Life Sciences Commons^™

Alligator Skull, Katherine Weaver

PANDION: The Osprey Journal of Research and Ideas

Artist Statement

Alligator Skull was created through mimicking the shadows on the bones of a giant creature with the dots of my pen. Living in Florida, I have known these animals my entire life, and I have been mesmerized by them the whole time. To see one humbled into a skeleton form is so intriguing. They are apex predators that encompass fear in many, but they are just as mortal as the rest of us. They only kill to survive, but the power they possess over the waters has humans either petrified or entranced. This individual from the Alligator mississippiensis …

Could There Be A Relationship Between Feeding Characteristics And The Shape Of Condylus Occipitalis And Foramen Magnum In Mammals?, Yasi̇n Demi̇raslan, İsmai̇l Demi̇rci̇oğlu, İftar Gürbüz, Funda Aksünger Karaavci, Abdullah Ortadeveci, Özcan Özgel

Turkish Journal of Veterinary & Animal Sciences

The aim of the study was to investigate the shape of the foramen magnum and condylus occipitalis of mammalian species belonging to different feeding groups. For this, two-dimensional geometric morphometric method analyses were applied. The data from the skulls of the 12 species were used. In principal component analysis, the first three principal components accounted for 70.353%of the total shape variation. According to the first principal component, the dorsal edge of the condylus occipitalis and foramen magnum contributed the most to shape variation. Most of the individuals were correctly separated according to the feeding groups. The most accurate grouping features …

Scamp Grouper, (Mycteroperca Phenax) Neurocranium, Liam L. Wilcox, David William Kerstetter

All Scans: Kerstetter Fisheries and Avian Ecology 3D Scan Series

Neurocranium from 5.40 cm; total length unknown. Scamp Grouper, (Mycteroperca phenax)

Specimen received from Kerstetter's lab

Mahi Mahi (Coryphaena Hippurus) Neurocranium, Alexia J. Hilber, Caileigh Craddock, Kiara Belanger, David W. Kerstetter

All Scans: Kerstetter Fisheries and Avian Ecology 3D Scan Series

Neurocranium from Mahi Mahi (Coryphaena hippurus), collected in 3/2021 by Katerina Sawickji

Interspecific And Intraspecific Size And Shape Variation In Skull Of Two Closely Relatedspecies Bufo Bufo (Linnaeus, 1758) And Bufo Verrucosissimus (Pallas, 1814) From Turkey, Nazan Üzüm, Nurhayat Özdemi̇r, Canteki̇n Dursun, Bi̇lal Kutrup, Serkan Gül

Turkish Journal of Zoology

Anurans are the most suitable vertebrate group to see the development and also evolution in the skull, compared to other terrestrial vertebrates as they show highly derived morphology. For this reason, the cranium of anurans has been widely used for analyzing e.g., development and integration, evolutionary history, phylogenetic relationships, sexual dimorphism; and for taxon determination. We applied geometric morphometric techniques and then multivariate statistical analyses to see the skull size and shape variations in closely related Bufo species (B. bufo and B. verrucosissimus) inhabiting Turkey. Females have larger skull than males for both species. Ventral skull size of males differed …

Escolar (Lepidocybium Flavobrunneum) Neurocranium, Meredith M. Pratt, Katerina D. Sawickij, David W. Kerstetter

All Scans: Kerstetter Fisheries and Avian Ecology 3D Scan Series

Neurocranium prep of escolar Lepidocybium flavobrunneum obtained from longlining vessel.

Morphometric Analysis Of The Skulls Of Domestic Cattle (Bos Taurus L.) And Water Buffalo (Bubalus Bubalis L.) In Turkey, Ermi̇ş Özkan, Abu Bakar Siddiq, Ki̇fayet Oya Kahveci̇oğlu, Muhsi̇n Öztürk, Vedat Onar

Turkish Journal of Veterinary & Animal Sciences

A total of 20 domestic cattle (Bos taurus L.) and 15 water buffalo (Bubalis bubalis L.) skulls were analyzed in this study. All of the specimens belonged to female individuals. Using a total of 27 craniometric measurements from each of the skulls, 9 indices were calculated. Although there were statistically significant differences between the linear measurements of the skulls of both species, while calculating the indices with their ratios, the values of the measurements of the facial area were determinative in the craniology. Among these indices, the facial index 1 value was statistically significant (P < 0.01) in the comparison of these two species. On the other hand, while considering the orbit and foramen magnum measurements, in contrast with the transversal measurement, the height was more determinant for their index and form.

Biometric Variation In Martes Foina From Mainland Greece And The Aegean Islands, Malamati Papakosta

Turkish Journal of Zoology

The geographical morphometric variations in the stone marten (Martes foina) from mainland Greece, the Aegean Islands, and Crete were analyzed. Samples taken from the three areas were compared regarding 18 craniometrical and 5 body size variables. According to univariate statistics, 13 skull measurements from males and 15 from females (72% and 83% of total skull variables for males and females, respectively) did not differ significantly among mainland Greece, the Aegean Islands, and Crete. The morphological differences among mainland and insular populations showed a tendency for separation (63% overall correct classification from skull measurements of males, 72.5% and 73.6% for body …

Craniometric Analysis Of Early Medieval Horses Equus Przewalskii F. Caballus (Linnaeus, 1758) From Chosen Areas In Poland, Edyta Pasicka, Aleksander Chrószcz, Maciej Janeczek, Anna Mucha

Turkish Journal of Veterinary & Animal Sciences

These studies were carried out on 14 adult (9 males and 5 females) Equus przewalskii f. caballus (Linnaeus, 1758) horses, using both the skulls and mandibles. All of the material originated from 3 Polish archaeological sites that date back to the Early Medieval period. The most extensive craniometrical investigations consisted of 40 skull measurements and 16 mandible measurements. In some cases, the conditions of the artifacts narrowed the number of accessible osteometric points. The aim of this study was an estimation of the craniometric measurement differences and an examination of their statistical importance according to animal sex, age, and origin. …

The Occipital Area In Medieval Dogs And The Role Of Occipital Dysplasia In Dog Breeding, Maciej Janeczek, Aleksander Chrószcz

Turkish Journal of Veterinary & Animal Sciences

An investigation was carried out on 42 dog skulls from the early medieval period. The skulls were excavated in Wroclaw, Poland, and in Novgorod and Moscow, Russia. Craniometric measurements were taken. On the basis of the basion-ethmoid measurement, the shoulder height was estimated. The foramen magnum height and width were measured and the foramen magnum index was calculated. The foramen magnum was typical in shape, and any occipital dysplasia signs observed were in the skulls. The results of the investigation, in comparison to other investigations of modern breeds and archaeozoological material, suggest that occipital dysplasia is not a pathology but …

A Contribution To The Age-Class Determination Of Martes Foina Erxleben, 1777 From Turkey (Mammalia: Carnivora), İrfan Albayrak, Ahmet Selçuk Özen, Andrew Charles Kitchener

Turkish Journal of Zoology

This study was based on 57 beech marten (Martes foina) specimens collected in Turkey between 1994 and 1998. The specimens were divided into 3 age classes as young, juvenile, and adult on the basis of the morphology of the sagittal and lambdoidal crests, and temporal ridges, relative lengths of the interorbital and postorbital constrictions, the degree of wear in molar and canine teeth, baculum weight and structure, pelage color, cranial and bacular measurements, and field notes concerning sexual maturity and lactation. Young, juvenile and adult specimens were readily identified by the shape of the temporal ridges on the skull. These …