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Motani R, Pyenson ND. Downsizing a heavyweight: factors and methods that revise weight estimates of the giant fossil whale Perucetus colossus. PeerJ 2024; 12:e16978. [PMID: 38436015 PMCID: PMC10909350 DOI: 10.7717/peerj.16978] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/21/2023] [Accepted: 01/29/2024] [Indexed: 03/05/2024] Open
Abstract
Extremes in organismal size have broad interest in ecology and evolution because organismal size dictates many traits of an organism's biology. There is particular fascination with identifying upper size extremes in the largest vertebrates, given the challenges and difficulties of measuring extant and extinct candidates for the largest animal of all time, such as whales, terrestrial non-avian dinosaurs, and extinct marine reptiles. The discovery of Perucetus colossus, a giant basilosaurid whale from the Eocene of Peru, challenged many assumptions about organismal extremes based on reconstructions of its body weight that exceeded reported values for blue whales (Balaenoptera musculus). Here we present an examination of a series of factors and methodological approaches to assess reconstructing body weight in Perucetus, including: data sources from large extant cetaceans; fitting published body mass estimates to body outlines; testing the assumption of isometry between skeletal and body masses, even with extrapolation; examining the role of pachyostosis in body mass reconstructions; addressing method-dependent error rates; and comparing Perucetus with known physiological and ecological limits for living whales, and Eocene oceanic productivity. We conclude that Perucetus did not exceed the body mass of today's blue whales. Depending on assumptions and methods, we estimate that Perucetus weighed 60-70 tons assuming a length 17 m. We calculated larger estimates potentially as much as 98-114 tons at 20 m in length, which is far less than the direct records of blue whale weights, or the 270 ton estimates that we calculated for body weights of the largest blue whales measured by length.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ryosuke Motani
- Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, University of California, Davis, Davis, California, United States
| | - Nicholas D. Pyenson
- Department of Paleobiology, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, District of Columbia, United States
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2
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Motani R. Paleomass for R-bracketing body volume of marine vertebrates with 3D models. PeerJ 2023; 11:e15957. [PMID: 37641602 PMCID: PMC10460563 DOI: 10.7717/peerj.15957] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/23/2023] [Accepted: 08/03/2023] [Indexed: 08/31/2023] Open
Abstract
Body mass is arguably the most important characteristic of an organism, yet it is often not available in biological samples that have been skeletonized, liquid-preserved, or fossilized. The lack of information is especially problematic for fossil species, for which individuals with body mass information are not available anywhere. Multiple methods are available for estimating the body mass of fossil terrestrial vertebrates but those for their marine counterparts are limited. Paleomass is a software tool for estimating the body mass of marine vertebrates from their orthogonal silhouettes through bracketing. It generates a set of two 3D models from these silhouettes, assuming superelliptical body cross-sections with different exponent values. By setting the exponents appropriately, it is possible to bracket the true volume of the animal between those of the two models. The original version phased out together with the language platform it used. A new version is reported here as an open-source package based on the R scripting language. It inherits the underlying principles of the original version but has been completely rewritten with a new architecture. For example, it first produces 3D mesh models of the animal and then measures their volumes and areas with the VCG library, unlike the original version that did not produce a 3D model but instead computed the volume and area segment by segment using parametric equations. The new version also exports 3D models in polygon meshes, allowing later tests by other software. Other improvements include the use of NACA foil sections for hydrofoils such as flippers, and optional interpolation with local regression. The software has a high accuracy, with the mean absolute errors of 1.33% when the silhouettes of the animals are known.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ryosuke Motani
- Departement of Earth and Planetary Sciences, University of California, Davis, Davis, California, United States of America
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3
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Perry GLW, Wilmshurst JM, Wood JR. Reconstructing ecological functions provided by extinct fauna using allometrically informed simulation models: An in silico framework for ‘movement palaeoecology’. Funct Ecol 2021. [DOI: 10.1111/1365-2435.13904] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Affiliation(s)
| | - Janet M. Wilmshurst
- School of Environment University of Auckland Auckland New Zealand
- Manaaki Whenua‐Landcare Research Lincoln New Zealand
| | - Jamie R. Wood
- Manaaki Whenua‐Landcare Research Lincoln New Zealand
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4
