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Li C, Deng T, Wang Y, Sun F, Wolff B, Jiangzuo Q, Ma J, Xing L, Fu J, Zhang J, Wang S. The trunk replaces the longer mandible as the main feeding organ in elephant evolution. eLife 2024; 12:RP90908. [PMID: 38900028 PMCID: PMC11189625 DOI: 10.7554/elife.90908] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/21/2024] Open
Abstract
The long-trunked elephantids underwent a significant evolutionary stage characterized by an exceptionally elongated mandible. The initial elongation and subsequent regression of the long mandible, along with its co-evolution with the trunk, present an intriguing issue that remains incompletely understood. Through comparative functional and eco-morphological investigations, as well as feeding preference analysis, we reconstructed the feeding behavior of major groups of longirostrine elephantiforms. In the Platybelodon clade, the rapid evolutionary changes observed in the narial region, strongly correlated with mandible and tusk characteristics, suggest a crucial evolutionary transition where feeding function shifted from the mandible to the trunk, allowing proboscideans to expand their niches to more open regions. This functional shift further resulted in elephantids relying solely on their trunks for feeding. Our research provides insights into how unique environmental pressures shape the extreme evolution of organs, particularly in large mammals that developed various peculiar adaptations during the late Cenozoic global cooling trends.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chunxiao Li
- University of Chinese Academy of SciencesBeijingChina
- Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origins of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of SciencesBeijingChina
| | - Tao Deng
- University of Chinese Academy of SciencesBeijingChina
- Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origins of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of SciencesBeijingChina
| | - Yang Wang
- Department of Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Science, Florida State UniversityTallahasseeUnited States
| | - Fajun Sun
- Environmental Science & Technology, University of MarylandCollege ParkUnited States
| | - Burt Wolff
- Department of Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Science, Florida State UniversityTallahasseeUnited States
| | - Qigao Jiangzuo
- Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origins of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of SciencesBeijingChina
| | - Jiao Ma
- Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origins of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of SciencesBeijingChina
| | - Luda Xing
- University of Chinese Academy of SciencesBeijingChina
- Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origins of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of SciencesBeijingChina
| | - Jiao Fu
- University of Chinese Academy of SciencesBeijingChina
- Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origins of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of SciencesBeijingChina
| | - Ji Zhang
- School of Civil and Hydraulic Engineering, Huazhong University of Science and TechnologyWuhanChina
- National Center of Technology Innovation for Digital ConstructionWuhanChina
| | - Shiqi Wang
- Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origins of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of SciencesBeijingChina
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Moyano S, Sardina Aragón P, Álvarez A, Ercoli M, López Geronazzo L, González Fossati J. Comparative anatomy of the skull of South American camelids. A contribution to their taxonomical identification. ZOOL ANZ 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jcz.2022.05.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
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MacPhee R, Del Pino SH, Kramarz A, Forasiepi AM, Bond M, Sulser RB. Cranial Morphology and Phylogenetic Relationships of Trigonostylops wortmani, an Eocene South American Native Ungulate. BULLETIN OF THE AMERICAN MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY 2021. [DOI: 10.1206/0003-0090.449.1.1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/01/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- R.D.E. MacPhee
- Department of Mammalogy/Vertebrate Zoology and Richard Gilder Graduate School, American Museum of Natural History
| | | | - Alejandro Kramarz
- Sección Paleontología de Vertebrados, Museo Argentino de Ciencias Naturales Bernardino Rivadavia, CONICET, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | | | - Mariano Bond
- Departamento Científico de Paleontología Vertebrados, Museo de La Plata, Paseo del Bosque s/n, 1900 La Plata, Argentina
| | - R. Benjamin Sulser
- Department of Mammalogy/Vertebrate Zoology and Richard Gilder Graduate School, American Museum of Natural History
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Moyano S, Morales M, Giannini N. Skull ontogeny of the pronghorn (Antilocapraamericana) in the comparative context of native North American ungulates. CAN J ZOOL 2020. [DOI: 10.1139/cjz-2019-0038] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/25/2023]
Abstract
The pronghorn (Antilocapra americana (Ord, 1815)) is the single survivor of a largely extinct, isolated pecoran lineage (Antilocapridae) native to North America. We describe postnatal ontogeny of its skull in a comparative framework inclusive of representatives of other typical North American ungulate linages, all of which partially overlap in geographic distribution and share habitat with A. americana. To describe allometric growth, we took 23 linear cranial measurements in 30 specimens of A. americana and applied bi- and multi-variate statistics. The skull of A. americana generally grew with negative rates in width and height dimensions, and with positive rates in length, including an elongation of rostrum, particularly the nasals, and a relative narrowing of the braincase. We compared skull development in A. americana with development in two cervids (white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus (Zimmermann, 1780)) and wapiti (Cervus canadensis Erxleben, 1777)) and two bovids (bighorn sheep (Ovis canadensis Shaw, 1804) and American bison (Bison bison (Linnaeus, 1758))). The multivariate ontogenetic trajectory of A. americana overlapped greatly with that of Odocoileus virginianus, and differed from the other species in varying degrees. These results indicated an essentially convergent pattern of skull growth with species showing important functional similarities, such as cervids of comparable size and feeding habits.
