10.5061/DRYAD.8J413
Mayerl, Christopher J.
Clemson University
Pruett, Jenna E.
Auburn University
Summerlin, Morgan N.
Clemson University
Rivera, Angela R. V.
Creighton University
Blob, Richard W.
Clemson University
Data from: Hindlimb muscle function in turtles: is novel skeletal design
correlated with novel muscle function?
Dryad
dataset
2017
Trachemys scripta
Leverage
Emydura subglobosa
EMG
2017-06-27T14:18:16Z
2017-06-27T14:18:16Z
en
https://doi.org/10.1242/jeb.157792
93247 bytes
1
CC0 1.0 Universal (CC0 1.0) Public Domain Dedication
Variations in musculoskeletal lever systems have formed an important
foundation for predictions about the diversity of muscle function and
organismal performance. Changes in the structure of lever systems may be
coupled with changes in muscle use and give rise to novel muscle
functions. The two extant turtle lineages, cryptodires and pleurodires,
exhibit differences in hindlimb structure. Cryptodires possess the
ancestral musculoskeletal morphology, with most hip muscles originating on
the pelvic girdle, which is not fused to the shell. In contrast,
pleurodires exhibit a derived morphology, in which fusion of the pelvic
girdle to the shell has resulted in shifts in the origin of most hip
muscles onto the interior of the shell. To test how variation in muscle
arrangement might influence muscle function during different locomotor
behaviors, we combined measurements of muscle leverage in five major
hindlimb muscles with data on muscle use and hindlimb kinematics during
swimming and walking in representative semiaquatic cryptodires and
pleurodires. We found substantial differences in muscle leverage between
the two species. Additionally, we found that there were extensive
differences in muscle use in both species, especially while walking, with
some pleurodire muscles exhibiting novel functions associated with their
derived musculoskeletal lever system. However, the two species shared
similar overall kinematic profiles within each environment. Our results
suggest that changes in limb lever systems may relate to changes in limb
muscle motor patterns and kinematics, but that other factors must also
contribute to differences in muscle activity and limb kinematics between
these taxa.
MayerlEtal2017 - hindlimb muscle use in turtlesData used for statistics on
muscle use, kinematics, and muscle anatomy.