known. Preclinical research targeted at improving treatment, increasing health span, and reducing the financial burden of health care, has mostly been conducted on male animals and cells. The extent to which sex differences in phenotypic traits are explained by sex differences in body weight remains unclear. We quantify sex differences in the allometric relationship between trait value and body weight for 375 phenotypic traits in male and female mice, recorded in .1 million measurements from the International Mouse Phenotyping Consortium. We find sex differences in allometric parameters (slope, intercept, residual SD) are common (76% traits). Body weight differences do not explain all sex differences in trait values but scaling by weight may be useful for some traits. Our results support a trait-specific patterning of sex differences in phenotypic traits, promoting case-specific approaches to drug dosage scaled by body weight.
Shared reproductive disruption, not neural crest or tameness, explains the domestication syndrome
Publisher: The Royal Society
Date: 22-03-2023
Abstract: Altered neural crest cell (NCC) behaviour is an increasingly cited explanation for the domestication syndrome in animals. However, recent authors have questioned this explanation, while others cast doubt on whether domestication syndrome even exists. Here, we review published literature concerning this syndrome and the NCC hypothesis, together with recent critiques of both. We synthesize these contributions and propose a novel interpretation, arguing shared trait changes under ancient domestication resulted primarily from shared disruption of wild reproductive regimes. We detail four primary selective pathways for ‘reproductive disruption' under domestication and contrast these succinct and demonstrable mechanisms with cryptic genetic associations posited by the NCC hypothesis. In support of our perspective, we illustrate numerous important ways in which NCCs contribute to vertebrate reproductive phenotypes, and argue it is not surprising that features derived from these cells would be coincidentally altered under major selective regime changes, as occur in domestication. We then illustrate several pertinent ex les of Darwin's ‘unconscious selection' in action, and compare applied selection and phenotypic responses in each case. Lastly, we explore the ramifications of reproductive disruption for wider evolutionary discourse, including links to wild ‘self-domestication' and ‘island effect’, and discuss outstanding questions.
Skeletogenesis and sequence heterochrony in rodent evolution, with particular emphasis on the African striped mouse, Rhabdomys pumilio (Mammalia)
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 09-03-2010
Testing a developmental model in the fossil record: molar proportions in South American ungulates
Publisher: Cambridge University Press (CUP)
Date: 2012
DOI: 10.1666/11001.1
Abstract: A developmental model, based upon murine rodents, has been proposed by Kavanagh et al. (2007) to explain lower molar proportions in mammals. We produce a clade-wide macroevolutionary test of the model using the dental evolutionary trends in a unique radiation of extinct mammals endemic to South America (“Meridiungulata”) that comprise a erse array of molar morphologies. All of the South American ungulate groups examined follow the inhibitory cascade model with the exception of two groups: Interatheriidae (Notoungulata) and Astrapotheria. For most taxa studied, ratios between lower molar areas are greater than 1.0, indicating a weak inhibition by m1 on the subsequent molars in the tooth row, and a trend to greater absolute size of the posterior molars. Comparisons of mean ratios between clades indicate that a significant phylogenetic signal can be detected, particularly between the two groups within Notoungulata— Typotheria and Toxodontia. Body mass estimates were found to be significantly correlated with both m3/m1 and m2/m1 ratios, suggesting that the larger body size achieved the weaker inhibition between the lower molars. Molar ratio patterns are examined and discussed in relation to the independent and numerous acquisitions of hypsodonty that are characteristic of dental evolution in “Meridiungulata.”
Diversity trends and their ontogenetic basis: an exploration of allometric disparity in rodents
Publisher: The Royal Society
Date: 16-12-2009
Abstract: It has been hypothesized that most morphological evolution occurs by allometric differentiation. Because rodents encapsulate a phenomenal amount of taxonomic ersity and, among several clades, contrasting levels of morphological ersity, they represent an excellent subject to address the question: how variable are allometric patterns during evolution? We investigated the influence of phylogenetic relations and ecological factors on the results of the first quantification of allometric disparity among rodents by exploring allometric space, a multivariate morphospace here derived from, and encapsulating all, the ontogenetic trajectories of 34 rodent species from two parallel phylogenetic radiations. Disparity was quantified using angles between ontogenetic trajectories for different species and clades. We found an overlapping occupation of allometric space by muroid and hystricognath species, revealing both clades possess similar abilities to evolve in different directions of phenotypic space, and anatomical ersity does not act to constrain the labile nature of allometric patterning. Morphological features to enable efficient processing of food serve to group rodents in allometric space, reflecting the importance of convergent morphology, rather than shared evolutionary history, in the generation of allometric patterns. Our results indicate that the conserved level of morphological integration found among primates cannot simply be extended to all mammals.
The vocal apparatus of bats: an understudied tool to reconstruct the evolutionary history of echolocation?
Publisher: California Digital Library (CDL)
Date: 13-06-2022
Comparison of prenatal and postnatal ontogeny: Cranial allometry in the African striped mouse (Rhabdomys pumilio)
Publisher: Oxford University Press (OUP)
Date: 15-04-2011
Morphological variation under domestication: how variable are chickens?
Publisher: The Royal Society
Date: 08-2018
DOI: 10.1098/RSOS.180993
Abstract: The process of domestication has long fascinated evolutionary biologists, yielding insights into the rapidity with which selection can alter behaviour and morphology. Previous studies on dogs, cattle and pigeons have demonstrated that domesticated forms show greater magnitudes of morphological variation than their wild ancestors. Here, we quantify variation in skull morphology, modularity and integration in chickens and compare those to the wild fowl using three-dimensional geometric morphometrics and multivariate statistics. Similar to other domesticated species, chickens exhibit a greater magnitude of variation in shape compared with their ancestors. The most variable part of the chicken skull is the cranial vault, being formed by dermal and neural crest-derived bones, its form possibly related to brain shape variation in chickens, especially in crested breeds. Neural crest-derived portions of the skull exhibit a higher amount of variation. Further, we find that the chicken skull is strongly integrated, confirming previous studies in birds, in contrast to the presence of modularity and decreased integration in mammals.
