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Quadratojugal Bone
The quadratojugal is a skull bone present in many vertebrates, including some living reptiles and amphibians. Anatomy and function In animals with a quadratojugal bone, it is typically found connected to the jugal (cheek) bone from the front and the squamosal bone from above. It is usually positioned at the rear lower corner of the cranium. Many modern tetrapods lack a quadratojugal bone as it has been lost or fused to other bones. Modern examples of tetrapods without a quadratojugal include salamanders, mammals, birds, and squamates (lizards and snakes). In tetrapods with a quadratojugal bone, it often forms a portion of the jaw joint. Developmentally, the quadratojugal bone is a dermal bone in the temporal series, forming the original braincase. The squamosal and quadratojugal bones together form the cheek region and may provide muscular attachments for facial muscles. In reptiles and amphibians In most modern reptiles and amphibians, the quadratojugal is a prominent, st ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Skull
The skull, or cranium, is typically a bony enclosure around the brain of a vertebrate. In some fish, and amphibians, the skull is of cartilage. The skull is at the head end of the vertebrate. In the human, the skull comprises two prominent parts: the neurocranium and the facial skeleton, which evolved from the first pharyngeal arch. The skull forms the frontmost portion of the axial skeleton and is a product of cephalization and vesicular enlargement of the brain, with several special senses structures such as the eyes, ears, nose, tongue and, in fish, specialized tactile organs such as barbels near the mouth. The skull is composed of three types of bone: cranial bones, facial bones and ossicles, which is made up of a number of fused flat and irregular bones. The cranial bones are joined at firm fibrous junctions called sutures and contains many foramina, fossae, processes, and sinuses. In zoology, the openings in the skull are called fenestrae, the most ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Infratemporal Fenestra
Temporal fenestrae are openings in the temporal region of the skull of some amniotes, behind the orbit (eye socket). These openings have historically been used to track the evolution and affinities of reptiles. Temporal fenestrae are commonly (although not universally) seen in the fossilized skulls of dinosaurs and other sauropsids (the total group of reptiles, including birds). The major reptile group Diapsida, for example, is defined by the presence of two temporal fenestrae on each side of the skull. The infratemporal fenestra, also called the lateral temporal fenestra or lower temporal fenestra, is the lower of the two and is exposed primarily in lateral (side) view.The supratemporal fenestra, also called the upper temporal fenestra, is positioned above the other fenestra and is exposed primarily in dorsal (top) view. In some reptiles, particularly dinosaurs, the parts of the skull roof lying between the supratemporal fenestrae are thinned out by excavations from the adjacent ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Middle Ear
The middle ear is the portion of the ear medial to the eardrum, and distal to the oval window of the cochlea (of the inner ear). The mammalian middle ear contains three ossicles (malleus, incus, and stapes), which transfer the vibrations of the eardrum into waves in the fluid and membranes of the inner ear. The hollow space of the middle ear is also known as the tympanic cavity and is surrounded by the tympanic part of the temporal bone. The auditory tube (also known as the Eustachian tube or the pharyngotympanic tube) joins the tympanic cavity with the nasal cavity ( nasopharynx), allowing pressure to equalize between the middle ear and throat. The primary function of the middle ear is to efficiently transfer acoustic energy from compression waves in air to fluid–membrane waves within the cochlea. Structure Ossicles The middle ear contains three tiny bones known as the ossicles: '' malleus'', ''incus'', and '' stapes''. The ossicles were given their Latin names f ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ossicles
The ossicles (also called auditory ossicles) are three irregular bones in the middle ear of humans and other mammals, and are among the smallest bones in the human body. Although the term "ossicle" literally means "tiny bone" (from Latin ''ossiculum'') and may refer to any small bone throughout the body, it typically refers specifically to the malleus, incus and stapes ("hammer, anvil, and stirrup") of the middle ear. The auditory ossicles serve as a kinematic chain to transmit and amplify ( intensify) sound vibrations collected from the air by the ear drum to the fluid-filled labyrinth ( cochlea). The absence or pathology of the auditory ossicles would constitute a moderate-to-severe conductive hearing loss. Structure The ossicles are, in order from the eardrum to the inner ear (from superficial to deep): the malleus, incus, and stapes, terms that in Latin are translated as "the hammer, anvil, and stirrup". * The malleus () articulates with the incus through the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Incus
The ''incus'' (: incudes) or anvil in the ear is one of three small bones (ossicles) in the middle ear. The incus receives vibrations from the malleus, to which it is connected laterally, and transmits these to the stapes medially. The incus is named for its resemblance to an anvil (). Structure The incus is the second of three ossicles, very small bones in the middle ear which act to transmit sound. It is shaped like an anvil, and has a long and short crus extending from the body, which articulates with the malleus. The short crus attaches to the posterior ligament of the incus. The long crus articulates with the stapes at the lenticular process. The superior ligament of the incus attaches at the body of the incus to the roof of the tympanic cavity. The incus is Homology (biology), homologous to the quadrate bone found in other tetrapods. Function Vibrations in the middle ear are received via the tympanic membrane. The malleus, resting on the membrane, conveys vibrations ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Stapes
