Morphology of the Jaw-Closing Musculature in the Common Wombat (Vombatus ursinus) Using Digital Dissection and Magnetic Resonance Imaging

Wombats are unique among marsupials in having one pair of upper incisors, and hypsodont molars for processing tough, abrasive vegetation. Of the three extant species, the most abundant, the common wombat (Vombatus ursinus), has had the least attention in terms of masticatory muscle morphology, and has never been thoroughly described. Using MRI and digital dissection to compliment traditional gross dissections, the major jaw adductor muscles, the masseter, temporalis and pterygoids, were described. The masseter and medial pterygoid muscles are greatly enlarged compared to other marsupials. This, in combination with the distinctive form and function of the dentition, most likely facilitates processing a tough, abrasive diet. The broad, flat skull and large masticatory muscles are well suited to generate a very high bite force. MRI scans allow more detail of the muscle morphology to be observed and the technique of digital dissections greatly enhances the knowledge obtained from gross dissections

Description of new cranial material of Propalorchestes (Marsupialia: Palorchestidae) from the Middle Miocene Camfield Beds, Northern Territory, Australia

Additional material referable to Propalorchestes novaculacephalus from the middle Miocene Camfield Beds is described. A cranium prepared in 1999-2000 from material collected on the T. H. Rich expedition of 1981 represents the most complete skull of the genus found to date. The detailed preservation of the previously unknown rostral anatomy supports the hypothesis that Propalorchestes possessed retracted nasal morphology. Cheek teeth from the skull and an additional isolated mandibular fragment from the same site, adds to the dental record for the genus. It further supports the intermediate condition of the molar morphology between the fully bilophodont Palorchestes and the subselenodont/semilophodont wynyardiid morphologies. The highly retracted nasal morphology and corresponding mandibular features demonstrate an advanced and highly derived condition in contrast to the plesiomorphic features previously described for the basicranium. In comparison to the generalized rostral anatomy of the sister group, the early to middle Miocene Diprotodontidae, this more complete record of Propalorchestes cranial morpholgy, suggests a significantly earlier origin for the highly derived facial anatomy in the Palorchestidae

A diverse Pleistocene marsupial trackway assemblage from the Victorian Volcanic Plains, Australia

A diverse assemblage of late Pleistocene marsupial trackways on a lake bed in south-western Victoria provides the first information relating to the gaits and morphology of several megafaunal species, and represents the most speciose and best preserved megafaunal footprint site in Australia. The 60-110 ka volcaniclastic lacustrine sedimentary rocks preserve trackways of the diprotodontid Diprotodon optatum, a macropodid (probably Protemnodon sp.) and a large vombatid (perhaps Ramsayia magna or '. Phascolomys' medius) and possible prints of the marsupial lion, Thylacoleo carnifex. The footprints were imprinted within a short time period, demonstrating the association of the taxa present, rather than the time-averaged accumulations usually observed in skeletal fossil deposits. Individual manus and pes prints are distinguishable in some trackways, and in many cases some digital pad morphology is also present. Several parameters traditionally used to differentiate ichnotaxa, including trackway gauge and the degree of print in-turning relative to the midline, are shown to be subject to significant intraspecific variation in marsupials. Sexual dimorphism in the trackway proportions of Diprotodon, and its potential for occurrence in all large bodied, quadrupedal marsupials, is identified here for the first time

Gluttony, excess, and the fall of the planter class in the British Caribbean

Food and rituals around eating are a fundamental part of human existence. They can also be heavily politicized and socially significant. In the British Caribbean, white slaveholders were renowned for their hospitality towards one another and towards white visitors. This was no simple quirk of local character. Hospitality and sociability played a crucial role in binding the white minority together. This solidarity helped a small number of whites to dominate and control the enslaved majority. By the end of the eighteenth century, British metropolitan observers had an entrenched opinion of Caribbean whites as gluttons. Travelers reported on the sumptuous meals and excessive drinking of the planter class. Abolitionists associated these features of local society with the corrupting influences of slavery. Excessive consumption and lack of self-control were seen as symptoms of white creole failure. This article explores how local cuisine and white creole eating rituals developed as part of slave societies and examines the ways in which ideas about hospitality and gluttony fed into the debates over slavery that led to the dismantling of slavery and the fall of the planter class