Ontogenetic allometry reveals the imprint of myrmecophagy in the skull of the numbat, Myrmecobius fasciatus Waterhouse, 1836 (Marsupialia: Myrmecobiidae)
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 29-01-2023
A new family of bizarre durophagous carnivorous marsupials from Miocene deposits in the Riversleigh World Heritage Area, northwestern Queensland
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 27-05-2016
DOI: 10.1038/SREP26911
Abstract: A new specimen of the bizarrely specialised Malleodectes mirabilis from middle Miocene deposits in the Riversleigh World Heritage Area provides the first and only information about the molar dentition of this strange group of extinct marsupials. Apart from striking autapomorphies such as the enormous P3, other dental features such as stylar cusp D being larger than B suggest it belongs in the Order Dasyuromorphia. Phylogenetic analysis of 62 craniodental characters places Malleodectes within Dasyuromorphia albeit with weak support and without indication of specific relationships to any of the three established families (Dasyuridae, Myrmecobiidae and Thylacinidae). Accordingly we have allocated Malleodectes to the new family, Malleodectidae. Some features suggest potential links to previously named dasyuromorphians from Riversleigh (e.g., Ganbulanyi ) but these are too poorly known to test this possibility. Although the original interpretation of a steeply declining molar row in Malleodectes can be rejected, it continues to seem likely that malleodectids specialised on snails but probably also consumed a wider range of prey items including small vertebrates. Whatever their actual diet, malleodectids appear to have filled a niche in Australia’s rainforests that has not been occupied by any other mammal group anywhere in the world from the Miocene onwards.
Cranial and mandibular shape variation in the genusCarollia(Mammalia: Chiroptera) from Colombia: biogeographic patterns and morphological modularity
Publisher: PeerJ
Date: 13-08-2015
DOI: 10.7717/PEERJ.1197
Heterochrony and patterns of cranial suture closure in hystricognath rodents
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 03-2009
Postnatal development of the largest subterranean mammal (Bathyergus suillus): Morphology, osteogenesis, and modularity of the appendicular skeleton
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 08-2019
DOI: 10.1002/DVDY.81
Abstract: Subterranean mammals show a suite of musculoskeletal adaptations that enables efficient digging. However, little is known about their development. We assessed ontogenetic changes in functionally relevant skeletal traits, and ossification patterns (periosteal and endochondral bone modules) in a truly subterranean scratch-digging rodent, Bathyergus. We studied 52 in iduals (202 long bones) from a wild population by using a multiscale approach involving internal and external morphology. Multivariate analysis showed significant morphological changes during ontogeny. A specialized phenotype is expressed perinatally (eg, greater external robustness and developed olecranon, teres major, and deltoid processes), whereas adults presented slender bones with significantly thicker cross-sections. Ossification modules scaled mostly isometrically with body size parameters. Periosteal modules showed high variability and tended to grow faster than endochondral modules. Scratch-digging adaptations appear at perinatal age and then specialize in subadults. Early development of agonistic and digging behaviors and onset of sexual maturation seems to contribute to its development, although genetic factors also seem to play an important role. Ontogenetic differences are probably a trade-off to counteract weaker cortical bone properties and poor muscle development in juveniles, whereas slender but thicker cortical bones maximize bone resistance during burrow construction without compromising locomotor performance in adults.
Shape, size, and maturity trajectories of the human ilium
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 26-09-2015
DOI: 10.1002/AJPA.22625
Abstract: Morphological traits of the ilium have consistently been more successful for juvenile sex determination than have techniques applied to other skeletal elements, however relatively little is known about the ontogeny and maturation of size and shape dimorphism in the ilium. We use a geometric morphometric approach to quantitatively separate the ontogeny of size and shape of the ilium, and analyze interpopulation differences in the onset, rate and patterning of sexual dimorphism. We captured the shape of three traits for a total of 191 ilia from Lisbon (Portugal) and London (UK) s les of known age and sex (0-17 years). Our results indicate that a) there is a clear dissociation between the ontogeny of size and shape in males and females, b) the ontogeny of size and shape are each defined by non-linear trajectories that differ between the sexes, c) there are interpopulation differences in ontogenetic shape trajectories, which point to population-specific patterning in the attainment of sexual dimorphism, and d) the rate of shape maturation and size maturation is typically higher for females than males. Male and female shape differences in the ilium are brought about by trajectory ergence. Differences in size and shape maturation between the sexes suggest that maturity may confound our ability to discriminate between the sexes by introducing variation not accounted for in age-based groupings. The accuracy of sex determination methods using the ilium may be improved by the use of different traits for particular age groups, to capture the ontogenetic development of shape in both sexes.
Embryonic evidence uncovers convergent origins of laryngeal echolocation in bats
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 04-2021
DOI: 10.1016/J.CUB.2020.12.043
Abstract: Bats are the second-most speciose group of mammals, comprising 20% of species ersity today. Their global explosion, representing one of the greatest adaptive radiations in mammalian history, is largely attributed to their ability of laryngeal echolocation and powered flight, which enabled them to conquer the night sky, a vast and hitherto unoccupied ecological niche. While there is consensus that powered flight evolved only once in the lineage, whether laryngeal echolocation has a single origin in bats or evolved multiple times independently remains disputed. Here, we present developmental evidence in support of laryngeal echolocation having multiple origins in bats. This is consistent with a non-echolocating bat ancestor and independent gain of echolocation in Yinpterochiroptera and Yangochiroptera, as well as the gain of primitive echolocation in the bat ancestor, followed by convergent evolution of laryngeal echolocation in Yinpterochiroptera and Yangochiroptera, with loss of primitive echolocation in pteropodids. Our comparative embryological investigations found that there is no developmental difference in the hearing apparatus between non-laryngeal echolocating bats (pteropodids) and terrestrial non-bat mammals. In contrast, the echolocation system is developed heterotopically and heterochronically in the two phylogenetically distant laryngeal echolocating bats (rhinolophoids and yangochiropterans), providing the first embryological evidence that the echolocation system evolved independently in these bats.
