Static allometry of mammalian teeth and the correlation of tooth size and body size in contemporary mammals

Creighton, G.K.

doi:10.1111/j.1469-7998.1980.tb01475.x

Cited by 124 publications

(22 citation statements)

References 12 publications

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“…These values are similar to previous estimates based on head-body length (9 kg and 32 kg, respectively; Van Valkenburgh 1987) and limb bone dimensions (10-25 kg and 25-60 kg; Egi 2001), but much lower than reconstructions based on the length of the skull (23 kg and 150 kg; Van Valkenburgh 1987). Because head-body length is considered to be a reliable predictor of body mass (Creighton 1980;Damuth 1990;Van Valkenburgh 1990), these comparisons may indicate that the astragalus performs well in estimating the body mass of hyaenodontids.…”

Section: Application To Paleogene Mammalssupporting

confidence: 77%

The scale of it all: postcanine tooth size, the taxon-level effect, and the universality of Gould's scaling law

Copes

Schwartz

2010

Paleobiology

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In a seminal paper in 1975, Gould proposed that postcanine occlusal area (PCOA) should scale metabolically (0.75) with body mass across mammals. By regressing PCOA against skull length in a small sample of large-bodied herbivorous mammals, Gould provided some marginal support for this hypothesis, which he then extrapolated as a universal scaling law for Mammalia. Since then, many studies have sought to confirm this scaling relationship within a single order and have found equivocal support for Gould's assertion. In part, this may be related to the use of proxies for both PCOA and body mass, small sample sizes, or the influence of a “taxon-level effect,” rendering Gould's scaling “universal” problematic.Our goal was to test the universality of Gould's prediction and the impact of the taxon-level effect on regressions of tooth size on body mass in a large extant mammalian sample (683 species spanning 14 orders). We tested for the presence of two types of taxon-level effect that may influence the acceptance or rejection of hypothesized scaling coefficients. The hypotheses of both metabolic and isometric scaling can be rejected in Mammalia, but not in all sub-groups therein. The level of data aggregation also influences the interpretation of the scaling relationship. Because the scaling relationship of tooth size to body mass is highly dependent on both the taxonomic level of analysis and the mathematical methods used to organize the data, paleontologists attempting to retrodict body mass from fossilized dental remains must be aware of the effect that sample composition may have on their results.

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Section: Application To Paleogene Mammalssupporting

confidence: 77%

The scale of it all: postcanine tooth size, the taxon-level effect, and the universality of Gould's scaling law

Copes

Schwartz

2010

Paleobiology

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“…In mammals, skull and body parameters are related. For example, Creighton (1980) showed that tooth size of 123 species of mammals was significantly related to body size, and Johnston (1991) showed that, in the weasel Mustela frenata, cranial length and mass, as well as zygomatic breadth, were significantly related to body size.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 97%

Recent increase in body size of the American marten Martes americana in Alaska

Yom‐Tov¹,

Yom‐Tov²,

Jarrell³

2008

Biological Journal of the Linnean Society

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Using museum specimens, we studied recent changes in skull size of the American marten Martes americana, in continental Alaska. In Alaska, global warming has resulted in milder winters that may contribute to an improved food supply in the wild. In the present study, we tested the hypothesis that body size of the marten had increased during the second half of the 20th century, in response to global warming. We found that skull size, and by implication body size, increased significantly during the second half of the 20th century, possibly due to an improved food supply and/or lower metabolic demands in winter. Improved food availability in winter may result from the improved nutritional conditions for prey, and/or from increased access to prey resulting from a longer snow-free season. Longitude had a significant positive effect on skull size and a significant negative effect on teeth size. In Alaska, the climate is milder along the western coast and becomes harsher inland. Hence, the milder climate was associated with larger body size providing further support for our prediction that body size of the American marten was influenced by food availability and reduced energy expenditure. The negative relationship between longitude and teeth size may indicate a trend towards a larger prey in inland marten populations, but we have no data to support or refute this hypothesis.

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“…Using digital calipers, four measurements were taken from each skull to an accuracy of 0.01 mm: greatest length (GTL) from the front of the premaxilla above the incisors to the back of the lamboidal crest, the maximal width of the zygomatic breadth (ZB), the minimal width of the interorbital constriction (IO) and antero-posterior diameter of the upper canine. In mammals, the three skull parameters (GTL, ZB and IO) are correlated with body weight and length (Creighton 1980;Johnston 1991), and in felids the size of the canine is generally associated with prey size (Ewer 1973). We also used principal component analysis (PCA) to combine the information of the three skull measurements (GTL, ZB and IO) into a single variable.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Population cycles and changes in body size of the lynx in Alaska

Yom‐Tov

MacDonald

et al. 2007

Oecologia

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The lynx Lynx canadensis is a common predator in the boreal forests of North America. Its population fluctuates during a 9- to 11-year cycle in synchrony with the population size of its main prey, the snowshoe hare Lepus americanus. Using adult museum specimens, we studied changes in skull (and hence body) size of the lynx in Alaska during the second half of the 20th century. The population cycle in Alaska averaged 9 years, similar to that reported in the neighbouring Yukon. Using harvest data of lynx as an estimate of population size, we found that skull size was negatively related to population size. This relationship was strongest not for the population density in the year of death (X), but for year X-3, a carry-over effect from the first year (or years) of life, indicating that conditions during the fast-growth years are determining body size. We suggest that the density-dependent effect is probably due to changes in food supply, either resulting from the adverse effects of competition or a possible diminished availability of food. Two skull parameters decreased significantly during the second half of the 20th century. We do not know the cause for the year effect and suggest that it might be due to a long-term change in the availability of prey. Canine size did not change during the study period, probably an indication that snowshoe hares maintained their status as the main prey of the lynx throughout the study period.

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Static allometry of mammalian teeth and the correlation of tooth size and body size in contemporary mammals

Cited by 124 publications

References 12 publications

The scale of it all: postcanine tooth size, the taxon-level effect, and the universality of Gould's scaling law

The scale of it all: postcanine tooth size, the taxon-level effect, and the universality of Gould's scaling law

Recent increase in body size of the American marten Martes americana in Alaska

Population cycles and changes in body size of the lynx in Alaska

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