Morphology and Postnatal Development of Lower Hindlimbs in Desmodus rotundus (Chiroptera: Phyllostomidae): A Comparative Study

REYES AMAYA, NICOLAS; JEREZ, ADRIANA; FLORES, D

ANATOMICAL RECORD

WILEY-LISS, DIV JOHN WILEY & SONS INC

Lugar: New York; Año: 2017

0003-276X

The hindlimbs in bats are functionally adapted to serve as a hook toattach to the mother from birth, and to roost during independent life.Although bats exhibit different terrestrial locomotion capabilities involvinghindlimbs, hindlimb morphology and postnatal development havebeen poorly studied. We describe in detail the postnatal development andbone morphology of hindlimbs of the nimble walker vampire bat, Desmodusrotundus, and compare adult characters with the insectivorousMolossus molossus (erratic walker) and the frugivorous Artibeus lituratus(non-walker). The advanced ossification of most hindlimb elements of D.rotundus at the newborn stage is consistent with the functional role ofthis structure at birth in bats. The development completion events of hindlimbbone elements and bone processes in D. rotundus coincide with thecranial bone processes completion and suture closure events. Thoseevents occur when individuals begin to feed by themselves. There are differencesin the number and position of bone processes and sesamoids inadults among the compared species, most of which are described for thefirst time, and in the case of D. rotundus and M. molossus mostly relatedto a greater and tight articulation between elements. These facts seem tobe closely associated with the different terrestrial locomotion capabilities,and in the case of the exclusively sanguivorous D. rotundus with specializationsfor obtaining food.