The contribution of developmental palaeontology to extensions of evolutionary theory
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 09-11-2013
Ecomorphological disparity in an adaptive radiation: opercular bone shape and stable isotopes in Antarctic icefishes
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 06-08-2013
DOI: 10.1002/ECE3.708
A panda-like diprotodontid? Assessing the diet of Hulitherium tomasettii using dental complexity (Orientation Patch Count Rotated) and dental microwear texture analysis
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 12-2021
The Cranial Morphospace of Extant Marsupials
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 12-2021
Evolution of opercle shape in cichlid fishes from Lake Tanganyika - adaptive trait interactions in extant and extinct species flocks
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 20-11-2015
DOI: 10.1038/SREP16909
Abstract: Phenotype-environment correlations and the evolution of trait interactions in adaptive radiations have been widely studied to gain insight into the dynamics underpinning rapid species ersification. In this study we explore the phenotype-environment correlation and evolution of operculum shape in cichlid fishes using an outline-based geometric morphometric approach combined with stable isotope indicators of macrohabitat and trophic niche. We then apply our method to a s le of extinct saurichthyid fishes, a highly erse and near globally distributed group of actinopterygians occurring throughout the Triassic, to assess the utility of extant data to inform our understanding of ecomorphological evolution in extinct species flocks. A series of comparative methods were used to analyze shape data for 54 extant species of cichlids (N = 416) and 6 extinct species of saurichthyids (N = 44). Results provide evidence for a relationship between operculum shape and feeding ecology, a concentration in shape evolution towards present along with evidence for convergence in form and significant correlation between the major axes of shape change and measures of gut length and body elongation. The operculum is one of few features that can be compared in extant and extinct groups, enabling reconstruction of phenotype-environment interactions and modes of evolutionary ersification in deep time.
Postcranial heterochrony, modularity, integration and disparity in the prenatal ossification in bats (Chiroptera)
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 12-03-2019
The Australasian dingo archetype: de novo chromosome-length genome assembly, DNA methylome, and cranial morphology
Publisher: Oxford University Press (OUP)
Date: 2023
DOI: 10.1093/GIGASCIENCE/GIAD018
Abstract: One difficulty in testing the hypothesis that the Australasian dingo is a functional intermediate between wild wolves and domesticated breed dogs is that there is no reference specimen. Here we link a high-quality de novo long-read chromosomal assembly with epigenetic footprints and morphology to describe the Alpine dingo female named Cooinda. It was critical to establish an Alpine dingo reference because this ecotype occurs throughout coastal eastern Australia where the first drawings and descriptions were completed. We generated a high-quality chromosome-level reference genome assembly (Canfam_ADS) using a combination of Pacific Bioscience, Oxford Nanopore, 10X Genomics, Bionano, and Hi-C technologies. Compared to the previously published Desert dingo assembly, there are large structural rearrangements on chromosomes 11, 16, 25, and 26. Phylogenetic analyses of chromosomal data from Cooinda the Alpine dingo and 9 previously published de novo canine assemblies show dingoes are monophyletic and basal to domestic dogs. Network analyses show that the mitochondrial DNA genome clusters within the southeastern lineage, as expected for an Alpine dingo. Comparison of regulatory regions identified 2 differentially methylated regions within glucagon receptor GCGR and histone deacetylase HDAC4 genes that are unmethylated in the Alpine dingo genome but hypermethylated in the Desert dingo. Morphologic data, comprising geometric morphometric assessment of cranial morphology, place dingo Cooinda within population-level variation for Alpine dingoes. Magnetic resonance imaging of brain tissue shows she had a larger cranial capacity than a similar-sized domestic dog. These combined data support the hypothesis that the dingo Cooinda fits the spectrum of genetic and morphologic characteristics typical of the Alpine ecotype. We propose that she be considered the archetype specimen for future research investigating the evolutionary history, morphology, physiology, and ecology of dingoes. The female has been taxidermically prepared and is now at the Australian Museum, Sydney.
Evolution of Neck Vertebral Shape and Neck Retraction at the Transition to Modern Turtles: an Integrated Geometric Morphometric Approach
Publisher: Oxford University Press (OUP)
Date: 09-10-2015
Abstract: The unique ability of modern turtles to retract their head and neck into the shell through a side-necked (pleurodiran) or hidden-necked (cryptodiran) motion is thought to have evolved independently in crown turtles. The anatomical changes that led to the vertebral shapes of modern turtles, however, are still poorly understood. Here we present comprehensive geometric morphometric analyses that trace turtle vertebral evolution and reconstruct disparity across phylogeny. Disparity of vertebral shape was high at the dawn of turtle evolution and decreased after the modern groups evolved, reflecting a stabilization of morphotypes that correspond to the two retraction modes. Stem turtles, which had a very simple mode of retraction, the lateral head tuck, show increasing flexibility of the neck through evolution towards a pleurodiran-like morphotype. The latter was the precondition for evolving pleurodiran and cryptodiran vertebrae. There is no correlation between the construction of formed articulations in the cervical centra and neck mobility. An increasing mobility between vertebrae, associated with changes in vertebral shape, resulted in a more advanced ability to retract the neck. In this regard, we hypothesize that the lateral tucking retraction of stem turtles was not only the precondition for pleurodiran but also of cryptodiran retraction. For the former, a kink in the middle third of the neck needed to be acquired, whereas for the latter modification was necessary between the eighth cervical vertebra and first thoracic vertebra. Our paper highlights the utility of 3D shape data, analyzed in a phylogenetic framework, to examine the magnitude and mode of evolutionary modifications to vertebral morphology. By reconstructing and visualizing ancestral anatomical shapes, we provide insight into the anatomical features underlying neck retraction mode, which is a salient component of extant turtle classification.
Shape variation and modularity of skull and teeth in domesticated horses and wild equids
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 19-04-2018
Quantitatively assessing mekosuchine crocodile locomotion by geometric morphometric and finite element analysis of the forelimb
Publisher: PeerJ
Date: 15-06-2020
DOI: 10.7717/PEERJ.9349
Abstract: Morphological shifts observed in the fossil record of a lineage potentially indicate concomitant shifts in ecology of that lineage. Mekosuchine crocodiles of Cenozoic Australia display departures from the typical eusuchian body-plan both in the cranium and postcranium. Previous qualitative studies have suggested that these crocodiles had a more terrestrial habitus than extant crocodylians, yet the capacity of mekosuchine locomotion remains to be tested. Limb bone shape, such as diaphyseal cross-section and curvature, has been related to habitual use and locomotory function across a wide variety of taxa. Available specimens of mekosuchine limbs, primarily humeri, are distinctly columnar compared with those of extant crocodylians. Here we apply a quantitative approach to biomechanics in mekosuchine taxa using both geomorphic morphometric and finite element methods to measure bone shape and estimate locomotory stresses in a comparative context. Our results show mekosuchines appear to erge from extant semi-aquatic saltwater and freshwater crocodiles in cross-sectional geometry of the diaphysis and generate different structural stresses between models that simulate sprawling and high-walk gaits. The extant crocodylians display generally rounded cross-sectional diaphyseal outlines, which may provide preliminary indication of resistance to torsional loads that predominate during sprawling gait, whereas mekosuchine humeri appear to vary between a series of elliptical outlines. Mekosuchine structural stresses are comparatively lower than those of the extant crocodylians and reduce under high-walk gait in some instances. This appears to be a function of bending moments induced by differing configurations of diaphyseal curvature. Additionally, the neutral axis of structural stresses is differently oriented in mekosuchines. This suggests a shift in the focus of biomechanical optimisation, from torsional to axial loadings. Our results lend quantitative support to the terrestrial habitus hypothesis in so far as they suggest that mekosuchine humeri occupied a different morphospace than that associated with the semi-aquatic habit. The exact adaptational trajectory of mekosuchines, however, remains to be fully quantified. Novel forms appear to emerge among mekosuchines during the late Cenozoic. Their adaptational function is considered here possible applications include navigation of uneven terrain and burrowing.
