Higher-level Phylogeny of Chiroptera: Evidence from the Postcranial Musculoskeletal System of Recent and Fossil Bats

几乎四分之一的哺乳动物是蝙蝠-- 翼手目的成员。 蝙蝠扮演着各种重要的角色 生态角色。 许多蝙蝠捕食夜行昆虫， 而其他的则是开花植物授粉所必需的。 人类对蝙蝠种群和物种的影响越来越大， 对农业和虫害管理的影响。 尽管 许多以前的研究，仍然很少有协议之间 生物学家们对蝙蝠高等级群体之间关系的研究 (e.g.,属和科）。 如果没有这些知识， 很难解释机翼的大范围变化 建筑、声纳能力和生态学， 蝙蝠 清楚地了解蝙蝠的多样性--对 制定保护优先事项取决于解决 蝙蝠的关系（遗传学）。 在这项研究中，蝙蝠关系的问题将是 通过详细分析的解剖， 骨骼（不包括头盖骨）和各种各样的肌肉 蝙蝠 最近的蝙蝠将使用干骨骼，肌肉 解剖、清洁和染色的标本。 化石蝙蝠会 通过直接观察和X射线分析进行研究。 对象 这些研究的目的是找出 在解剖结构中可以用来评估关系。 本研究中收集的数据将用于各种 为产生可检验的假设而设计的计算机辅助分析 蝙蝠家族内部和家族之间的关系 的 蝙蝠与其他哺乳动物（如灵长类）的关系 也将被调查。 结合分子生物学的数据， 研究和以前的调查其他解剖系统，这 这项研究应该为理解 蝙蝠的结构设计、行为和生态学。

Almost one-quarter of living mammal species are bats -- members of the order Chiroptera. Bats play a variety of important ecological roles. Many bat species prey on nocturnal insects, while others are essential to the pollination of flowering plants. Increasing human impact on bat populations and species has serious implications for agriculture and insect pest management. Despite many previous studies, there is still little agreement among biologists concerning relationships among higher-level bat groups (e.g., genera and families). Without such knowledge, it is difficult to interpret the wide ranges of variation in wing architecture, sonar capabilities, and ecology seen in different bats. A clear understanding of bat diversity -- important for setting conservation priorities -- depends upon resolving the relationships (phylogeny) of bats. In this study, the problem of bat relationships will be addressed through a detailed analysis of the anatomy of the skeleton (excluding the cranium) and the muscles of a wide variety of bats. Recent bats will be studied using dried skeletons, muscle dissections, and cleared and stained specimens. Fossil bats will be studied by direct observation and x-ray analysis. The object of these studies will be to identify similarities and differences in anatomical structure that can be used to evaluate relationships. Data collected in this study will be employed in a variety of computer-assisted analyses designed to produce testable hypotheses of relationships within and among families of bats. The relationships of bats to other mammalian groups (such as Primates) will also be investigated. In conjunction with data from molecular studies and previous surveys of other anatomical systems, this study should provide a new framework for understanding the structural design, behavior, and ecology of bats.