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Skull ecomorphological variation of narwhals (Monodon monoceros, Linnaeus 1758) and belugas (Delphinapterus leucas, Pallas 1776) reveals phenotype of their hybrids. PLoS One 2022; 17:e0273122. [PMID: 35960760 PMCID: PMC9374245 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0273122] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/21/2022] [Accepted: 08/03/2022] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Narwhals and belugas are toothed whales belonging to the Monodontidae. Belugas have a circumpolar Arctic and sub-Artic distribution while narwhals are restricted to the Atlantic Arctic. Their geographical ranges overlap during winter migrations in the Baffin Bay area (Canada/West Greenland) and successful interbreeding may occur. Here, we employed geometric morphometrics on museum specimens to explore the cranium and mandible morphology of a known hybrid (NHMD MCE 1356) and the cranium morphology of a putative hybrid (NHMD 1963.44.1.4) relative to skull morphological variation in the parental species. Specifically, we used 3D models of skulls from 69 belugas, 86 narwhals, and the two known/putative hybrids and 2D left hemi-mandibles from 20 belugas, 64 narwhals and the known hybrid. Skull shape analyses allowed clear discrimination between species. Narwhals are characterised by a relatively short rostrum and wide neurocranium while belugas show a more elongated and narrower cranium. Sexual size dimorphism was detected in narwhals, with males larger than females, but no sexual shape dimorphism was detected in either species (excluding presence/absence of tusks in narwhals). Morphological skull variation was also dependent on different allometric slopes between species and sexes in narwhals. Our analyses showed that the cranium of the known hybrid was phenotypically close to belugas but its 2D hemi-mandible had a narwhal shape and size morphology. Both cranium and mandible were strongly correlated, with the pattern of covariation being similar to belugas. The putative hybrid was a pure male narwhal with extruded teeth. Comparison of genomic DNA supported this result, and stable carbon and nitrogen isotope values suggested that the putative hybrid had a more benthic foraging strategy compared to narwhals. This work demonstrates that although the known hybrid could be discriminated from narwhals and belugas, detection of its affinities with these parental species was dependent on the part of the skull analysed.
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Vicari D, Sabin RC, Brown RP, Lambert O, Bianucci G, Meloro C. Skull morphological variation in a British stranded population of false killer whale (Pseudorca crassidens): a three-dimensional geometric morphometric approach. CAN J ZOOL 2022. [DOI: 10.1139/cjz-2021-0112] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
The false killer whale (Pseudorca crassidens (Owen, 1846)) is a globally distributed delphinid that shows geographical differentiation in its skull morphology. We explored cranial morphological variation in a sample of 85 skulls belonging to a mixed sex population stranded in the Moray Firth, Scotland, in 1927. A three-dimensional digitizer (Microscribe 2GX) was used to record 37 anatomical landmarks on the cranium and 25 on the mandible to investigate size and shape variation and to explore sexual dimorphism using geometric morphometric. Males showed greater overall skull size than females, whereas no sexual dimorphism could be identified in cranial and mandibular shape. Allometric skull changes occurred in parallel for both males and females, supporting the lack of sexual shape dimorphism for this particular sample. Also, fluctuating asymmetry did not differ between crania of males and females. This study confirms the absence of sexual shape dimorphism and the presence of a sexual size dimorphism in this false killer whale population.
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Affiliation(s)
- Deborah Vicari
- Research Centre in Evolutionary Anthropology and Palaeoecology, School of Biological and Environmental Sciences, Liverpool John Moores University, Byrom Street, Liverpool L3 3AF, UK
| | - Richard C. Sabin
- Department of Life Sciences, The Natural History Museum, Cromwell Road, South Kensington, London SW7 5BD, UK
| | - Richard P. Brown
- Research Centre in Evolutionary Anthropology and Palaeoecology, School of Biological and Environmental Sciences, Liverpool John Moores University, Byrom Street, Liverpool L3 3AF, UK
| | - Olivier Lambert
- D.O. Terre et Histoire de la Vie, Institut Royal des Sciences Naturelles de Belgique, 1000 Brussels, Belgium
| | - Giovanni Bianucci
- Dipartimento di Scienze della Terra, Università di Pisa, 56126 Pisa, Italy
| | - Carlo Meloro
- Research Centre in Evolutionary Anthropology and Palaeoecology, School of Biological and Environmental Sciences, Liverpool John Moores University, Byrom Street, Liverpool L3 3AF, UK
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Guidarelli G, Colangelo P, de Francesco MC, Nicolosi P, Meloro C, Loy A. Phenotypic Changes Across a Geographic Gradient: The Case of Three Sympatric Dolphin Species. Evol Biol 2017. [DOI: 10.1007/s11692-017-9435-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/18/2022]
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