Quantification of intraskeletal histovariability in Alligator mississippiensis and implications for vertebrate osteohistology (project)

N, Woodward; Horner, R. F.; Farlow, O

doi:10.7934/p731

Cited by 32 publications

(65 citation statements)

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“…However, in this study of hind limb elements, only the fibula differs from the other sampled elements in that it preserves one additional LAG among the multiple ornithomimid individuals. This differs from other studies that have sampled a wider representation of bones within the skeleton and have shown more variation within multiple elements of single individual [7,16,39,42]. The presence of an additional LAG in the fibula suggests that it may be a preferred element for skeletochronology in theropods, because it preserves the longest growth record due to a small medullary cavity and less remodelling, as suggested in previous studies [4,13].…”

Section: Comparative Osteohistologycontrasting

confidence: 73%

Osteohistological variation in growth marks and osteocyte lacunar density in a theropod dinosaur (Coelurosauria: ornithomimidae)

et al. 2014

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BackgroundOsteohistological examinations of fossil vertebrates have utilized a number of proxies, such as counts and spacing of lines of arrested growth (LAGs) and osteocyte lacunar densities (OLD), in order to make inferences related to skeletochronology and mass-specific growth rates. However, many of these studies rely on samplings of isolated bones from single individuals. These analyses do not take individual variation into account, and as a result may lead to misleading inferences of the physiology of extinct organisms. This study uses a multi-element, multi-individual sampling of ornithomimid dinosaurs to test the amount of individual variation in the aforementioned osteohistological indicators. Based on these results we also assess the conclusions of previous studies that tested paleohistological hypotheses using isolated elements.ResultsLAG number was found to be consistent within the hind limb bones of each individual, with the exception of the fibula, which preserves one additional LAG. Considerable differences in LAG spacing were found between elements of the sampled individuals, with larger variation found in elements of the foot compared with the femur, fibula, and tibia. Osteocyte lacunar density ranged between 29000 and 42000 osteocyte lacunae per mm3, and was found to vary more between hind limb bones of an individual and within bones, than between the average values of individuals.ConclusionsThe variation between hind limb elements in LAG number and LAG spacing suggests that direct comparisons of these elements may be misleading, and that LAG spacing is not a reliable proxy for mass-specific growth rates of an individual. Sampling of multiple bones should be performed as an internal check of model-based LAG retro-calculation and growth equations. The observation that osteocyte lacunar density varies more between individual bone elements than between average individual values suggests that the choice of sampled element can greatly influence the result, and care should be taken to not bias interpretations of the physiology of fossil tetrapods.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12862-014-0231-y) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

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Section: Comparative Osteohistologycontrasting

confidence: 73%

Osteohistological variation in growth marks and osteocyte lacunar density in a theropod dinosaur (Coelurosauria: ornithomimidae)

et al. 2014

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“…E). Dark lines between layers of circumferential vasculature are probably the result of hypermineralization during slow growth (Woodward et al, ). At least seven lines are present, but it is possible that more have been obscured by expansion of internal cavities and secondary remodeling.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Histology of Caenagnathid (Theropoda, Oviraptorosauria) Dentaries and Implications for Development, Ontogenetic Edentulism, and Taxonomy

Funston

Wilkinson

Simon

et al. 2019

The Anatomical Record

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The fossil record of caenagnathid oviraptorosaurs consists mainly of their fused, complexly sculptured dentaries, but little is known about the growth and development of this diagnostic structure. Previous work has suggested that the ridges and grooves on the occlusal surface are either the vestiges of teeth and their alveoli or were adaptations to increase shearing action during mastication. In addition, the distinctiveness of the dentaries has led to their use for species‐level taxonomy, without a complete understanding of their variation through ontogeny. Here, we describe additional caenagnathid mandibles from the Dinosaur Park Formation of Alberta, Canada, and perform histological analyses to assess relative ontogenetic stage and the nature of the occlusal elaborations. The results show that the mandibular symphysis is synostosed early in ontogeny and does not accurately reflect ontogenetic stage in caenagnathids. In contrast, the presence of cyclical growth marks in a large specimen shows that mandibles can be used for relative histological maturity estimation. Histological features of the ridges of bone surrounding the lingual groove indicate that they are not the vestiges of tooth‐bearing tissues and that caenagnathids did not lose their teeth through ontogeny as suggested in previous work. Instead, increased secondary remodeling in these structures is consistent with their use for food processing. Unexpectedly advanced maturity in a small specimen suggests that at least three caenagnathid species of varying body sizes coexisted in the Dinosaur Park Formation. These results stress the necessity of histological analysis when assessing maturity or ontogenetic trends in fossil material. Anat Rec, 303:918–934, 2020. © 2019 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

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“…Thus, the bone depositional rates can differ between elements, as does the degree of remodeling, attesting to differential growth rates of skeletal elements and/or different biomechanical constraints. These are common examples of interskeletal element histovariability (Ricqlès, ; Woodward et al, ; Padian et al, ). In most of the pareiasaur specimens sampled, Haversian substitution (and hence the presence of secondary osteons, or Haversian bone) is more extensive in the ribs than in limb bones, which concurs with de Ricqlès () observations for pareiasaurs.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Bone Microstructure of Pareiasaurs (Parareptilia) from the Karoo Basin, South Africa: Implications for Growth Strategies and Lifestyle Habits

Canoville

Chinsamy

2017

The Anatomical Record

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Numerous morphological studies have been carried out on pareiasaurs; yet their taxonomy and biology remain incompletely understood. Earlier works have suggested that these herbivorous parareptiles had a short juvenile period as compared to the duration of adulthood. Several studies further suggested an (semi-) aquatic lifestyle for these animals, but more recent investigations have proposed a rather terrestrial habitat. Bone paleohistology is regarded as a powerful tool to assess aspects of tetrapod paleobiology, but few studies have been conducted on pareiasaurs. The present study assesses intra and inter-specific histovariability of pareiasaurs and provides fresh insights into their paleobiology, thereby permitting a re-evaluation of earlier hypotheses. Our sample comprises various skeletal elements and several specimens covering most of the taxonomic and stratigraphic spectrum of South African pareiasaurs, including large and basal forms from the Middle Permian, as well as smaller and more derived forms from the Late Permian. Our results concerning size of elements and histological tissues show that for pareiasaurs, element size is not a good indicator of ontogenetic age, and furthermore, suggest that the specific diversity of the Middle Permian pareiasaurs may have been underestimated. The bone histology of these animals shows that they experienced a relatively rapid growth early in ontogeny. Periosteal growth later slowed down, but seems to have been protracted for several years during adulthood. Pareiasaur bone microanatomy is unusual for continental tetrapods, in having spongious stylopod diaphyses and thin compact cortices. Rigorous paleoecological interpretations are thus limited since no modern analogue exists for these animals. Anat Rec, 300:1039-1066, 2017. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

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Quantification of intraskeletal histovariability in Alligator mississippiensis and implications for vertebrate osteohistology (project)

Cited by 32 publications

References 0 publications

Osteohistological variation in growth marks and osteocyte lacunar density in a theropod dinosaur (Coelurosauria: ornithomimidae)

Osteohistological variation in growth marks and osteocyte lacunar density in a theropod dinosaur (Coelurosauria: ornithomimidae)

Histology of Caenagnathid (Theropoda, Oviraptorosauria) Dentaries and Implications for Development, Ontogenetic Edentulism, and Taxonomy

Bone Microstructure of Pareiasaurs (Parareptilia) from the Karoo Basin, South Africa: Implications for Growth Strategies and Lifestyle Habits

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