Biomechanical Investigation of Ancient Maya Warfare at Mayapan, Yucatan, Mexico
Publisher: Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
Date: 13-07-2022
DOI: 10.1101/2022.07.11.499503
Abstract: Despite significant advancements in the reconstruction of activity patterns from skeletal remains and growing scholarly interest in ancient warfare, few biomechanical studies have investigated weaponry use. We adopt a biomechanical approach to investigate who participated in ancient Maya warfare and the types of weaponry used at the Late Postclassic (ca. 1200-1450 A.D.) regional political capital of Mayapán located in northwestern Yucatán, Mexico. This has implications for the nature and scale of Maya warfare and the size of territories that could be controlled by Maya polities. Comparative Finite Element Analysis is a powerful, non-destructive method that can be applied to skeletal remains to model strain, stress and deformation of structures in response to a defined loading regime. Here, biomechanical data extracted using cross-sectional geometry were combined with Finite Element Analysis models of three ancient Maya humeri from Mayapán: one elite male, one elite female, and one commoner female. Models were created with loading conditions of archery and spear use to assess evidence for skeletal adaptation to habitual weapon use. Following suggestions by some Mayanists that elite status males were the principal participants in warfare, we hypothesized that the elite male humerus would exhibit lower strains than the two female humeri in all the loading conditions. This was supported by the Finite Element model results, with the exception of spear throwing. The elite female humerus showed similar trends to the elite male humerus, suggesting the possibility of elite female participation in warfare.
Cranial Suture Closure Patterns in Sciuridae: Heterochrony and Modularity
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 11-10-2014
Voyaging into the third dimension: A perspective on virtual methods and their application to studies of juvenile sex estimation and the ontogeny of sexual dimorphism
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 09-2017
DOI: 10.1016/J.FORSCIINT.2017.06.016
Abstract: In contrast to the well-established and highly accurate morphological methods available for sexing adult skeletons, juvenile sex estimation is widely recognised as a difficult task that faces a series of challenges. The acquisition of 3D data, and construction of 3D models from volume or surface scans, has become increasingly common in forensic sciences, and these data offer considerable opportunity for the development and refinement of methods in sex estimation. The suitability and potential of virtual methods for juvenile sex estimation are evaluated with the aims of identifying (1) the benefits and challenges associated with virtual data and quantitative analysis of 3D models, and (2) pathways that may lead to practical improvements for sexing juveniles. The issues associated with sex estimation in juveniles are discussed and approached in the context of a framework that unifies classification results for a given trait, which provide information on its capacity to discriminate between the sexes, with the underlying patterns of dimorphism over ontogeny. Virtual collections of 3D models are suggested as integral to this framework because they enable the magnitude and mode of sexual dimorphism to be comprehensively quantified for a chosen trait or set of traits. Those data can be used to inform decisions about how to apply a method for sex estimation to maximize its success. Virtual collections, through extending the scope of analyses and impacting the way in which questions on sexual dimorphism in juveniles may be answered, are undoubtedly set to play a central role in future research.
Reaffirming the Palaeontologia Electronica brand: A note on changes to publication priorities
Publisher: Coquina Press
Date: 2019
DOI: 10.26879/191E
Patterns of ontogenetic evolution across extant marsupials reflect different allometric pathways to ecomorphological diversity
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 10-05-2023
DOI: 10.1038/S41467-023-38365-0
Abstract: The relatively high level of morphological ersity in Australasian marsupials compared to that observed among American marsupials remains poorly understood. We undertake a comprehensive macroevolutionary analysis of ontogenetic allometry of American and Australasian marsupials to examine whether the contrasting levels of morphological ersity in these groups are reflected in their patterns of allometric evolution. We collate ontogenetic series for 62 species and 18 families of marsupials ( n = 2091 specimens), spanning across extant marsupial ersity. Our results demonstrate significant lability of ontogenetic allometric trajectories among American and Australasian marsupials, yet a phylogenetically structured pattern of allometric evolution is preserved. Here we show that species erging more than 65 million years ago converge in their patterns of ontogenetic allometry under animalivorous and herbivorous diets, and that Australasian marsupials do not show significantly greater variation in patterns of ontogenetic allometry than their American counterparts, despite displaying greater magnitudes of extant ecomorphological ersity.
Developmental instability in domesticated mammals
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 23-11-2021
DOI: 10.1002/JEZ.B.23108
Abstract: Measures of fluctuating asymmetry (FA) have been adopted widely as an estimate of developmental instability. Arising from various sources of stress, developmental instability is associated with an organism's capacity to maintain fitness. The process of domestication has been framed as an environmental stress with human‐specified parameters, suggesting that FA may manifest to a larger degree among domesticates compared to their wild relatives. This study used three‐dimensional geometric morphometric landmark data to (a) quantify the amount of FA in the cranium of six domestic mammal species and their wild relatives and, (b) provide novel assessment of the commonalities and differences across domestic/wild pairs concerning the extent to which random variation arising from the developmental system assimilates into within‐population variation. The majority of domestic mammals showed greater disparity for asymmetric shape, however, only two forms (Pig, Dog) showed significantly higher disparity as well as a higher degree of asymmetry compared to their wild counterparts (Wild Boar, Wolf). Contra to predictions, most domestic and wild forms did not show a statistically significant correspondence between symmetric shape variation and FA, however, a moderate correlation value was recorded for most pairs (r‐partial least squares .5). Within pairs, domestic and wild forms showed similar correlation magnitudes for the relationship between the asymmetric and symmetric components. In domesticates, new variation may therefore retain a general, conserved pattern in the gross structuring of the cranium, whilst also being a source for response to selection on specific features.
