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1. Anatomy of the petrosal and middle ear of the brown rat, Rattus norvegicus (Berkenhout, 1769) (Rodentia, Muridae)

   https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.2992/007.086.0101  

   Wible, John R. ; Shelley, Sarah L. ( March 2020 , Annals of Carnegie Museum)

   The anatomy of the petrosal and associated middle ear structures are described and illustrated for the brown rat, Rattus norvegicus (Berkenhout, 1769). Although the middle ear in this iconic mammal has been treated by prior authors, there has not been a comprehensive, well-illustrated contribution using current anatomical terminology. Descriptions are based on specimens from the osteological collections of the Section of Mammals, Carnegie Museum of Natural History, and a CT scanned osteological specimen from the Texas Memorial Museum. The petrosal, ectotympanic, malleus, incus, stapes, and inner ear were segmented from the CT scans. The petrosal of the brown rat is only loosely attached to the cranium, primarily along its posterior border; it is separated from the basisphenoid, alisphenoid, and squamosal by a large piriform fenestra that transmits various neurovascular structures including the postglenoid vein. The extent of the piriform fenestra broadly exposes the tegmen tympani of the petrosal in lateral view. The floor of the middle ear is formed by the expanded ectotympanic bulla, which is tightly held to the petrosal with five points of contact. The surfaces of the petrosal affording contact with the ectotympanic bulla are the rostral tympanic process, the epitympanic wing, the tegmen tympani, two of the three parts of the caudal tympanic process, and the tympanohyal, with the ectotympanic fused to the last. The ectotympanic in turn is fused to the elongate rostral process of the malleus, which is only discoverable through the study of juvenile specimens. In addition to osteology, the major nerves, arteries, and veins of the petrosal are described and illustrated based on the literature and osteological correlates. The petrosal of the brown rat is compared with those of several Eocene rodents to put the extant form in the context of early members of the rodent lineage. Comparisons benefitted from CT scans of the middle Eocene ischromyoid Paramys delicatus Leidy, 1871, from the western United States, affording the first description of the endocranial surface of the petrosal in an Eocene rodent. The petrosals in the Eocene fossils are more tightly held in the cranium, but the ectotympanic contacts the petrosal through the same five points, with some modifications. The most unexpected discovery in Paramys delicatus was the presence of a prominent tentorial process of the parietal in contact with the reduced crista petrosa. 

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2. Skeletal Anatomy of the Basicranium and Auditory Region in the Metacheiromyid Palaeanodont Metacheiromys (Mammalia, Pholidotamorpha) Based on High-Resolution CT Scans

   https://doi.org/10.2478/if-2019-0029  

   Gaudin, Timothy J. ; Wible, John R. ; Rose, Kenneth D. ; Emry, Robert J. ; Spaulding, Michelle ( December 2019 , Fossil Imprint)

   Abstract Cranial skeletal material of the Eocene palaeanodont Metacheiromys marshi was examined using high-resolution CT scans. The present study represents the first time that CT scans have been conducted on skulls of this extinct fossorial mammal. The bony osteology of the auditory region is described in detail, including the ectotympanic and entotympanic, the petrosal in both tympanic and endocranial views, and the middle ear ossicles. The results of this investigation confirm a number of derived resemblances between palaeanodonts and xenarthrans, including a large entotympanic element in the medial wall of the auditory bulla, the presence of an anteroventral process of the tegmen tympani, and a posttemporal canal. However, the present study also provides novel derived auditory features linking palaeanodonts and pangolins, consistent with current understanding of palaeanodont phylogenetic relationships, including the absence of an ectotympanic styliform process, a posterolaterally oriented aperture to the cochlear fossula, and a convex mallear head / concave incudal head. Several autapomorphic features characterizing the auditory osteology of Metacheiromys are also noted. The presence of a large, spherical mallear head, and of a capacious tympanic cavity extended into sinuses in surrounding bones, likely represent adaptations for fossoriality, consistent with palaeobiological inferences drawn from the postcranial anatomy of Metacheiromys . 

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3. OCCURRENCES OF PANTOLAMBDA INTERMEDIUM IN THE SAN JUAN BASIN, NEW MEXICO, USA

   dePolo, Paige E. ; Williamson, Thomas E. ; Shelley, Sarah L. ; Brusatte, Stephen L. ( November 2022 , Journal of vertebrate paleontology)