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Kerber L, Candela AM, Ferreira JD, Pretto FA, Bubadué J, Negri FR. Postcranial Morphology of the Extinct Rodent Neoepiblema (Rodentia: Chinchilloidea): Insights Into the Paleobiology of Neoepiblemids. J MAMM EVOL 2021. [DOI: 10.1007/s10914-021-09567-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/13/2023]
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Baleka S, Herridge VL, Catalano G, Lister AM, Dickinson MR, Di Patti C, Barlow A, Penkman KEH, Hofreiter M, Paijmans JLA. Estimating the dwarfing rate of an extinct Sicilian elephant. Curr Biol 2021; 31:3606-3612.e7. [PMID: 34146486 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2021.05.037] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/07/2020] [Revised: 03/29/2021] [Accepted: 05/17/2021] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
Abstract
Evolution on islands, together with the often extreme phenotypic changes associated with it, has attracted much interest from evolutionary biologists. However, measuring the rate of change of phenotypic traits of extinct animals can be challenging, in part due to the incompleteness of the fossil record. Here, we use combined molecular and fossil evidence to define the minimum and maximum rate of dwarfing in an extinct Mediterranean dwarf elephant from Puntali Cave (Sicily).1 Despite the challenges associated with recovering ancient DNA from warm climates,2 we successfully retrieved a mitogenome from a sample with an estimated age between 175,500 and 50,000 years. Our results suggest that this specific Sicilian elephant lineage evolved from one of the largest terrestrial mammals that ever lived3 to an island species weighing less than 20% of its original mass with an estimated mass reduction between 0.74 and 200.95 kg and height reduction between 0.15 and 41.49 mm per generation. We show that combining ancient DNA with paleontological and geochronological evidence can constrain the timing of phenotypic changes with greater accuracy than could be achieved using any source of evidence in isolation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sina Baleka
- Institute for Biochemistry and Biology, University of Potsdam, Karl-Liebknecht-Strasse 24-25, 14476 Potsdam, Germany; Faculty of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Iceland, Sæmundargata 2, 101 Reykjavik, Iceland.
| | - Victoria L Herridge
- Department of Earth Sciences, Natural History Museum, Cromwell Road, London SW7 5BD, UK
| | - Giulio Catalano
- Dipartimento di Scienze e Tecnologie Biologiche, Chimiche e Farmaceutiche, Laboratory of Anthropology, Università degli Studi di Palermo, 90128 Palermo, Italy
| | - Adrian M Lister
- Department of Earth Sciences, Natural History Museum, Cromwell Road, London SW7 5BD, UK
| | - Marc R Dickinson
- Department of Chemistry, University of York, Heslington, York YO10 5DD, UK
| | - Carolina Di Patti
- Museo Geologico "G.G. Gemmellaro" - Università degli Studi di Palermo, Corso Tukory 131, 90133 Palermo, Italy
| | - Axel Barlow
- School of Science and Technology, Nottingham Trent University, Clifton Lane, Nottingham NG11 8NS, UK
| | - Kirsty E H Penkman
- Department of Chemistry, University of York, Heslington, York YO10 5DD, UK
| | - Michael Hofreiter
- Institute for Biochemistry and Biology, University of Potsdam, Karl-Liebknecht-Strasse 24-25, 14476 Potsdam, Germany
| | - Johanna L A Paijmans
- Institute for Biochemistry and Biology, University of Potsdam, Karl-Liebknecht-Strasse 24-25, 14476 Potsdam, Germany.
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6
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Romano M, Manucci F, Rubidge B, Van den Brandt MJ. Volumetric Body Mass Estimate and in vivo Reconstruction of the Russian Pareiasaur Scutosaurus karpinskii. Front Ecol Evol 2021. [DOI: 10.3389/fevo.2021.692035] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Pareiasaurs (Amniota, Parareptilia) were characterized by a global distribution during the Permian period, forming an important component of middle (Capitanian) and late Permian (Lopingian) terrestrial tetrapod biodiversity. This clade represents an early evolution of sizes over a ton, playing a fundamental role in the structure of middle and late Permian biodiversity and ecosystems. Despite their important ecological role and relative abundance around the world, our general knowledge of the biology of these extinct tetrapods is still quite limited. In this contribution we provide a possible in vivo reconstruction of the largest individual of the species Scutosaurus karpinskii and a volumetric body mass estimate for the taxon, considering that body size is one of the most important biological aspects of organisms. The body mass of Scutosaurus was calculated using a 3D photogrammetric model of the complete mounted skeleton PIN 2005/1537 from the Sokolki locality, Arkhangelsk Region, Russia, on exhibit at the Borissiak Paleontological Institute, Russian Academy of Sciences (Moscow). By applying three different densities for living tissues of 0.99, 1, and 1.15 kg/1,000 cm3 to reconstructed “slim,” “average” and “fat” 3D models we obtain average body masses, respectively, of 1,060, 1,160, and 1,330 kg, with a total range varying from a minimum of one ton to a maximum of 1.46 tons. Choosing the average model as the most plausible reconstruction and close to the natural condition, we consider a body mass estimate of 1,160 kg as the most robust value for Scutosaurus, a value compatible with that of a large terrestrial adult black rhino and domestic cow. This contribution demonstrates that barrel-shaped herbivores, subsisting on a high-fiber diet and with a body mass exceeding a ton, had already evolved in the upper Palaeozoic among parareptiles, shedding new light on the structure of the first modern terrestrial ecosystems.