The ''stapes'' or stirrup is a bone in the middle ear of humans and other tetrapods which is involved in the conduction of sound vibrations to the inner ear. This bone is connected to the oval window by its annular ligament, which allows the footplate (or base) to transmit sound energy through the oval window into the inner ear. The ''stapes'' is the smallest and lightest bone in the human body, and is so-called because of its resemblance to a stirrup (). Structure The ''stapes'' is the third bone of the three ossicles in the middle ear and the smallest in the human body. It measures roughly , greater along the head-base span. It rests on the oval window, to which it is connected by an annular ligament and articulates with the ''incus'', or anvil through the incudostapedial joint. They are connected by anterior and posterior limbs (). Development The ''stapes'' develops from the second pharyngeal arch during the sixth to eighth week of embryological life. The central ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mammaliaformes
Mammaliaformes ("mammalian forms") is a clade of synapsid tetrapods that includes the crown group mammals and their closest extinct relatives; the group radiated from earlier probainognathian cynodonts during the Late Triassic. It is defined as the clade originating from the most recent common ancestor of Morganucodonta and the crown group mammals; the latter is the clade originating with the most recent common ancestor of extant Monotremata, Marsupialia and Placentalia. Besides Morganucodonta and the crown group mammals, Mammaliaformes also includes Docodonta and ''Hadrocodium''. Mammaliaformes is a term of phylogenetic nomenclature. In contrast, the assignment of organisms to class Mammalia has traditionally been founded on traits and, on this basis, Mammalia is slightly more inclusive than Mammaliaformes. In particular, trait-based taxonomy generally includes ''Adelobasileus'' and '' Sinoconodon'' in Mammalia, though they fall outside the Mammaliaformes definition. These ge ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cynodont
Cynodontia () is a clade of eutheriodont therapsids that first appeared in the Late Permian (approximately 260 Megaannum, mya), and extensively diversified after the Permian–Triassic extinction event. Mammals are cynodonts, as are their extinct ancestors and close relatives (Mammaliaformes), having evolved from advanced probainognathian cynodonts during the Late Triassic. Non-mammalian cynodonts occupied a variety of ecological niches, both as carnivores and as herbivores. Following the emergence of mammals, most other cynodont lines went extinct, with the last known non-mammaliaform cynodont group, the Tritylodontidae, having its youngest records in the Early Cretaceous. Description Early cynodonts have many of the skeletal characteristics of mammals. The teeth were fully differentiated and the braincase bulged at the back of the head. Outside of some Crown group, crown-group mammals (notably the therians), all cynodonts probably laid eggs. The temporal fenestrae#Fenestra ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cranial Kinesis
Cranial kinesis is the term for significant movement of skull bones relative to each other in addition to movement at the joint between the upper and lower jaws. It is usually taken to mean relative movement between the upper jaw and the braincase. Most vertebrates have some form of a kinetic skull. Cranial kinesis, or lack thereof, is usually linked to feeding. Animals which must exert powerful bite forces, such as crocodiles, often have rigid skulls with little or no kinesis, which maximizes their strength. Animals which swallow large prey whole (snakes), which grip awkwardly shaped food items (parrots eating nuts), or, most often, which feed in the water via suction feeding often have very kinetic skulls, frequently with numerous mobile joints. In the case of mammals, which have akinetic skulls (except perhaps hares), the lack of kinesis is most likely to be related to the secondary palate, which prevents relative movement. This in turn is a consequence of the need to be able ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Squamosal Bone
The squamosal is a skull bone found in most reptiles, amphibians, and birds. In fishes, it is also called the pterotic bone. In most tetrapods, the squamosal and quadratojugal bones form the cheek series of the skull. The bone forms an ancestral component of the dermal roof and is typically thin compared to other skull bones. The squamosal bone lies ventral to the temporal series and otic notch, and is bordered anteriorly by the postorbital. Posteriorly, the squamosal articulates with the quadrate and pterygoid bones. The squamosal is bordered anteroventrally by the jugal and ventrally by the quadratojugal. Function in reptiles In reptiles, the quadrate and articular bones of the skull articulate to form the jaw joint. The squamosal bone lies anterior to the quadrate bone. Anatomy in synapsids Non-mammalian synapsids In non-mammalian synapsids, the jaw is composed of four bony elements and referred to as a quadro-articular jaw because the joint is between the art ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Postorbital Bone
The ''postorbital'' is one of the bones in vertebrate skulls which forms a portion of the dermal skull roof and, sometimes, a ring about the orbit. Generally, it is located behind the postfrontal and posteriorly to the orbital fenestra. In some vertebrates, the postorbital is fused with the postfrontal to create a postorbitofrontal. Birds have a separate postorbital as an embryo An embryo ( ) is the initial stage of development for a multicellular organism. In organisms that reproduce sexually, embryonic development is the part of the life cycle that begins just after fertilization of the female egg cell by the male sp ..., but the bone fuses with the frontal before it hatches. References * Roemer, A. S. 1956. ''Osteology of the Reptiles''. University of Chicago Press. 772 pp. Skull bones {{Vertebrate anatomy-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Caecilian
Caecilians (; ) are a group of limbless, vermiform (worm-shaped) or serpentine (snake-shaped) amphibians with small or sometimes nonexistent eyes. They mostly live hidden in soil or in streambeds, and this cryptic lifestyle renders caecilians among the least familiar amphibians. Modern caecilians live in the tropics of South America, South and Central America, Africa, and southern Asia. Caecilians feed on small subterranean creatures, such as earthworms. The body is cylindrical and often darkly coloured, and the skull is bullet-shaped and strongly built. Caecilian heads have several unique adaptations, including fused cranial and jaw bones, a two-part system of jaw muscles, and a Chemoreceptor, chemosensory tentacle in front of the eye. The skin is slimy and bears ringlike markings or grooves and may contain scales. Modern caecilians are a clade, the Order (biology), order Gymnophiona (or Apoda ), one of the three living amphibian groups alongside Anura (frogs) and Urodela (sa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
