Disparity of turbinal bones in placental mammals

Abstract

Turbinals are key bony elements of the mammalian nasal cavity, involved in heat and moisture conservation as well as olfaction. While turbinals are well known in some groups, their diversity is poorly understood at the scale of placental mammals, which span 21 orders. Here, we investigated the turbinal bones and associated lamellae for one representative of each extant order of placental mammals. We segmented and isolated each independent turbinal and lamella and found an important diversity of variation in the number of turbinals, as well as their size, and shape. We found that the turbinal count varies widely, from zero in the La Plata dolphin, (Pontoporia blainvillei) to about 110 in the African bush elephant (Loxodonta africana). Multiple turbinal losses and additional gains took place along the phylogeny of placental mammals. Some changes are clearly attributed to ecological adaptation, while others are probably related to phylogenetic inertia. In addition, this work highlights the problem of turbinal nomenclature in some placental orders with numerous and highly complex turbinals, for which homologies are extremely difficult to resolve. Therefore, this work underscores the importance of developmental studies to better clarify turbinal homology and nomenclature and provides a standardized comparative framework for further research.