Correlates between calcaneal morphology and locomotion in extant and extinct carnivorous mammals

Panciroli, Elsa; Janis, Christine; Stockdale, Maximilian; Martà­nâ€ Serra, Alberto

Correlates between calcaneal morphology and locomotion in extant and extinct carnivorous mammals

Resource type

Journal article

Creator (person)

Panciroli, Elsa

Janis, Christine

Stockdale, Maximilian

Martànâ€ Serra, Alberto

Date published

October 10, 2017

Abstract

Locomotor mode is an important component of an animal's ecology, relating to both habitat and substrate choice (e.g., arboreal versus terrestrial) and in the case of carnivores, to mode of predation (e.g., ambush versus pursuit). Here, we examine how the morphology of the calcaneum, the ‘heel bone’ in the tarsus, correlates with locomotion in extant carnivores. Other studies have confirmed the correlation of calcaneal morphology with locomotion behaviour and habitat. The robust nature of the calcaneum means that it is frequently preserved in the fossil record. Here, we employ linear measurements and 2Dâ€ geometric morphometrics on a sample of calcanea from eightyâ€ seven extant carnivorans and demonstrate a signal of correlation between calcaneal morphology and locomotor mode that overrides phylogeny. We used this correlation to determine the locomotor mode, and hence aspects of the palaeobiology of, 47 extinct carnivorous mammal taxa, including both Carnivora and Creodonta. We found ursids (bears), clustered together, separate from the other carnivorans. Our results support greater locomotor diversity for nimravids (the extinct ‘false sabertooths’, usually considered to be more arboreal), than previously expected. However, there are limitations to interpretation of extinct taxa because their robust morphology is not fully captured in the range of modern carnivoran morphology.

Funder

Funder name	Awards
Brown University Bushnell Foundation

Journal title

Journal of Morphology

Volume

278

Issue

10

Publisher

John Wiley & Sons

ISSN

1097-4687

Official URL

https://doi.org/10.1002/jmor.20716

http://blog.nms.ac.uk/2017/05/15/jurassic-milkshake-why-a-mammal-fossils-milk-teeth-are-an-amazing-find/

https://www.earth.ox.ac.uk/2017/05/first-evidence-of-scottish-mammals-producing-milk/

DOI

Keywords

Additional information

This article was published online on 11 June 2017. An error was subsequently identified. This notice is included in the online and print versions to indicate that both have been corrected 16 June 2017.