On the reliability of a geometric morphometric approach to sex determination: A blind test of six criteria of the juvenile ilium
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 03-2011
DOI: 10.1016/J.FORSCIINT.2010.06.014
Abstract: Despite the attention of many studies, researchers still struggle to identify criteria with which to sex juvenile remains at levels of accuracy and reproducibility comparable with those documented for adults. This study uses a s le of 82 juvenile ilia from an identified Portuguese population (Lisbon collection) to test the cross-applicability of a new approach by Wilson et al. [23] that uses geometric morphometric methods to sex the subadult ilium. Further, we evaluate the wider applicability of these methods for forensic casework, extending the age range of the original study by examining an additional 19 juvenile ilia from the St. Brides and Spitalfields collections, housed in London. Levels of accuracy for the Portuguese s le (62.2-89.0%) indicate that the methods can be used to document dimorphism in another s le. Discriminant functions are s le-specific, indicated by not better than average classification using cross-validation. We propose a methodological update, whereby we recommend disuse of the auricular surface morphology criterion, based upon reduced success rates and inadequate accuracy of female identification. We show, in addition to population differences, differences in the ontogeny of dimorphism may lead to differing degrees of success for female identification using some criteria. The success rates are highest between the ages of 11.00 and 14.99 years (93.3% males, 80.0% females).
Assessing the association of skeletal indicators of stress with mean age‐at‐death in sub‐adults
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 23-08-2023
DOI: 10.1002/AJPA.24833
Abstract: The present study investigated the association of skeletal indicator of stress presence with mean age‐at‐death as a means of understanding whether commonly studied indicators are indeed indicative of increased frailty. Using a medieval Gaelic population from Ballyhanna (Co. Donegal), the present study assessed the association between skeletal indicators of stress and mean age‐at‐death using the Kaplan–Meier survival function with log rank test to determine whether these indicators were associated with younger age‐at‐death, and therefore increased frailty, in sub‐adults only (0 to 18 years, N = 139) and through comparison to an all‐ages cohort ( N = 318). Only linear enamel hypoplasia was found to be associated with significantly decreased survivorship across the all‐ages cohort but, conversely, was associated with increased survivorship when analysis was restricted to sub‐adults. All other indicators assessed were associated with increased age‐at‐death for both all‐age cohorts and sub‐adult cohorts (cribra orbitalia), increased age‐at‐death when assessing all ages only (porotic hyperostosis and healed periosteal lesions) or were sufficiently rare in adults to prevent comparative analysis (stunting and micronutrient deficiency). Increased survivorship in in iduals with higher numbers of co‐morbid skeletal indicators was observed for both sub‐adults alone and all age cohort. These findings suggest that these commonly recorded skeletal indicators may be more accurately viewed simply as records of stressor exposure and subsequent survival only, rather than providing evidence that these sub‐adults are frailer than their similarly aged‐at‐death peers. Thus, the demographic and sociocultural context is essential to the interpretation of observed skeletal indicators of stress.
Diversity and body size in giant caviomorphs (Rodentia) from the northern Neotropics—a study of femoral variation
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 11-2013
Phylogeny and foraging behaviour shape modular morphological variation in bat humeri
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 29-12-2021
DOI: 10.1111/JOA.13380
Abstract: Bats show a remarkable ecological ersity that is reflected both in dietary and foraging guilds (FGs). Cranial ecomorphological adaptations linked to diet have been widely studied in bats, using a variety of anatomical, computational and mathematical approaches. However, foraging‐related ecomorphological adaptations and the concordance between cranial and postcranial morphological adaptations remain unexamined in bats and limited to the interpretation of traditional aerodynamic properties of the wing (e.g. wing loading [WL] and aspect ratio [AR]). For this reason, the postcranial ecomorphological ersity in bats and its drivers remain understudied. Using 3D virtual modelling and geometric morphometrics (GMM), we explored the phylogenetic, ecological and biological drivers of humeral morphology in bats, evaluating the presence and magnitude of modularity and integration. To explore decoupled patterns of variation across the bone, we analysed whole‐bone shape, diaphyseal and epiphyseal shape. We also tested whether traditional aerodynamic wing traits correlate with humeral shape. By studying 37 species from 20 families (covering all FGs and 85% of dietary guilds), we found similar patterns of variation in whole‐bone and diaphyseal shape and unique variation patterns in epiphyseal shape. Phylogeny, diet and FG significantly correlated with shape variation at all levels, whereas size only had a significant effect on epiphyseal morphology. We found a significant phylogenetic signal in all levels of humeral shape. Epiphyseal shape significantly correlated with wing AR. Statistical support for a diaphyseal‐epiphyseal modular partition of the humerus suggests a functional partition of shape variability. Our study is the first to show within‐structure modular morphological variation in the appendicular skeleton of any living tetrapod. Our results suggest that diaphyseal shape correlates more with phylogeny, whereas epiphyseal shape correlates with diet and FG.
Moa diet fits the bill: virtual reconstruction incorporating mummified remains and prediction of biomechanical performance in avian giants
Publisher: The Royal Society
Date: 13-01-2016
Abstract: The moa (Dinornithiformes) are large to gigantic extinct terrestrial birds of New Zealand. Knowledge about niche partitioning, feeding mode and preference among moa species is limited, h ering palaeoecological reconstruction and evaluation of the impacts of their extinction on remnant native biota, or the viability of exotic species as proposed ecological ‘surrogates'. Here we apply three-dimensional finite-element analysis to compare the biomechanical performance of skulls from five of the six moa genera, and two extant ratites, to predict the range of moa feeding behaviours relative to each other and to living relatives. Mechanical performance during biting was compared using simulations of the birds clipping twigs based on muscle reconstruction of mummified moa remains. Other simulated food acquisition strategies included lateral shaking, pullback and dorsoventral movement of the skull. We found evidence for limited overlap in biomechanical performance between the extant emu ( Dromaius novaehollandiae ) and extinct upland moa ( Megalapteryx didinus ) based on similarities in mandibular stress distribution in two loading cases, but overall our findings suggest that moa species exploited their habitats in different ways, relative to both each other and extant ratites. The broad range of feeding strategies used by moa, as inferred from interspecific differences in biomechanical performance of the skull, provides insight into mechanisms that facilitated high ersities of these avian herbivores in prehistoric New Zealand.
