ISSN: 2642-1283
Authors: Rios M*
Astragali are one of the most recovered skeletal elements as it can be seen in several of the most complete giraffid fossil collections. Even in sites where all the skeletal elements are well represented they tend to be one of the more abundant, making them a very valuable element for the identification and study of the taxa they belong to. Recent studies have shed light on the phylogenetic importance of the morphological features of the astragalus but not valuable quantitative parameters have been described yet. In this study we analyze several giraffid astragal biometric parameters to find out its phylogenetic relevance, in cases were the preservation does not allow an accurate morphological description.
Keywords: Astragalus; Giraffidae; Vertebrate; Mammalia; Morphology; Phylogeny
