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Forelimb myology of carnivorous marsupials (Marsupialia: Dasyuridae): Implications for the ancestral body plan of the Australidelphia
Journal article   Open access   Peer reviewed

Forelimb myology of carnivorous marsupials (Marsupialia: Dasyuridae): Implications for the ancestral body plan of the Australidelphia

N.M. Warburton and C-R Marchal
The Anatomical Record, Vol.300(9), pp.1589-1608
2017
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Abstract

Carnivorous marsupials of the family Dasyuridae represent a more generalized anatomical condition of both craniodental and postcranial features in comparison to other groups of Australidelphian marsupials. Plesiomorphic characters include polyprotodont dentition, didactylous (rather than syndactylous) pedal morphology, the retention of clavicles and epipubic bones, and an unossified patelloid. In light of the anatomy of the postcranial skeleton, we hypothesized that the muscular anatomy of the Dasyuridae would likely display a range of plesiomorphic traits. We performed gross anatomical dissection on the forelimbs of four species of dasyurid marsupials to produce anatomical descriptions and muscle origin and insertion maps for Dasyurus geoffroii, D. hallucatus, and Phascogale tapoatafa, together with comparative notes for Antechinus flavipes. These new descriptions were then compared with those of other marsupials from the published literature in order to establish the principal patterns in forelimb muscular anatomy. In nearly all aspects of anatomy, we found that the arrangement of the muscular origins and insertions, and the relative degree of separation between muscle bellies among dasyurids, provide a natural starting point from which the anatomies of other Australidelphian marsupial groups can be derived

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8 Earth Sciences
8.93 Archaeology
8.93.805 Mammalia
Web Of Science research areas
Anatomy & Morphology
ESI research areas
Biology & Biochemistry
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