Sex differences in the patterning of age‐related bone loss in the human hallucal metatarsal in rural and urban populations
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 11-01-2020
DOI: 10.1002/AJPA.24002
Abstract: Age-degenerative features of the metatarsals are poorly known despite the importance of metatarsal bone properties for investigating mobility patterns. We assessed the role of habitual activity in shaping the patterning and magnitude of sexual dimorphism in age-related bone loss in the hallucal metatarsal. Cross-sections were extracted at midshaft from micro-computed tomography scan models of in iduals from medieval rural (Abingdon Vineyard) and early industrial urban (Spitalfields) settings (n = 71). A suite of cross-sectional geometry dimensions and biomechanical properties were compared between populations. The rural group display generally stronger and larger metatarsals that show a greater capacity to resist torsion and that have comparatively greater bending strength along the medio-lateral plane. Men in both groups show greater values of cortical area than women, but only in the urban group do men show lower magnitudes of age-related decline compared to females. Women in rural and urban populations show different patterns of age-related decline in bone mass, particularly old women in the urban group show a marked decline in cortical area that is absent for women in the rural group. Lifetime exposure to hard, physical activity in an agricultural setting has contributed to the attainment of greater bone mass and stronger bones in young adults. Furthermore, over the life-course, less of this greater amount of bone is lost, such that sustained activity levels may have acted to buffer against age-related decline, and this is most pronounced for women, who are expected to experience greater bone loss later in life than men.
Prenatal allometric trajectories and the developmental basis of postcranial phenotypic diversity in bats (Chiroptera).
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 2019
DOI: 10.1002/JEZ.B.22846
Abstract: Most morphological and physiological adaptations associated with bat flight are concentrated in the postcranium, reflecting strong functional demands for flight performance. Despite an association between locomotory ersity and trophic differentiation, postcranial morphological ersity in bats remains largely unexplored. Evolutionary developmental biology is a novel approach providing a link between the analysis of genotypic and phenotypic variation resulting from selective pressures. To quantify the morphological ersity of the postcranium in bats and to explore its developmental basis, we reconstructed the postcranial allometric trajectories of nine bat species from different prenatal developmental series, representing five families and both suborders. We tested for allometric growth in Chiroptera and also quantified levels of allometric disparity and inter-trajectory distances. Using a phylogenetic scaffold, we assessed whether ontogenetic differences reflect evolutionary relationships. We found significant allometric growth trajectories in almost all species. Interspecific trajectory distances showed lower variance within Yinpterochiroptera than within Yangochiroptera and between suborders. Each suborder occupied nonoverlapping sections of allometric space, showing changes in the growth rates of specific bones for each suborder. The allometry-corrected disparity was significantly higher in larger species. Statistically significant phylogenetic signal in our results suggests that there is an ontogenetic basis for the postcranial morphological ersity in modern bats. Ancestral state reconstruction also showed an increase in the amount of change in shape with size in the larger species studied. We hypothesize that differences in allometric patterns among bat taxa may reflect a size-dependent evolutionary constraint, whereby variability in body size and allometric patterns are associated.
Quantification of 3D curvature in the iliac crest: Ontogeny and implications for sex determination in juveniles
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 21-10-2017
DOI: 10.1002/AJPA.23114
Abstract: Sex-specific differences in the shape of the iliac crest have been reported based on quantification of simplified curvature using two-dimensional variables or qualitative identification of faint/marked S-shaped curvature. An objective and quantitative approach for the evaluation of iliac crest curvature in juveniles was developed. Using three-dimensional data, ontogenetic variation in iliac curvature was investigated in relation to size and chronological age and its accuracy for sex estimation among juveniles was evaluated. Three-dimensional geometric morphometric landmarks were collected from virtual models of 53 surface-scanned ilia and used to: (1) quantify differences between male and female shape, and (2) to calculate a measure of sinuosity by extracting linear measurements relative to a plane constructed in virtual space. Males were found to exhibit on average more pronounced curvature of the iliac crest than females in equivalent age groups, and the difference between sexes was more marked on the posterior section of the bone than on the anterior section. Classification accuracy was higher for measurements of sinuosity relative to a three-dimensional plane (62-87%) than for landmarks describing crest shape (64-74%). An increased likelihood of correct male identification (reduced rate of false positive identification) was observed in older children (>5 years). This reflects ergence of male and female iliac crest shape with size (or age), and the development of a unique, more curved iliac crest shape in males. The results suggest more conspicuous male trait expression than female trait expression.
A new family of bizarre durophagous carnivorous marsupials from Miocene deposits in the Riversleigh World Heritage Area, northwestern Queensland (vol 6, pg 26911, 2016)
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 07-09-2016
DOI: 10.1038/SREP32054
Abstract: Scientific Reports 6: Article number: 26911 published online: 27 May 2016 updated: 07 September 2016 The original version of this Article contained the genus and species name of an unpublished taxon ‘Whollydooleya tomnpatrichorum’. In the Introduction section: “Most recently, an isolated M2 or M3 has been ascribed to a new genus and species, Whollydooleya tomnpatrichorum from Whollydooley Site on Whollydooley Hill, west of the Riversleigh World Heritage Area20.
Morphometric criteria for sexing juvenile human skeletons using the ilium
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 03-2008
DOI: 10.1111/J.1556-4029.2008.00656.X
Abstract: Previous attempts to sex juvenile skeletons have focused on the application of qualitative or semi-quantitative techniques. This study applies a variety of geometric morphometric methods, including eigenshape analysis, to this problem. Six metric criteria for the ilia were tested with the aim of investigating previous ideas concerning sexually diagnostic characters. This study uses 25 ilia from juveniles of known age and sex from Christ Church, Spitalfields, London. Ninety-six percent of juvenile ilia were correctly identified as male or female using the shape of the greater sciatic notch. Identification accuracy is shown to improve with age for several criteria. Males were identified to a higher accuracy than females. Application of geometric techniques improves the understanding of the relationship between age, sex, and shape and the clarity with which these relationships can be quantified. Archaeological and forensic relevance of the results are discussed with recommendations for future application.
The Australian dingo: Untamed or feral?
