Cranial Morphology and Phylogeny of Ruminantia (Mammalia, Artiodactyla)

反刍动物是一种种类繁多的重要哺乳动物，包括牛科(山羊、绵羊、奶牛)、鹿科(鹿、麋鹿)和长颈鹿等9科35属。这些和几个已灭绝的反刍动物群体在化石记录中有代表，但它们头骨的详细形态尚未被详细研究。到目前为止，大多数关于化石和现存反刍动物的分类和进化的比较研究都是基于颅后骨骼遗骸(特别是四肢的特征)和牙齿。大卫·韦伯博士提出了一项雄心勃勃的研究，旨在研究活的和化石的反刍动物群体的代表的颅骨形态，以重建它们之间的进化关系。HIS的分析结果将与基于非颅脑数据以及包括线粒体DNA序列在内的多种分子数据的结果进行比较和整合。这项拟议的研究具有广泛的影响。综合新的和现有的数据将有助于明确迄今为止最准确的反刍动物进化图景。一个强大的适应、生物地理学、功能形态和生物多样性的家谱。这项研究的结果将在比较解剖学家、哺乳动物学家和进化生物学家中找到广泛的受众。

The ruminants are a diverse and important group of mammals, comprising 35 genera in nine families, including bovids (goats, sheep, cows), cervids (deer, elk) and giraffids. These and several extinct groups of ruminants are represented in the fossil record, but the detailed morphology of their cranial bones has not been studied in detail. To date, most comparative research on the classification and evolution of fossil and living ruminants has been based on post-cranial skeletal remains (especially features of the limbs) and teeth. Dr. S. David Webb proposes an ambitious study of cranial morphology of representatives of living and fossil ruminant groups, for the purpose of reconstructing their evolutionary relationships. The results of his analysis will be compared and integrated with results based on non-cranial data, and several varieties of molecular data, including mitochondrial DNA sequences. The proposed research has wide implications. A synthesis of new and existing data will help to crystallize the most precise picture of ruminant evolution to date. A robust family tree for adaptation, biogeography, functional morphology, and biodiversity. The results of this research will find a wide audience among comparative anatomists, mammalogists, and evolutionary biologists.