Sauropodomorph (Dinosauria) cranial topology: a comparative anatomical network analysis
Cranial morphology is influenced intrinsically by constraints due to the spatial arrangement of its anatomical components: the cranial bones. Network theory can be applied in this context to perform comparative analyses regarding the spatial arrangement of the cranium in different sauropodomorph din...
| Autores: | , , |
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| Tipo de recurso: | artículo |
| Estado: | Versión aceptada para publicación |
| Fecha de publicación: | 2025 |
| País: | España |
| Institución: | Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC) |
| Repositorio: | DIGITAL.CSIC. Repositorio Institucional del CSIC |
| OAI Identifier: | oai:dnet:digitalcsic_::bb395f3c76f5091ecca86e1f29ec5c51 |
| Acceso en línea: | http://hdl.handle.net/10261/431667 |
| Access Level: | acceso abierto |
| Palabra clave: | Functional craniology Integration Modularity Network theory Spatial constraints |
| Sumario: | Cranial morphology is influenced intrinsically by constraints due to the spatial arrangement of its anatomical components: the cranial bones. Network theory can be applied in this context to perform comparative analyses regarding the spatial arrangement of the cranium in different sauropodomorph dinosaur species, according to the criterium of physical interaction: the joints, sutures and synchondroses. This methodology is known as anatomical network analysis. In this study, anatomical network models of the crania of 15 sauropodomorph species are presented and compared. The goal was to examine which bones are fundamental in the topological balance of the sauropodomorph crania, to find underlying phenotypic patterns of spatial organization, and to understand how these patterns might have channelled the evolution of cranial morphology in this clade. We generated networks based on the whole cranium of 15 sauropodomorph species. The nodes and edges of the networks formalize the crania’s bones and joints, respectively. The final networks comprise 41.5 ± 3.5 nodes and 105.5 ± 10.5 edges. Anatomical network analysis supplies morphological information locally, referring to the relevance and roles of specific bones, and globally, quantifying the crania’s overall complexity and organization. Our results indicate that, locally, the frontal (or frontals, if the bone is paired), laterosphenoids (whether fused or unfused with the orbitosphenoids), parabasisphenoid, and parietal (or parietals, if the bone is paired) are embedded in a severely complex topological context. These elements are subjected to strong spatial constraints, suggesting that their respective cranial regions are highly influential in shaping the morphological evolution of the system. Globally, the cranial networks show a clear topological compartmentalization of their regions. |
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