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 13-02-2019
Ontogenetic changes in femoral cross‐sectional geometry during childhood locomotor development
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 12-07-2020
DOI: 10.1002/AJPA.24080
Sex differences in allometry for phenotypic traits in mice indicate that females are not scaled males
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 12-12-2022
DOI: 10.1038/S41467-022-35266-6
Abstract: Sex differences in the lifetime risk and expression of disease are well-known. Preclinical research targeted at improving treatment, increasing health span, and reducing the financial burden of health care, has mostly been conducted on male animals and cells. The extent to which sex differences in phenotypic traits are explained by sex differences in body weight remains unclear. We quantify sex differences in the allometric relationship between trait value and body weight for 363 phenotypic traits in male and female mice, recorded in million measurements from the International Mouse Phenotyping Consortium. We find sex differences in allometric parameters (slope, intercept, residual SD) are common (73% traits). Body weight differences do not explain all sex differences in trait values but scaling by weight may be useful for some traits. Our results show sex differences in phenotypic traits are trait-specific, promoting case-specific approaches to drug dosage scaled by body weight in mice.
The vocal apparatus: An understudied tool to reconstruct the evolutionary history of echolocation in bats?
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 03-01-2023
DOI: 10.1007/S10914-022-09647-Z
Abstract: Laryngeal echolocation in bats could have evolved following two scenarios: a single origin from a common ancestor or an independent acquisition inside the two clades Yinpterochiroptera and Yangochiroptera. Later, some members of Yinpterochiroptera possibly lost their ability to echolocate. In bats, the larynx produces vocalizations for communication and, in most species, for echolocation. Here, we describe how comparative chiropteran laryngeal morphology is a novel area of research that could improve the understanding of echolocation and may help resolve the evolutionary history of bats. This review provides morphological descriptions and comparisons of the bat larynx and bioacoustics interpretations. We discuss the importance of understanding: (1) laryngeal sound production so it may be linked with the evolution of the chiropteran auditory system and (2) the evolution of laryngeal morphology to understand the ecological and behavioural aspects of bat biology. We find that a strong phylogenetic signal is potentially the main source explaining macroevolutionary variation in laryngeal form among bats. We predict that the three parameters of sound production in echolocation (frequency, intensity, and rate of calls) are independently modulated by different laryngeal components, but this hypothesis remains understudied in terms of species ersity.
A Virtual geometric morphometric approach to the quantification of long bone bilateral asymmetry and cross-sectional shape
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 24-07-2015
DOI: 10.1002/AJPA.22809
Abstract: The widespread use of three-dimensional digitization means that models of whole bone geometry are routinely captured for many applications in virtual anthropology. In this article, we test whether a geometric morphometric (GMM) approach can be used to accurately quantify directional bilateral asymmetry in cross-sectional shape using virtual bone models. We introduce a method to (1) orient virtual long bone models and extract cross sections and (2) collect GMM landmarks to analyze cross-sectional shape. Landmark data, captured using polar radii, were analyzed for an ex le study set of paired humeri from Andaman Islanders s led at 35%, 50%, and 65% locations. The GMM method can (1) detect significant differences in left and right cross-sectional shape and (2) allow the directionality of shape change (distribution of bone from centroid) to be evaluated in the context of whole outline shape and in relation to the axis of maximum bending rigidity. The protocol may be used with models created from laser (surface) scan or computed tomography (CT) scan data, and applied to cross-sectional images that were collected using periosteal molding techniques. The results demonstrate directional bilateral asymmetry in shape, but do not recover the same signal for size measurements. Our method offers a pathway to quantify both the pattern of variation in shape and the relationship between size and shape variation, opening new questions about how those patterns manifest over ontogeny, change temporally or differ in relation to the nature and intensity of the activity, and bone loading conditions.
Quantifying evolutionary development using non-model organisms: Integrating morphology, metrical frameworks, and gene expression
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 17-11-2014
DOI: 10.1002/JEZ.B.22603
Abstract: Keeping pace with the forward progression of evolutionary developmental studies and their trajectory toward ever-more integrative and broad-scale study presents a challenge for researchers from erse disciplines. Increasing the capacity for discourse and opening opportunity to further interdisciplinary work is highly desirable, and one way that activities can be hindered is through a lack of communication between those developing new methods and those applying methods to new data sets. The goal of this special issue, which brings together contributions from a recent symposium at the 10(th) International Congress for Vertebrate Morphology (ICVM 10, Barcelona, July 2013) along with select additions, was to integrate methodological developments with molecular and morphological data to present a broad spectrum of avenues for investigating ontogeny in land vertebrates. A balance between methods-focused papers and papers presenting novel data and perspectives from molecular and morphological approaches in evo-devo was sought with the hope of promoting greater interchange between each side, and drawing attention to new opportunities for future research on non-model organisms.
Regionalization of the axial skeleton in the 'ambush predator' guild - Are there developmental rules underlying body shape evolution in ray-finned fishes?
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 2013
Modularity patterns in mammalian domestication: Assessing developmental hypotheses for diversification
Publisher: Oxford University Press (OUP)
Date: 08-2021
DOI: 10.1002/EVL3.231
Abstract: The neural crest hypothesis posits that selection for tameness resulted in mild alterations to neural crest cells during embryonic development, which directly or indirectly caused the appearance of traits associated with the “domestication syndrome” (DS). Although representing an appealing unitary explanation for the generation of domestic phenotypes, support for this hypothesis from morphological data and for the validity of the DS remains a topic of debate. This study used the frameworks of morphological integration and modularity to assess patterns that concern the embryonic origin of the skull and issues around the neural crest hypothesis. Geometric morphometric landmarks were used to quantify cranial trait interactions between six pairs of wild and domestic mammals, comprising representatives that express between five and 17 of the traits included in the DS, and ex les from each of the pathways by which animals entered into relationships with humans. We predicted the presence of neural crest vs mesoderm modular structure to the cranium, and that elements in the neural crest module would show lower magnitudes of integration and higher disparity in domestic forms compared to wild forms. Our findings support modular structuring based on tissue origin (neural crest, mesoderm) modules, along with low module integration magnitudes for neural crest cell derived cranial elements, suggesting differential capacity for evolutionary response among those elements. Covariation between the neural crest and mesoderm modules accounted for major components of shape variation for most domestic/wild pairs. Contra to our predictions, however, we find domesticates share similar integration magnitudes to their wild progenitors, indicating that higher disparity in domesticates is not associated with magnitude changes to integration among either neural crest or mesoderm derived elements. Differences in integration magnitude among neural crest and mesoderm elements across species suggest that developmental evolution preserves a framework that promotes flexibility under the selection regimes of domestication.
