Functional Indices and Postnatal Ontogeny of Long Bones of the Forelimb in the Sigmodontine Rodents (Rodentia: Cricetidae)

CARRIZO LUZ VALERIA; TULLI MARÍA JOSÉ; ABDALA VIRGINIA

Journal Mammalian Evolution

Springer

Año: 2021 vol. 28 p. 75 - 85

1573-7055

The adaptations for a particular locomotor type (e.g., fossorial or saltatorial)could affect limb bone morphology throughout ontogeny. We explore how themeasurements of the forelimbs and functional indices change along thepostnatal ontogeny of 92 specimens of sigmodontines belonging to four genera(Akodon, Eligmodontia, Oligoryzomys, and Oxymycterus) with differentlocomotor types (ambulatory, quadrupedal-saltatorial, scansorial, andsemifossorial). We examined individuals of different age categories: juveniles,young adults, and adults. Eleven linear measurements of long bones (humerus,radius, and ulna) corresponding to functional diameters and lengths were takenand analyzed through simple regressions (RMA) using geometric meantransformations. Six morphofunctional indices were then calculated andanalyzed through multivariate analysis (MANOVA). The allometric patternsand morphofunctional indices show that the forelimb tends to be elongated andslender in the ambulatory, scansorial, and quadrupedal-saltatorial species, andshort and thicker in the semifossorial species. Morphofunctional indices do notseparate our sample concerning age categories, possibly indicating that thejuveniles of different rodent species are born with similar morphology to theadults in terms of locomotion.