Improvement of Quality in Publication of Experimental Thermophysical Property Data: Challenges, Assessment Tools, Global Implementation, and Online Support

Article on the improvement of quality in the publication of experimental thermophysical property data

Description of new cranial material of 'Propalorchestes' (Marsupialia: Palorchestidae) from the Middle Miocene Camfield Beds, Northern Territory, Australia

Additional material referable to Propalorchestes novaculacephalus from the middle Miocene Camfield Beds is described. A cranium prepared in 1999-2000 from material collected on the T H Rich expedition of 1981 represents the most complete skull of the genus found to date. The detailed preservation of the previously unknown rostral anatomy supports the hypothesis that 'Propalorchestes' possessed retracted nasal morphology. Cheek teeth from the skull and an additional isolated mandibular fragment from the same site, adds to the dental record for the genus. It further supports the intermediate condition of the molar morphology between the fully bilophodont 'Palorchestes' and the subselenodont/semilophodont wynyardiid morphologies. The highly retracted nasal morphology and corresponding mandibular features demonstrate an advanced and highly derived condition in contrast to the plesiomorphic features previously described for the basicranium. In comparison to the generalized rostral anatomy of the sister group, the early to middle Miocene Diprotodontidae, this more complete record of 'Propalorchestes' cranial morpholgy, suggests a significantly earlier origin for the highly derived facial anatomy in the Palorchestidae

Cranial reconstruction of Palorchestes azael

Members of the Family Palorchestidae, are a rare and distinctive component of the Australian Cenozoic fossil fauna. The Pleistocene Palorchestes azael, was the first palorchestid species described from fragments discovered in 1851, but only in 2000 has near complete cranial material been recovered, from which a full external and internal cranial description and an accurate reconstruction could be made. This study documents the reconstruction in detailed, measured, half-tone artworks for the species. Collection surveys for comparative material has enabled the first complete cranial reconstruction for the Mid Miocene Propalorchestes novaculacephalus and the presentation of new assembled material for P. painei, P. parvus and P. pickeringi, allowing the first descriptive review of the cranial morphology of the family Palorchestidae. The distinctive retracted nasal morphology in the Palorchestidae is revealed, noting the changes that are now known to have occurred throughout their radiation. The reconstructed skull of Palorchestes azael and its related species presented here, provides an important and unique test of the correlates for a vestibular proboscis of some kind, from outside the placental lineages. There is strong support for a well-developed prehensile lip in P. azael. There is limited support for a vestibular proboscis. Many of the osteological correlates for proboscis building as defined by Clifford (2003) are lacking. Both the form and distribution of the correlates identified, negate the superficial appearance of the tapirod-like skull of P. azael and the conformation of the retracted nasal morphology of P. azael rules out the presence of a muscular proboscis of the kind seen in Tapirus. There is limited evidence for novel narial elaboration in the Palorchestidae, but beyond that, further remarks on possible structures and functions would be speculative

A comparison between traditional dissection and digital dissection.

<p>Mean muscle weights of the left and right side from the gross dissection of specimen 3, and muscle volumes from the MRI digital dissection of the same specimen, including percentages for each muscle.</p><p>A comparison between traditional dissection and digital dissection.</p

Digital dissection of the masseter muscle group.

<p>(A) Oblique view with all masseter muscles; (B, C) External superficial masseter (m.Mse) in lateral and posterior views; (D, E) Internal superficial masseter (m.Msi) in lateral and anterior views; (F, G) Deep masseter (m.Mp); (H, I) Zygomaticomandibularis (m.ZMM). Bone is at 70% transparency.</p