Virtual reconstruction and prey size preference in the mid cenozoic thylacinid, Nimbacinus dicksoni (Thylacinidae, Marsupialia)
Publisher: Public Library of Science (PLoS)
Date: 09-04-2014
Correction to: The vocal apparatus: An understudied tool to reconstruct the evolutionary history of echolocation in bats?
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 03-02-2023
Method Reporting with Initials for Transparency (MeRIT) promotes more granularity and accountability for author contributions
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 03-04-2023
Functional and morphometric analysis of a middle Miocene bandicoot (Marsupialia, Peramelemorphia) skeleton from the Riversleigh World Heritage Area, Australia
Publisher: PeerJ
Date: 06-11-2017
DOI: 10.7287/PEERJ.PREPRINTS.3393V1
Abstract: Peramelemorphia comprises four families: the extant Peramelidae (bandicoots), and Thylacomyidae (bilbies) the recently extinct Chaeropodidae (pig-footed bandicoot) and the extinct Yaralidae with at least ten fossil species of uncertain familial affinity designated as Perameloidea incertae sedis. Extant taxa (18 species) are characteristically omnivorous, small to medium sized (0.1-4.9 kg) semi-fossorial/fossorial marsupials with a quadrupedal bounding gait. They occupy varied habitats from desert to rainforest in Australia and New Guinea. Fourteen pre-Pliocene taxa are currently described on the basis of cranial and/or dental material, yet none is known from its postcranial skeleton. Here we use qualitative morphological and morphometric data to analyse a partial skeleton of a new species of bandicoot from a middle Miocene cave deposit, AL90 Site, in the Riversleigh World Heritage Area. AL90 has been radiometrically dated at 14.7-15.1 Ma, however the species is abundant in numerous early to middle Miocene deposits at Riversleigh The AL90 specimen preserves the skull and dentaries, the fore-and hindlimbs, and elements of the manus, pes and axial skeleton. The species is estimated to have weighed approximately 300g (based on predictive marsupial craniodental regression equations) which is comparable among extant bandicoots to Perameles bougainville (Western barred bandicoot). Unlike modern species, the appendicular skeleton of the fossil taxon is less well-adapted for scratch-digging and fossorial behaviours. A striking contrast is the relatively elongate, gracile bones of the antebrachium of the fossil taxon compared with the generally short, robust forearm of modern bandicoots. Collectively, our data indicate a more generalized niche for this species than crown group peramelemorphians and may support suggestions that archaic bandicoots filled an ecological niche later dominated by small dasyurids during the late Cainozoic.
The Australasian dingo archetype:De novochromosome-length genome assembly, DNA methylome, and cranial morphology
Publisher: Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
Date: 27-01-2023
DOI: 10.1101/2023.01.26.525801
Abstract: One difficulty in testing the hypothesis that the Australasian dingo is a functional intermediate between wild wolves and domesticated breed dogs is that there is no reference specimen. Here we link a high-quality de novo long read chromosomal assembly with epigenetic footprints and morphology to describe the Alpine dingo female named Cooinda. It was critical to establish an Alpine dingo reference because this ecotype occurs throughout coastal eastern Australia where the first drawings and descriptions were completed. We generated a high-quality chromosome-level reference genome assembly (Canfam_ADS) using a combination of Pacific Bioscience, Oxford Nanopore, 10X Genomics, Bionano, and Hi-C technologies. Compared to the previously published Desert dingo assembly, there are large structural rearrangements on Chromosomes 11, 16, 25 and 26. Phylogenetic analyses of chromosomal data from Cooinda the Alpine dingo and nine previously published de novo canine assemblies show dingoes are monophyletic and basal to domestic dogs. Network analyses show that the mtDNA genome clusters within the southeastern lineage, as expected for an Alpine dingo. Comparison of regulatory regions identified two differentially methylated regions within glucagon receptor GCGR and histone deacetylase HDAC4 genes that are unmethylated in the Alpine dingo genome but hypermethylated in the Desert dingo. Morphological data, comprising geometric morphometric assessment of cranial morphology place dingo Cooinda within population-level variation for Alpine dingoes. Magnetic resonance imaging of brain tissue show she had a larger cranial capacity than a similar-sized domestic dog. These combined data support the hypothesis that the dingo Cooinda fits the spectrum of genetic and morphological characteristics typical of the Alpine ecotype. We propose that she be considered the archetype specimen for future research investigating the evolutionary history, morphology, physiology, and ecology of dingoes. The female has been taxidermically prepared and is now at the Australian Museum, Sydney.
Australian time traveller: papers in honour of Mike Archer
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 17-04-2023
Size Variation under Domestication: Conservatism in the inner ear shape of wolves, dogs and dingoes
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 17-10-2017
DOI: 10.1038/S41598-017-13523-9
Abstract: A broad s le of wolves, dingoes, and domesticated dogs of different kinds and time periods was used to identify changes in size and shape of the organs of balance and hearing related to domestication and to evaluate the potential utility of uncovered patterns as markers of domestication. Using geometric morphometrics coupled with non-invasive imaging and three-dimensional reconstructions, we exposed and compared complex structures that remain largely conserved. There is no statistically significant difference in the levels of shape variation between prehistoric and modern dogs. Shape variance is slightly higher for the different components of the inner ear in modern dogs than in wolves, but these differences are not significant. Wolves express a significantly greater level of variance in the angle between the lateral and the posterior canal than domestic dog breeds. Wolves have smaller levels of size variation than dogs. In terms of the shape of the semicircular canals, dingoes reflect the mean shape in the context of variation in the s le. This mirrors the condition of feral forms in other organs, in which there is an incomplete return to the characteristics of the ancestor. In general, morphological ersity or disparity in the inner ear is generated by scaling.
Allometric disparity in rodent evolution
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 05-03-2013
DOI: 10.1002/ECE3.521
Al11Mn4 formation on Al8Mn5 during the solidification and heat treatment of AZ-series magnesium alloys
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 09-2021
Cranial Shape and the Modularity of Hybridization in Dingoes and Dogs; Hybridization Does Not Spell the End for Native Morphology
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 08-03-2016
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Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE150100862
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View Funded ActivityARC Future Fellowships - Grant ID: FT200100822
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View Funded ActivityIndustrial Transformation Training Centres - Grant ID: IC180100008
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