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Coatham SJ, Sellers WI, Püschel TA. Convex hull estimation of mammalian body segment parameters. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2021; 8:210836. [PMID: 34234959 PMCID: PMC8242930 DOI: 10.1098/rsos.210836] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/18/2021] [Accepted: 06/14/2021] [Indexed: 05/12/2023]
Abstract
Obtaining accurate values for body segment parameters (BSPs) is fundamental in many biomechanical studies, particularly for gait analysis. Convex hulling, where the smallest-possible convex object that surrounds a set of points is calculated, has been suggested as an effective and time-efficient method to estimate these parameters in extinct animals, where soft tissues are rarely preserved. We investigated the effectiveness of convex hull BSP estimation in a range of extant mammals, to inform the potential future usage of this technique with extinct taxa. Computed tomography scans of both the skeleton and skin of every species investigated were virtually segmented. BSPs (the mass, position of the centre of mass and inertial tensors of each segment) were calculated from the resultant soft tissue segments, while the bone segments were used as the basis for convex hull reconstructions. We performed phylogenetic generalized least squares and ordinary least squares regressions to compare the BSPs calculated from soft tissue segments with those estimated using convex hulls, finding consistent predictive relationships for each body segment. The resultant regression equations can, therefore, be used with confidence in future volumetric reconstruction and biomechanical analyses of mammals, in both extinct and extant species where such data may not be available.
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Affiliation(s)
- Samuel J. Coatham
- Faculty of Life Sciences, University of Manchester, Michael Smith Building, Oxford Road, Manchester M13 9PT, UK
| | - William I. Sellers
- Faculty of Life Sciences, University of Manchester, Michael Smith Building, Oxford Road, Manchester M13 9PT, UK
| | - Thomas A. Püschel
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Reading, Reading RG6 6BX, UK
- Institute of Cognitive and Evolutionary Anthropology, University of Oxford, 64 Banbury Road, Oxford OX2 6PN, UK
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Abstract
Fossilized gut contents suggest that seeds consumed by dinosaurs may have remained intact in their stomachs, and since seed dispersal distance increases with body-mass in extant vertebrates, dinosaurs may have moved seeds long distances. I simulated seed dispersal by dinosaurs across body-masses from 1 × 101 to 8 × 104 kg using allometric random walk models, informed by relationships between (i) body-mass and movement speed, and (ii) body-mass and seed retention time. Seed dispersal distances showed a hump-shaped relationship with body-mass, reflecting the allometric relationship between maximum movement speed and body-mass. Across a range of assumptions and parameterizations, the simulations suggest that plant-eating dinosaurs could have dispersed seeds long distances.
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Affiliation(s)
- George L W Perry
- School of Environment, University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland, New Zealand
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Rovinsky DS, Evans AR, Martin DG, Adams JW. Did the thylacine violate the costs of carnivory? Body mass and sexual dimorphism of an iconic Australian marsupial. Proc Biol Sci 2020; 287:20201537. [PMID: 32811303 PMCID: PMC7482282 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2020.1537] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/28/2020] [Accepted: 07/28/2020] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
The relative body masses of predators and their prey strongly affect the predators' ecology. An accurate estimate of the mass of an extinct predator is therefore key to revealing its biology and the structure of the ecosystem it inhabited. Until its extinction, the thylacine was the largest extant carnivorous marsupial, but little data exist regarding its body mass, with an average of 29.5 kg the most commonly used estimate. According to the costs of carnivory model, this estimate predicts that thylacines would have focused on prey subequal to or larger than themselves; however, many studies of their functional morphology suggest a diet of smaller animals. Here, we present new body mass estimates for 93 adult thylacines, including two taxidermy specimens and four complete mounted skeletons, representing 40 known-sex specimens, using three-dimensional volumetric model-informed regressions. We demonstrate that prior estimates substantially overestimated average adult thylacine body mass. We show mixed-sex population mean (16.7 kg), mean male (19.7 kg), and mean female (13.7 kg) body masses well below prior estimates, and below the 21 kg costs of carnivory threshold. Our data show that the thylacine did not violate the costs of carnivory. The thylacine instead occupied the 14.5-21 kg predator/prey range characterized by small-prey predators capable of occasionally switching to relatively large-bodied prey if necessary.
