Abstract

SANCHEZ-VILLAGRA, Marcelo R.  and  SCHMELZLE, Thomas. Anatomy and development of the bony inner ear in the woolly opossum, Caluromys philander (Didelphimorphia, Marsupialia). Mastozool. neotrop. [online]. 2007, vol.14, n.1, pp.53-60. ISSN 0327-9383.

The ontogenetic changes of the skeletal tissue of the vestibular and cochlear system of Caluromys philander were investigated using CT scans of an adult skull and 3D reconstructions of histological serial sections of three pouch-youngs. The bony labyrinth of C. philander differs in several aspects from what has been reported for other marsupials. Some of the proportions of the semicircular canals (SC) are probably characteristic of arboreal as opposed to terrestrial species. Several significant changes in the SCs shape occur postnatally. The most remarkable difference among stages is the different height of the anterior SC and posterior SC in relation to the common crus. In the adult the posterior arm of the lateral SC and the inferior arm of the posterior SC build a common crus, a condition of several basal metatherians and crown-group marsupials. The number of turns of the cochlea in the adult is 2.4.

Keywords : CT; Phylogeny; Semicircular canal.

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