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Affiliation(s)
- S.R. Moyano
- Instituto de Ecorregiones Andinas (INECOA), Universidad Nacional de Jujuy – Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas, Avenida Bolivia 1239, San Salvador de Jujuy, C.P. 4600, Jujuy, Argentina; Centro de Estudios Territoriales Ambientales y Sociales (CETAS), Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias, Universidad Nacional de Jujuy, Alberdi 47, San Salvador de Jujuy, C.P. 4600, Jujuy, Argentina
| | - M.M. Morales
- Instituto de Ecorregiones Andinas (INECOA), Universidad Nacional de Jujuy – Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas, Avenida Bolivia 1239, San Salvador de Jujuy, C.P. 4600, Jujuy, Argentina; Centro de Estudios Territoriales Ambientales y Sociales (CETAS), Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias, Universidad Nacional de Jujuy, Alberdi 47, San Salvador de Jujuy, C.P. 4600, Jujuy, Argentina
| | - N.P. Giannini
- Unidad Ejecutora Lillo, Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas, Miguel Lillo 251, C.P. 4000, Tucumán, Argentina; Facultad de Ciencias Naturales e Instituto Miguel Lillo, Universidad Nacional de Tucumán, Miguel Lillo 205, San Miguel de Tucumán, C.P. 4000, Tucumán, Argentina; American Museum of Natural History, Department of Mammalogy, 200 Central Park West, New York, NY 10024-5192, USA
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Durão AF, Ventura J, Muñoz-Muñoz F. Comparative post-weaning ontogeny of the mandible in fossorial and semi-aquatic water voles. Mamm Biol 2019. [DOI: 10.1016/j.mambio.2019.05.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/10/2023]
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Watanabe J. Clade-specific evolutionary diversification along ontogenetic major axes in avian limb skeleton. Evolution 2018; 72:2632-2652. [PMID: 30328113 DOI: 10.1111/evo.13627] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/18/2017] [Revised: 10/02/2018] [Accepted: 10/07/2018] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
The evolutionary diversification of birds has been facilitated by specializations for various locomotor modes, with which the proportion of the limb skeleton is closely associated. However, recent studies have identified phylogenetic signals in this system, suggesting the presence of historical factors that have affected its evolutionary variability. In this study, to explore potential roles of ontogenetic integration in biasing the evolution in the avian limb skeleton, evolutionary diversification patterns in six avian families (Anatidae, Procellariidae, Ardeidae, Phalacrocoracidae, Laridae, and Alcidae) were examined and compared to the postnatal ontogenetic trajectories in those taxa, based on measurement of 2641 specimens and recently collected ontogenetic series, supplemented by published data. Morphometric analyses of lengths of six limb bones (humerus, ulna, carpometacarpus, femur, tibiotarsus, and tarsometatarsus) demonstrated that: (1) ontogenetic trajectories are diverse among families; (2) evolutionary diversification is significantly anisotropic; and, most importantly, (3) major axes of evolutionary diversification are correlated with clade-specific ontogenetic major axes in the shape space. These results imply that the evolutionary variability of the avian limbs has been biased along the clade-specific ontogenetic trajectories. It may explain peculiar diversification patterns characteristic to some avian groups, including the long-leggedness in Ardeidae and tendency for flightlessness in Anatidae.
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Affiliation(s)
- Junya Watanabe
- Department of Geology and Mineralogy, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan
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Carrizo LV, Tulli MJ, Abdala V. Postnatal growth of forelimb musculo-tendinous systems in sigmodontine rats (Rodentia: Cricetidae). J Mammal 2018. [DOI: 10.1093/jmammal/gyy084] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Luz Valeria Carrizo
- Instituto de Biología Subtropical (IBS)-nodo Posadas, Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET)-Universidad Nacional de Misiones (UNaM), Laboratorio de Genética Evolutiva, Félix de Azara, Posadas, Argentina
| | - María José Tulli
- Unidad Ejecutora Lillo-CONICET, Instituto de Herpetología-Fundación Miguel Lillo, Miguel Lillo, Tucumán, Argentina
| | - Virginia Abdala
- Instituto de Biodiversidad Neotropical (IBN), UNT-CONICET, Cátedra de Biología General, Facultad de Ciencias Naturales, UNT, Horco Mole, Yerba Buena, Tucumán, Argentina
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Moyano SR, Cassini GH, Giannini NP. Skull Ontogeny of the Hyraxes Procavia capensis and Dendrohyrax arboreus (Procaviidae: Hyracoidea). J MAMM EVOL 2018. [DOI: 10.1007/s10914-017-9424-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/01/2023]
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