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Frontoparietal Bone in Extinct Palaeobatrachidae (Anura): Its Variation and Taxonomic Value
Author(s) -
Roček Zbyněk,
Boistel Renaud,
Lenoir Nicolas,
Mazurier Arnaud,
Pierce Stephanie E.,
Rage JeanClaude,
Smirnov Sergei V.,
Schwermann Achim H.,
Valentin Xavier,
Venczel Márton,
Wuttke Michael,
Zikmund Tomáš
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
the anatomical record
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.678
H-Index - 62
eISSN - 1932-8494
pISSN - 1932-8486
DOI - 10.1002/ar.23203
Subject(s) - cancellous bone , anatomy , biology , parietal bone , dorsum , genus , skull , cortex (anatomy) , paleontology , evolutionary biology , zoology , neuroscience
Palaeobatrachidae are extinct frogs from Europe closely related to the Gondwanan Pipidae, which includes Xenopus . Their frontoparietal is a distinctive skeletal element which has served as a basis for establishing the genus Albionbatrachus . Because little was known about developmental and individual variation of the frontoparietal, and its usefulness in delimiting genera and species has sometimes been doubted, we investigate its structure in Palaeobatrachus and Albionbatrachus by means of X‐ray high resolution computer tomography (micro‐CT). To infer the scope of variation present in the fossil specimens, we also examined developmental and interspecific variation in extant Xenopus . In adults of extinct taxa, the internal structure of the frontoparietal bone consists of a superficial and a basal layer of compact bone, with a middle layer of cancellous bone between them, much as in early amphibians. In Albionbatrachus , the layer of cancellous bone, consisting of small and large cavities, was connected with the dorsal, sculptured surface of the bone by a system of narrow canals; in Palaeobatrachus , the layer of cancellous bone and the canals connecting this layer with the dorsal surface of the frontoparietal were reduced. The situation in Palaeobatrachus robustus from the lower Miocene of France is intermediate—while external features support assignment to Palaeobatrachus , the inner structure is similar to that in Albionbatrachus . It may be hypothesized that sculptured frontoparietals with a well‐developed layer of cancellous (i.e., vascularized) bone may indicate adaptation to a more terrestrial way of life, whereas a reduced cancellous layer might indicate a permanent water dweller. Anat Rec, 298:1848–1863, 2015. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.