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Affiliation(s)
- Douglass S. Rovinsky
- Department of Anatomy and Developmental Biology, Biomedicine Discovery Institute, Monash University, Clayton, Victoria, Australia
| | - Alistair R. Evans
- School of Biological Sciences, Monash University, Clayton, Victoria, Australia
- Geosciences, Museums Victoria, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
| | | | - Justin W. Adams
- Department of Anatomy and Developmental Biology, Biomedicine Discovery Institute, Monash University, Clayton, Victoria, Australia
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10
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Knoll F, Kawabe S. Avian palaeoneurology: Reflections on the eve of its 200th anniversary. J Anat 2020; 236:965-979. [PMID: 31999834 PMCID: PMC7219626 DOI: 10.1111/joa.13160] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/13/2017] [Revised: 12/28/2019] [Accepted: 01/07/2020] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
In birds, the brain (especially the telencephalon) is remarkably developed, both in relative volume and complexity. Unlike in most early-branching sauropsids, the adults of birds and other archosaurs have a well-ossified neurocranium. In contrast to the situation in most of their reptilian relatives but similar to what can be seen in mammals, the brains of birds fit closely to the endocranial cavity so that their major external features are reflected in the endocasts. This makes birds a highly suitable group for palaeoneurological investigations. The first observation about the brain in a long-extinct bird was made in the first quarter of the 19th century. However, it was not until the 2000s and the application of modern imaging technologies that avian palaeoneurology really took off. Understanding how the mode of life is reflected in the external morphology of the brains of birds is but one of several future directions in which avian palaeoneurological research may extend. Although the number of fossil specimens suitable for palaeoneurological explorations is considerably smaller in birds than in mammals and will very likely remain so, the coming years will certainly witness a momentous strengthening of this rapidly growing field of research at the overlap between ornithology, palaeontology, evolutionary biology and neurosciences.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fabien Knoll
- ARAID‐Fundación Conjunto Paleontológico de Teruel‐DinópolisTeruelSpain
- Departamento de PaleobiologíaMuseo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales‐CSICMadridSpain
| | - Soichiro Kawabe
- Institute of Dinosaur ResearchFukui Prefectural UniversityFukuiJapan
- Fukui Prefectural Dinosaur MuseumFukuiJapan
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11
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Otero A, Cuff AR, Allen V, Sumner-Rooney L, Pol D, Hutchinson JR. Ontogenetic changes in the body plan of the sauropodomorph dinosaur Mussaurus patagonicus reveal shifts of locomotor stance during growth. Sci Rep 2019; 9:7614. [PMID: 31110190 PMCID: PMC6527699 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-019-44037-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 39] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/08/2018] [Accepted: 05/08/2019] [Indexed: 12/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Ontogenetic information is crucial to understand life histories and represents a true challenge in dinosaurs due to the scarcity of growth series available. Mussaurus patagonicus was a sauropodomorph dinosaur close to the origin of Sauropoda known from hatchling, juvenile and mature specimens, providing a sufficiently complete ontogenetic series to reconstruct general patterns of ontogeny. Here, in order to quantify how body shape and its relationship with locomotor stance (quadruped/biped) changed in ontogeny, hatchling, juvenile (~1 year old) and adult (8+ years old) individuals were studied using digital models. Our results show that Mussaurus rapidly grew from about 60 g at hatching to ~7 kg at one year old, reaching >1000 kg at adulthood. During this time, the body's centre of mass moved from a position in the mid-thorax to a more caudal position nearer to the pelvis. We infer that these changes of body shape and centre of mass reflect a shift from quadrupedalism to bipedalism occurred early in ontogeny in Mussaurus. Our study indicates that relative development of the tail and neck was more influential in determining the locomotor stance in Sauropodomorpha during ontogeny, challenging previous studies, which have emphasized the influence of hindlimb vs. forelimb lengths on sauropodomorph stance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alejandro Otero
- División Paleontología de Vertebrados, Museo de La Plata, Paseo del Bosque s/n, (1900), La Plata, Argentina. .,CONICET - Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina.
