Get a Grip: Substrate Orientation and Digital Grasping Pressures in Strepsirrhines
In: Folia PrimatologicaSearch for other papers by Kimberly A. Congdon in
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Skeletal functional morphology in primates underlies many fossil interpretations. Understanding the functional correlates of arboreal grasping is central to identifying locomotor signatures in extinct primates. We tested 3 predictions linking substrate orientation and digital grasping pressures: (1) below-branch pressures are greater than above-branch and vertical-branch pressures; (2) there is no difference in pressure exerted across digits within autopods at any substrate orientation, and (3) there is no difference in pressure exerted between homologous digits across autopods at any substrate orientation. Adult males and females from 3 strepsirrhine species crossed an artificial arboreal substrate oriented for above-, below- and vertical-branch locomotion. We compared digital pressures within and across behaviors via ANOVA and Tukey's Honest Significant Difference test. Results show limited support for all predictions: below-branch pressures exceeded vertical-branch pressures and above-branch pressures for some digits and species (prediction 1), lateral digits often exerted greater pressures than medial digits (prediction 2), and pedal digits occasionally exerted greater pressures than manual digits during above-branch and vertical orientations but less often for below-branch locomotion (prediction 3). We observed functional variability across autopods, substrate and species that could underlie morphological variation within and across primates. Future work should consider the complexity of arboreality when inferring locomotor modes in fossils.
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Get a Grip: Substrate Orientation and Digital Grasping Pressures in Strepsirrhines
In: Folia PrimatologicaSearch for other papers by Kimberly A. Congdon in
Current site
Google Scholar
PubMed
null
Search for other papers by Matthew J. Ravosa in
Current site
Google Scholar
PubMed
Skeletal functional morphology in primates underlies many fossil interpretations. Understanding the functional correlates of arboreal grasping is central to identifying locomotor signatures in extinct primates. We tested 3 predictions linking substrate orientation and digital grasping pressures: (1) below-branch pressures are greater than above-branch and vertical-branch pressures; (2) there is no difference in pressure exerted across digits within autopods at any substrate orientation, and (3) there is no difference in pressure exerted between homologous digits across autopods at any substrate orientation. Adult males and females from 3 strepsirrhine species crossed an artificial arboreal substrate oriented for above-, below- and vertical-branch locomotion. We compared digital pressures within and across behaviors via ANOVA and Tukey's Honest Significant Difference test. Results show limited support for all predictions: below-branch pressures exceeded vertical-branch pressures and above-branch pressures for some digits and species (prediction 1), lateral digits often exerted greater pressures than medial digits (prediction 2), and pedal digits occasionally exerted greater pressures than manual digits during above-branch and vertical orientations but less often for below-branch locomotion (prediction 3). We observed functional variability across autopods, substrate and species that could underlie morphological variation within and across primates. Future work should consider the complexity of arboreality when inferring locomotor modes in fossils.
| All Time | Past Year | Past 30 Days | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Abstract Views | 109 | 51 | 8 |
| Full Text Views | 4 | 3 | 0 |
| PDF Views & Downloads | 6 | 2 | 0 |