Carlos Roberto A. Candeiro, Philip J. Currie, Caio L. Candeiro & Lílian P. Bergqvist (2017)
Tooth wear and microwear of theropods from the Late Maastrichtian Marília Formation (Bauru Group), Minas Gerais State, Brazil.
Little is known about the tooth wear of South American theropod dinosaurs. This paper describes wear facets in Abelisauridae, Carcharodontosauridae and some indeterminate theropods teeth, from the Marília Formation. Four types of wear facets are proposed: vertically-oriented attritional striations; perpendicular attritional surfaces; oval wear facets; and apical grooves. All these worn surfaces were produced by dental occlusion, except the apical grooves, which are produced by the contact between predator teeth and the prey bone during predator–prey interaction. More detailed biomechanical and hardness testing of teeth and bone may further elucidate the pattern of tooth wear in theropods.
Morphological and physiological features indicate Metriorhynchidae as the only group of crocodylomorphs with a pelagic lifestyle. Some of these features have evolved convergently in several clades of tetrapods secondarily adapted to aquatic life. One striking feature of metriorhynchids as compared to other crocodylomorphs is the morphology of the pelvic region (i.e., ventrally deflected sacral ribs and reduced pelvic girdle), which increases significantly the depth of this region. This morphology, as a whole, resembles that of other viviparous Mesozoic marine reptiles not phylogenetically related to metriorhynchids. We tested two alternative hypotheses of reproductive strategies in this clade: oviparity vs. viviparity. Given the lack of direct evidence supporting one or the other, we explored the use of evidence that may disconfirm either of these hypotheses. Using this counter-inductive approach, we found no cases contradicting viviparity in metriorhynchids, except for their phylogenetic position as archosaurs. A survey of reproductive modes amongst amniotes depicts the evolutionary plasticity of the transition to viviparity, and a widespread occurrence among tetrapods secondarily adapted to a marine life. Assuming oviparity for metriorhynchids implies egg-laying out of the water. However, their postcranial morphology (i.e., features of fore and hind limbs, pelvic girdle, and tail) contradicts this possibility. In this context, we rejected oviparity for metriorhynchids.
Federico J. Degrange (2017)
Hind limb morphometry of terror birds (Aves, Cariamiformes, Phorusrhacidae): functional implications for substrate preferences and locomotor lifestyle.
Earth and Environmental Science Transactions (advance online publication)
The hind limbs of birds have long been considered a key feature in the conquest of different environments. However, the high level of morphological diversity encountered complicates the foundation of a good theoretical correlation between morphology, locomotor habits and substrate preference and this, in turn, complicates palaeobiological interpretations. Phorusrhacids (Aves, Cariamiformes) are a good example, since they have been unequivocally categorised as terrestrial birds due to their reduced forelimbs; and as apex predators with the ability to pursue prey based only on their hind limb morphology. Multivariate techniques (PCA and discriminant analysis), based on traditional metrics and geomorphometrics of the hind limb and pelvis, were applied in order to explore terrestriality and cursoriality in phorusrhacids. Although several groups of birds could be identified, when looking solely at hind limb metrics, some phorusrhacids appear to be associated with walking birds, while others are associated with cursorial birds. However, the pelvis separates cursorial birds and phorusrhacids from walking and wading birds. This scenario is complicated further by a lack of clear definition of the different locomotor modes and substrate preferences in extant birds, and this makes it difficult to confirm phorusrhacid cursoriality based solely on morphometrics. However, some qualitative features of the pelvis and foot make the picture a little clearer. To study limb adaptations in fossil birds, a more holistic study, with an emphasis on qualitative features of the whole posterior locomotor module, is necessary, since morphometrics leaves some issues unresolved. A comparison with the wings is also needed, in order to make a more complete analysis of locomotor behaviour.
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Rui Zhang, Qiaoli Ji, Gang Luo, Shuliang Xue, Songsong Ma, Jianqiao Li & Lei Ren (2017)
Phalangeal joints kinematics during ostrich (Struthio camelus) locomotion.
PeerJ 5:e2857
The ostrich is a highly cursorial bipedal land animal with a permanently elevated metatarsophalangeal joint supported by only two toes. Although locomotor kinematics in walking and running ostriches have been examined, these studies have been largely limited to above the metatarsophalangeal joint. In this study, kinematic data of all major toe joints were collected from gaits with double support (slow walking) to running during stance period in a semi-natural setup with two selected cooperative ostriches. Statistical analyses were conducted to investigate the effect of locomotor gait on toe joint kinematics. The MTP3 and MTP4 joints exhibit the largest range of motion whereas the first phalangeal joint of the 4th toe shows the largest motion variability. The interphalangeal joints of the 3rd and 4th toes present very similar motion patterns over stance phases of slow walking and running. However, the motion patterns of the MTP3 and MTP4 joints and the vertical displacement of the metatarsophalangeal joint are significantly different during running and slow walking. Because of the biomechanical requirements, osctriches are likely to select the inverted pendulum gait at low speeds and the bouncing gait at high speeds to improve movement performance and energy economy. Interestingly, the motions of the MTP3 and MTP4 joints are highly synchronized from slow to fast locomotion. This strongly suggests that the 3rd and 4th toes really work as an “integrated system” with the 3rd toe as the main load bearing element whilst the 4th toe as the complementary load sharing element with a primary role to ensure the lateral stability of the permanently elevated metatarsophalangeal joint.