Fang shape varies with ontogeny and sex in the venomous elapid snake <i>Pseudonaja affinis</i>

Cleuren, Silke G. C.; Patterson, Matthew B.; Hocking, David P.; Warburton, Natalie M.; Evans, Alistair R.

doi:10.1002/jmor.21442

Cited by 3 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 33 publications

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“…Varying the contact angle in the anterior–posterior direction is likely related to the size of the prey being bitten into or the approach angle of the predator to the prey. This has been investigated in snakes [12,73,74]; however, it requires further study in mammalian carnivores.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Taking a stab at modelling canine tooth biomechanics in mammalian carnivores with beam theory and finite-element analysis

et al. 2022

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Canine teeth are vital to carnivore feeding ecology, facilitating behaviours related to prey capture and consumption. Forms vary with specific feeding ecologies; however, the biomechanics that drive these relationships have not been comprehensively investigated. Using a combination of beam theory analysis (BTA) and finite-element analysis (FEA) we assessed how aspects of canine shape impact tooth stress, relating this to feeding ecology. The degree of tooth lateral compression influenced tolerance of multidirectional loads, whereby canines with more circular cross-sections experienced similar maximum stresses under pulling and shaking loads, while more ellipsoid canines experienced higher stresses under shaking loads. Robusticity impacted a tooth's ability to tolerate stress and appears to be related to prey materials. Robust canines experience lower stresses and are found in carnivores regularly encountering hard foods. Slender canines experience higher stresses and are associated with carnivores biting into muscle and flesh. Curvature did not correlate with tooth stress; however, it did impact bending during biting. Our simulations help identify scenarios where canine forms are likely to break and pinpoint areas where this breakage may occur. These patterns demonstrate how canine shape relates to tolerating the stresses experienced when killing and feeding, revealing some of the form–function relationships that underpin mammalian carnivore ecologies.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Taking a stab at modelling canine tooth biomechanics in mammalian carnivores with beam theory and finite-element analysis

et al. 2022

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“…Usually, ontogenetic changes in tooth morphology are associated with a dietary shift in snakes. For example, juveniles have robust and blunter fangs, probably feeding on scaly lizards, whereas adult specimens display narrow fangs with sharper tips to feed on softer mammalian prey [ 45 , 47 ]. Since G. ch.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Shedding Light on the Dentition and Venom Delivery System of the Rear-Fanged Snake, Galvarinus chilensis chilensis (Serpentes: Dipsadidae: Tachymenini) from Chile

Herrera

Fuentes-Retamal

Kemmerling

et al. 2022

Biology

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Although the rear-fanged snake Galvarinus chilensis chilensis (formerly named Tachymenis ch. chilensis) causes ophidian accidents with clinical importance in Chile, the anatomical and histological characterizations of the venom delivery system (venom gland and fang) of this species still remain unknown. This study describes the dentition and characteristics of fangs and their ontogenetic variations in G. ch. chilensis. Moreover, histological and histochemistry analyses of the venom glands of this species are presented. Using micro-computed tomography and scanning electron microscopy, the dentitions of neonates, juveniles, and adults were analyzed, and no ontogenetic variations in teeth length and number present in the dentary and maxilla were observed. Moreover, we found three types of basic teeth, with distributional patterns conserved in all ontogenetic categories. The fangs exhibited a groove from the base to the middle. At the end of the groove, prominent ridges are formed. The fang and groove lengths were significantly distinct between ontogenetic categories. No differences between females and males were observed. Histologically, we found that the venom gland is close to the fangs and has a seromucous composition. Our results describe, for the first time, the distributional pattern and characteristics of the dentition and venom delivery system of the poorly studied snake G. ch. chilensis.

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Shape and Size Variation in Elapid Snake Fangs and the Effects of Phylogeny and Diet

Palci,

Lee,

Crowe-Riddell

et al. 2023

Evol Biol

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Recent studies have found correlations between the shape of snake teeth/fangs and diet. These studies were done at a very broad phylogenetic scale, making it desirable to test if correlations are still detectable at a narrower evolutionary scale, specifically within the family Elapidae. To this end, we studied fang shape in a dense selection of elapids representing most genera worldwide (74%). We used three-dimensional geometric morphometrics to analyse fang diversity and evaluate possible correlations between fang shape, fang size, and diet. We detected weak phylogenetic signal for both shape and absolute fang size, and found that evolutionary allometry contributes a small proportion of the among-species variation. The distribution of elapid fangs in morphospace was found to be surprisingly conservative, with only a few outliers. The only three dietary categories that were found to have a significant effect on fang shape are mammals, lizards, and reptile eggs, with mammals having a significant effect also on absolute but not relative fang size. Our results show that there are disparate patterns in fang-diet relationships at different evolutionary scales. Across all venomous snakes, previous work found that fangs are strongly influenced by diet, but within elapids our study shows these same associations are weaker and often non-significant. This could result from limitations in these types of studies, or could reflect the fact that elapids are a relatively young clade, where recent extensive divergences in diet have yet to be mirrored in fang shape, suggesting a lag between changes in ecology and dental morphology.

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Fang shape varies with ontogeny and sex in the venomous elapid snake Pseudonaja affinis

Cited by 3 publications

References 33 publications

Taking a stab at modelling canine tooth biomechanics in mammalian carnivores with beam theory and finite-element analysis

Taking a stab at modelling canine tooth biomechanics in mammalian carnivores with beam theory and finite-element analysis

Shedding Light on the Dentition and Venom Delivery System of the Rear-Fanged Snake, Galvarinus chilensis chilensis (Serpentes: Dipsadidae: Tachymenini) from Chile

Shape and Size Variation in Elapid Snake Fangs and the Effects of Phylogeny and Diet

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