CDB Seminar - Professor Anthony Herrel, Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, Paris

Please join us for a CDB Seminar by Professor Anthony Herrel of the National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS) based at the Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, Paris.

Zoom: https://ucl.zoom.us/j/96191392126

Abstract: Amphisbaenians are obligatory burrowing squamates that have attracted the attention of evolutionary biologists and functional morphologists because of their highly specialized cranial morphologies. Three main types of cranial shapes have evolved independently in different lineages: round-headed, keel-headed, and spade-headed forms. Whereas keel-headed species have been suggested to use forward penetration and lateral compaction, spade-headed species have been suggested to use dorsal soil compaction during burrowing. However, the data needed to test these hypotheses have been lacking to date. Here we present data on nine species of amphisbaenians including at least two independent radiations of each cranial type. We used force plates to record the three-dimensional forces during burrowing, permitting us to test these hypotheses. Our data show that animals with different cranial morphologies differ in the forces produced, and in the directions and timings of the peak forces. To understand whether amphisbaenians are unique among squamates in the magnitude of the forces they produce we compared data for amphisbaenians with those collected for a variety of burrowing snakes. Unexpectedly, some burrowing snakes produce forces that are as high or higher for a given size then amphisbaenians do without showing hyper specialized cranial morphologies. This raises the question of how these animals are producing such high forces and why amphisbaenians show such specialized cranial morphologies.

Host: Laura Porro