Anuran Locomotion: Structure and Function. I. Preliminary Observations on Relation between Jumping and Osteometrics of Appendicular and Postaxial Skeleton

Zug, George R.

doi:10.2307/1442720

Cited by 116 publications

(123 citation statements)

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“…We found that the length of the tibiofibula of rocket frogs was on average greater than the length of the femur, a characteristic that has previously been characterized as indicative of a species with good jumping performance (Zug 1972). We found a high hindlimb to snout-vent length ratio in rocket frogs (2.02) compared with a range of 1.07-1.94 from previous measurements made on 48 different frog species (Rand 1952;Rand and Rand 1966;Emerson 1978;Zug and Altig 1978;Choi et al 2003;James et al 2005).…”

Section: Morphologysupporting

confidence: 56%

“…Relatively long hindlimbs should enable frogs to accelerate their center of mass over a relatively longer distance during takeoff to enhance takeoff velocity and jump distance. Frog species with longer hindlimbs generally achieve greater jump distance/takeoff velocity (Rand 1952;Zug 1972;Choi and Park 1996;Choi et al 2003). Emerson (1978) found that those species that have the highest hindlimb to snout-vent length ratios primarily use jumping as their only land-based mode of locomotion, those species with the lowest ratios only walk, and those species with ratios inbetween use a combination of walking, jumping, or hopping.…”

Section: Morphologymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Frog (Emerson 1978) and mammal species (Emerson 1985) that are jump specialists have relatively longer legs. Also, frog (Rand 1952;Zug 1972;Choi and Park 1996;Choi et al 2003) and lizard species (Losos 1990;Toro et al 2003) with relatively longer hindlimbs have generally been found to achieve greater jump distance and/or takeoff velocity. Hindlimb muscle mass in frogs (Emerson 1978) and mammals (Alexander et al 1981) varies as a proportion of body mass, with jumping species having proportionally larger extensor muscles than nonjumping species.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Explosive Jumping: Extreme Morphological and Physiological Specializations of Australian Rocket Frogs (Litoria nasuta)

James

Wilson

2008

Physiological and Biochemical Zoology

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JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact support@jstor.org.. The University of Chicago Press ABSTRACTAnuran jumping is an ideal system for examining the relationships between key morphological, physiological, and kinematic parameters. We used the Australian rocket frog (Litoria nasuta) as a model species to investigate extreme specialization of the vertebrate locomotor system for jumping. We measured the ground reaction forces applied during maximal jumps using a custom-designed force platform, which allowed us to calculate instantaneous measures of acceleration, velocity, power output, and total jump distance. We quantified the mechanical properties of the plantaris longus muscle using the work loop technique. We found that L. nasuta achieved the second-longest relative jumping distance for any anuran (55.2 body lengths for one individual) and the highest published anuran values for isolated net mean muscle power output measured using work loops (93.5 W kg Ϫ1 muscle mass), hindlimb length to snout-vent length ratio (2.02), and relative hindlimb muscle mass (33% of body mass). Litoria nasuta also had a higher ratio of tibia length to snout-vent length than 19 related species. We found that the mean power output expended during the takeoff phase of jumping in the individual that jumped the farthest was about three times greater than our estimate of available muscle power output.

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Section: Morphologysupporting

confidence: 56%

Section: Morphologymentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Explosive Jumping: Extreme Morphological and Physiological Specializations of Australian Rocket Frogs (Litoria nasuta)

James

Wilson

2008

Physiological and Biochemical Zoology

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“…All measurements were taken on the right side of the animal with a vernier caliper (O.Ol-mm precision); measurement definitions of body weight, body length and hindlimb length are those of Zug (1972). The principal hindlimb extensor muscles are those defined by Calow and Alexander (1973): the plantaris longus, cruralis, gluteus magnus, semimembranosus, gracilis major, and semitendinosus.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Previous studies of frog jumping (e.g., Wermel, 1934;Rand and Rand, 1966;Zug, 1972) have assumed that the principal function of this locomotor mode is to maximize distance between the animal and a potential predator, and have focused on the relationship between morphology and jump distance. There are, however, other parameters of jumping, such as quickness of movement (acceleration) that may be important and related to frog morphology.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%