| | - Andrew R Cuff
- Structure and Motion Laboratory, Department of Comparative Biomedical Sciences, The Royal Veterinary College, Hatfield, Hertfordshire, United Kingdom.
| | - Vivian Allen
- Structure and Motion Laboratory, Department of Comparative Biomedical Sciences, The Royal Veterinary College, Hatfield, Hertfordshire, United Kingdom
| | - Lauren Sumner-Rooney
- Structure and Motion Laboratory, Department of Comparative Biomedical Sciences, The Royal Veterinary College, Hatfield, Hertfordshire, United Kingdom.,Oxford University Museum of Natural History, Oxford, United Kingdom
| | - Diego Pol
- CONICET - Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina.,Museo Paleontológico "Egidio Feruglio", Trelew, Argentina
| | - John R Hutchinson
- Structure and Motion Laboratory, Department of Comparative Biomedical Sciences, The Royal Veterinary College, Hatfield, Hertfordshire, United Kingdom
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12
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Snively E, O'Brien H, Henderson DM, Mallison H, Surring LA, Burns ME, Holtz TR, Russell AP, Witmer LM, Currie PJ, Hartman SA, Cotton JR. Lower rotational inertia and larger leg muscles indicate more rapid turns in tyrannosaurids than in other large theropods. PeerJ 2019; 7:e6432. [PMID: 30809441 PMCID: PMC6387760 DOI: 10.7717/peerj.6432] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/06/2016] [Accepted: 01/10/2019] [Indexed: 01/25/2023] Open
Abstract
Synopsis Tyrannosaurid dinosaurs had large preserved leg muscle attachments and low rotational inertia relative to their body mass, indicating that they could turn more quickly than other large theropods. Methods To compare turning capability in theropods, we regressed agility estimates against body mass, incorporating superellipse-based modeled mass, centers of mass, and rotational inertia (mass moment of inertia). Muscle force relative to body mass is a direct correlate of agility in humans, and torque gives potential angular acceleration. Agility scores therefore include rotational inertia values divided by proxies for (1) muscle force (ilium area and estimates of m. caudofemoralis longus cross-section), and (2) musculoskeletal torque. Phylogenetic ANCOVA (phylANCOVA) allow assessment of differences in agility between tyrannosaurids and non-tyrannosaurid theropods (accounting for both ontogeny and phylogeny). We applied conditional error probabilities a(p) to stringently test the null hypothesis of equal agility. Results Tyrannosaurids consistently have agility index magnitudes twice those of allosauroids and some other theropods of equivalent mass, turning the body with both legs planted or pivoting over a stance leg. PhylANCOVA demonstrates definitively greater agilities in tyrannosaurids, and phylogeny explains nearly all covariance. Mass property results are consistent with those of other studies based on skeletal mounts, and between different figure-based methods (our main mathematical slicing procedures, lofted 3D computer models, and simplified graphical double integration). Implications The capacity for relatively rapid turns in tyrannosaurids is ecologically intriguing in light of their monopolization of large (>400 kg), toothed dinosaurian predator niches in their habitats.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eric Snively
- Department of Biology, University of Wisconsin-La Crosse, La Crosse, WI, USA
| | - Haley O'Brien
- Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, Oklahoma State University Center for Health Sciences, Tulsa, OK, USA
| | | | | | - Lara A Surring
- Royal Tyrrell Museum of Palaeontology, Drumheller, AB, Canada
| | - Michael E Burns
- Department of Biology, Jacksonville State University, Jacksonville, AL, USA
| | - Thomas R Holtz
- Department of Geology, University of Maryland, College Park, MD, USA.,Department of Paleobiology, National Museum of Natural History, Washington, D.C., USA
| | - Anthony P Russell
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Calgary, Calgary, AL, Canada
| | | | - Philip J Currie
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AL, Canada
| | - Scott A Hartman
- Department of Geoscience, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA
| | - John R Cotton
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Ohio University, Athens, OH, USA
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13
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Brassey CA, O'Mahoney TG, Chamberlain AT, Sellers WI. A volumetric technique for fossil body mass estimation applied to Australopithecus afarensis. J Hum Evol 2018; 115:47-64. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2017.07.014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/12/2016] [Revised: 07/26/2017] [Accepted: 07/26/2017] [Indexed: 12/27/2022]
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