6533b829fe1ef96bd128ab63
RESEARCH PRODUCT
Le supra-occipital des Cétacés et des Rongeurs fouisseurs. Une convergence morphologique induite par le pôle post-céphalique ?
Frédéric CourantDidier Marchandsubject
Foramen magnumSkullmedicine.anatomical_structureEcologyOccipital bonemedicineAnatomyBiologymusculoskeletal systemSpinal columnGeneral Biochemistry Genetics and Molecular BiologyCervical vertebraedescription
A comparative study of the cranial morphologies of cetaceans and of rodents that use their incisors for burrowing brings out morphological convergences concerning the supra-occipital bone. These phyletically very remote groups are both subject to the same mechanical constraint, viz. the need for the spinal column to be aligned with the anteroposterior axis of the skull. This constraint, which is related to swimming in cetaceans and burrowing in rodents, entails three major points of convergence: 1) a clearly backward facing foramen magnum; 2) a shortened or even greatly shortened neck, sometimes with cervical vertebrae fused together; and 3) an uprighted or even forward tilted supra-occipital bone.
| year | journal | country | edition | language |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000-02-01 | Comptes Rendus de l'Académie des Sciences - Series III - Sciences de la Vie |