   In the wake of the end-Cretaceous extinction, pantodonts were among the first mammals to achieve truly large body sizes. Paleocene pantodonts occupied large herbivore niches across North America, Asia, and Europe. In North America, the Torrejonian genus, Pantolambda, encompasses three species ranging from large dog- to small cow-sized. Of the three species, P. intermedium is the most poorly represented with known material consisting of a fragmentary dentary with m1-2 and isolated lower premolars. All the originally referred material was recovered from the Gidley Quarry, Montana. We describe cranial and postcranial fragments of the species from the Nacimiento Formation of the San Juan Basin (SJB), New Mexico. Interestingly, although it is intermediate in size between P. bathmodon and P. cavirictum, P. intermedium occurs lower in the stratigraphy (Tj2) than these other species and is the first appearance of pantodonts in the SJB. The presence of P. intermedium in the SJB is validated with a worn dentary (NMMMNH P-19774) containing m1-2. A pronounced entoconid on m1 and m2 distinguishes these teeth from those of P. cavirictum, whose entoconid is weakly developed, and from those of P. bathmodon, which lacks an entoconid on the anterolingually-sloping postcristid. An isolated m3 (NMMNH P-72117) shows a partial, narrow trigonid with a wide talonid basin that is shallower than in P. bathmodon. A concreted, partial braincase (NMMNH P- 21646) bears low sagittal and nuchal crests similar to P. bathmodon. A partial scapula (NMMNH P-21647) preserves the glenoid region and the distal portion of the scapular body. The glenoid cavity is an elongated oval that tapers anteriorly to a prominent, triangular supraglenoid tubercle. A coracoid process distinct from the tubercle is not present. A similar pattern is observed in P. bathmodon. The condition observed in Pantolambda contrasts with other pantodonts. Alcidedorbigna possesses a relatively small tubercle distinct from a rounded coracoid process and the larger-bodied pantodonts, Barylambda and Coryphodon, exhibit both a prominent tubercle and a well-developed coracoid process. A prior hypothesis posited that P. intermedium from Montana could simply represent larger morphs of P. bathmodon following Bergmann’s Rule. However, the presence of P. intermedium in New Mexico in a similar environment to and at the same latitude as P. bathmodon and P. cavirictum supports its distinction from the other two morphs as a unique species. Funding Sources European Research Council Starting Grant (ERC StG 2017, 756226, PalM); National Science Foundation (NSF; EAR 1654952, DEB 1654949) 

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4. The ear region of the Philippine flying lemur Cynocephalus volans (Placentalia, Dermoptera)

   Wible, John R. ( March 2023 , The anatomical record)

   The placental order Dermoptera, which includes two extant species, the Philippine and Sunda flying lemurs, Cynocephalus volans and Galeopterus variegatus, respectively, is generally held to be the sister group of Primates. Yet, little has been reported on their cranial anatomy. Here, the anatomy of the ear region is described and illustrated for a juvenile and adult C. volans based on CT scans. The inclusion of a juvenile is essential as nearly all cranial sutures are fused in the adult. Soft tissues are reconstructed based on sectioned histological pre- and postnatal specimens previously reported by the author. Numerous unusual features are identified, including: a small parasphenoid beneath the basisphenoid, a tensor tympani fossa on the epitympanic wing of the squamosal, a cavum supracochleare for the geniculate ganglion of the facial nerve that is not enclosed in the petrosal bone, a secondary facial foramen between the petrosal and squamosal, a secondary posttemporal foramen leading to the primary one, a subarcuate fossa that is floored in part by a large contribution from the squamosal, a body of the incus larger than the head of the malleus, and a crus longum of the incus that lacks an osseous connection to the lenticular process. Documentation of the anatomy of the Philippine flying lemur ear region is an essential first step in morphological phylogenetic analyses where features of the basicranium are widely sampled. 

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5. The ear region of the Philippine flying lemur Cynocephalus volans (Placentalia, Dermoptera)

   https://doi.org/10.1002/ar.25174  

   Wible, John R. ( March 2023 , The Anatomical Record)

   The placental order Dermoptera, which includes two extant species, the Philippine and Sunda flying lemurs,Cynocephalus volansandGaleopterus variegatus, respectively, is generally held to be the sister group of Primates. Yet, little has been reported on their cranial anatomy. Here, the anatomy of the ear region is described and illustrated for a juvenile and adultC. volansbased on CT scans. The inclusion of a juvenile is essential as nearly all cranial sutures are fused in the adult. Soft tissues are reconstructed based on sectioned histological pre‐ and postnatal specimens previously reported by the author. Numerous unusual features are identified, including: a small parasphenoid beneath the basisphenoid, a tensor tympani fossa on the epitympanic wing of the squamosal, a cavum supracochleare for the geniculate ganglion of the facial nerve that is not enclosed in the petrosal bone, a secondary facial foramen between the petrosal and squamosal, a secondary posttemporal foramen leading to the primary one, a subarcuate fossa that is floored in part by a large contribution from the squamosal, a body of the incus larger than the head of the malleus, and a crus longum of the incus that lacks an osseous connection to the lenticular process. Documentation of the anatomy of the Philippine flying lemur ear region is an essential first step in morphological phylogenetic analyses where features of the basicranium are widely sampled.

    

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