The study analyzes the evolution of hind limb morphology in titanosauriform sauropods using 3D geometric morphometrics. The results show that the trend toward a more arched and robust hind limb posture, known as the "wide-gauge" stance, persisted in deeply nested titanosaurs. However, this morphological trend was not directly correlated with increases in body size.
The analysis reveals a high degree of morphological convergence between different titanosaurian subclades, suggesting that the wide-gauge posture was an exaptation that enabled the adaptation to a range of ecological niches, rather than being driven solely by the evolution of gigantism.
While the largest titanosaurs exhibit the most extreme hind limb morphologies, smaller titanosaurs also convergently evolved similar robust and arched limb features. This indicates that the wide-gauge posture was established early in titanosaurian evolution and was then co-opted for different biomechanical functions, including potential rearing capabilities, rather than being directly linked to increases in body size.
The study also finds a phylogenetic trend toward decreasing hind limb size across titanosaurian evolution, despite the persistence of the wide-gauge morphology. This suggests that the acquisition of large body size was not the primary driver of the hind limb changes observed in this group.
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by Paramo Blazq... في www.biorxiv.org 10-06-2023
https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2023.10.04.560839v2استفسارات أعمق