Mammals, continued even more
I'll try to wrap up the rest of the mammals with this post. There aren't that many groups left to cover.
Sirenians
Image source: http://www.skullsunlimited.com/newsl...ter-index.html
Image source: http://www.skullsunlimited.com/Manatee_Skull.html
Image source: http://www.skullsunlimited.com/Dugong_Skull.htm
Sirenians include the manatees, dugongs, and sea cows. Similarly to whales, they have evolved short forelimbs, a streamlined body shape, large tail vertebrae, and tiny pelvic bones as all that remains of the hind legs. Note the thickness of the ribs and the way the transverse processes of the rear vertebrae are shaped like smaller ribs. The skull is unusually shaped, but somewhat reminiscent of elephants, to which sirenians are related; the dugong skull at the bottom even has some tusk-like incisors.
Embrithopods
Images from Wikipedia.
Embrithopods, like Brontotheres and Dinoceratans, are large horned animals that flourished and went extinct at around the same time, many millions of years ago. Embrithopods are related to elephants and manatees. Their most obvious feature are the two pairs of horns on their head, one pair very large, and the other much smaller. Also note how heavily built the front limbs are, and how broad the scapulae and pelvis are. The skull has many identical teeth and two separate nasal openings, which make it seem somewhat reptilian.
Primates
Source of above two images: http://www.dundee.ac.uk/museum/zoology/skeletons.htm
Tarsier skeleton on Flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/14405058@N08/2169684854/
The prosimian primates are all primates that are not monkeys or apes. They include the well-known lemurs, and the somewhat less well-known bushbabies, lorises, and tarsiers. Their brain cases are not as large as in other primates, and their faces and jaws project outwards.
Source of above two images: http://www.nhc.ed.ac.uk/index.php?page=493.504.508.511
Image from skullsunlimited.com.
Monkey skeleton on Flickr: link.
Monkey skeletons are somewhat human-like, only more lightly built and quadrupedal, and with tails, obviously. They have large brain cases, and often projecting faces and large fangs, such as in mandrills and baboons. Unfortunately, there seems to be little in the way of quality monkey skeleton images on the internet.
Source of above three images: http://www.boneclones.com/catalog_great_apes.htm
Image source: http://www.dundee.ac.uk/museum/zoology/skeletons.htm
Image source: http://www.allposters.com/-sp/Human-..._i1586485_.htm
The apes are the most humanlike animals, which is understandable, since humans are themselves apes. Giving a creature human-like characteristics can result in a very interesting creature design, or if done incorrectly, it can turn into a lame animal-with-human-parts-added type design.
Rodents
Attachment 384100
Image source: http://www.dundee.ac.uk/museum/zoology/skeletons.htm
Attachment 384101
Attachment 384103
Above three images from Wikipedia.
The most distinctive part of the rodent skeleton is the skull. The incisors are very large and prominent, and there is a large gap between them and the molars; there are no canines. The zygomatic arch system is, in some subgroups of rodents, more complex than in other animals, featuring large holes and other structures not seen in other mammals. This can be seen clearly in the Digimorph page on the Springhare, and to a lesser extent on the Digimorph page on the common house mouse.
Lagomorphs
Image source: http://www.dundee.ac.uk/museum/zoology/skeletons.htm
Lagomorphs include rabbits and hares, as well as pikas. Their skeletons and skulls are very similar to the related rodents, but more adapted to hopping and bounding than many rodents.
Marsupials
All the preceding mammals have been placental mammals, which give birth to well-developed young. Marsupials, as you probably know, have a much shorter gestation period, and give birth to much smaller, less developed young, little more than embryos. These infants complete their development in a pouch. Thin wings of bone extend out from the pubis region of the pelvis to support this pouch, which is one of the few common skeletal features of what is a very diverse group of mammals.
Image source: http://www.nhc.ed.ac.uk/index.php?page=24.134.165.168
Though not really graceful in life, I think that the skeleton of the Virginia Opossum is quite elegant.
Image source: http://www.nhc.ed.ac.uk/index.php?page=24.134.165.168
The bandicoot has a long, tapering skull, similar to the tenrecs mentioned earlier.
Image source: http://www.nhc.ed.ac.uk/index.php?page=24.134.165.168
The skull of the Thylocine (Tasmanian wolf/tiger) is extremely dog-like, one of many examples of convergent evolution in the marsupials.
Source of images: http://www.nhc.ed.ac.uk/index.php?page=24.134.165.168
The kangaroos are perhaps the best known marsupials. The skull has features similar to both ruminants and rodents. The tail is thick and powerful and acts almost like a third limb at times. The legs and feet are very long, and some of the toes have fused together.
Image source: http://www.nhc.ed.ac.uk/index.php?page=24.134.165.168
Related to kangaroos and koalas, the wombat has a large body with short legs, and a rather rodent-like skull.
Image source: http://www.nhc.ed.ac.uk/index.php?page=24.134.165.168
The largest existing marsupial predator (unless the thylocine is not extinct, as some cryptozoologists claim), the Tasmanian devil, has a very solid, blocky skull. Look it up on Google for some better views.
Image source: http://www.parks.sa.gov.au/naracoort...SiteId=wonambi
The koala has features similar to rodents as well as primates and sloths, which is understandable for a tree-living herbivore.
Thylacoleo (marsupial "lion"), image source: http://catbg.net/divi/index.php?sta=55&catid=6
One of the most fascinating extinct animals, and considered by many paleontologists to be one of the most formidable mammalian predators in history, Thylacoleo was one hell of an animal. Related to kangaroos, koalas, and wombats, which are all pure herbivores, Thylacoleo has some strange features for a predator. First of all, it has large, stabbing incisors, rather than stabbing fangs. It has few cheek teeth, both these teeth are very large, and look as sharp as blades. The skull is very short and powerfully built, and the living animal probably had an exceptionally powerful bite. The limbs are long and cat-like, and the thumbs had huge scary claws. It is thought that it could stand on its hind legs and swipe away with its deadly front feet, as was also a capable climber. All in all, a damn impressive critter.
Diprotodon image from Wikipedia.
Diprotodon is another neat extinct marsupial. It is closely related to wombats, but has the dimensions and some of the features (look at the snout) of a rhinoceros.
Thylacosmilus image from Wikipedia.
This amazing animal is a marsupial saber-tooth from ancient South America. Note those bony growths on the lower jaw, which supported and protected the fangs when the mouth was closed. It's a feature you should think about adding when designing a saber-toothed creature, just because it looks cool.
Monotremes
Monotremata is the smallest and probably the strangest of all living mammal groups. The monotreme lineage diverged from all other mammals many millions of years before marsupial and placental mammals diverged from each other. Living monotremes are much more reptile-like than other mammals. They have a sprawling gait, and two shoulder bones; monotremes have a scapula, as with other animals, but also a coracoid bone, which is below and inward of the arm. They also lay eggs and secrete milk through a patch of skin, rather than a nipple, but that isn't relevant to simply studying the skeleton for some creature design inspiration.Also, all surviving monotremes have beak-like mouthparts.
Image source: http://www.skullsunlimited.com/
Image source: http://www.dkimages.com/discover/Hom...omy/index.html
The famous platypus is a semiaquatic animal, and like other swimming animals it has a long, streamlined body and short, broad limbs. The skull has, obviously, a long, broad, duck-like bill, and only a single tooth in each quadrant of the jaws (technically, is actually made of keratin, and not a real tooth, but what the hell). The curved scapulae are angled forward so that they are more on the neck than on the side of the ribcage. The coracoid bones can be seen between the front limbs and in front of the ribcage. The limbs have strange knobs and projections at the elbows and knees. The tail is broad.
Image source: http://www.parks.sa.gov.au/naracoorte/images/005252
Image source: http://www.echidna.org.uk/drawings01.htm
Image source: http://www.digimorph.org/specimens/Zaglossus_bartoni/
The echidna, or spiny anteater, is the other type of monotreme that still exists. There is one species of short-nosed echidna (first two images), and three species of long-nosed echidna (last image). The snout is much more of a long, thin beak than the broad bill of the platypus, and the skull is similar to that of an anteater. Their stout frame and clawed limbs strengthen the similarity to other digging insect-eaters. Like the platypus, the scapulae are very far forward on the body, and the limbs are sprawled out to the side, with strange projections at the elbow and knee joints.
And that's it for the mammals! More vertebrate skeletons to come!
Reply With Quote
One quick question though, I noticed on the sea lion skeleton, the bit of bone that looks like a ring that's hanging behind the jaws- any clue what it's for? 
The Epic No-Name Sketch Group!.gif ";)")
Instead Ill follow along. I actually just found this site yesterday and so I have missed a lot. If you ever feel like taking another mentee, Im always here and open~
I look forward to seeing your muscle lessons. There is a lot on skeletons, but not much on fleshing them out.
Originally Posted by Moai
Hope there ok? I think i did the wrong things right.
Bookmarks