Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Ecomorphology

  • Chapter
  • First Online:
Methods in Paleoecology

Part of the book series: Vertebrate Paleobiology and Paleoanthropology ((VERT))

Abstract

The goal of ecomorphology is to identify morphological variation that is related to ecology (e.g., dietary preference or locomotor habits), with the aim of inferring ecological traits from morphological traits. This chapter reviews the basic principles of ecomorphology and provides many examples of ecomorphic studies in a range of taxa, with an emphasis on bovids (antelope and relatives). The focus of this chapter is on “applied” ecomorphology, which refers to studies that use ecomorphology as a tool to reconstruct environments. The chapter summarizes some of the strengths and weaknesses of the applied ecomorphic approach, and discusses future directions for studies using this methodology.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution
Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 99.00
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Hardcover Book
USD 129.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

References

  • Alexander, R. M., & Bennett, M. B. (1987). Some principles of ligament function, with examples from the tarsal joints of the sheep (Ovis aries). Journal of Zoology, 211, 487–504.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Andrews, P., & Hixson, S. (2014). Taxon-free methods of palaeoecology. Annales Zoologici Fennici, 51, 269–284.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Andrews, P., Lord, J. M., & Nesbit-Evans, E. M. (1979). Patterns of ecological diversity in fossil and modern mammalian faunas. Biological Journal of the Linnean Society, 11, 177–205.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Baker, G., Jones, L. H. P., & Wardrop, I. D. (1959). Cause of wear in sheeps’ teeth. Nature, 184, 1583–1584.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bargo, M. S., & Vizcaíno, S. F. (2008). Paleobiology of Pleistocene ground sloths (Xenarthra, Tardigrada): biomechanics, morphogeometry and ecomorphology applied to the masticatory apparatus. Ameghiniana, 45, 175–196.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bargo, M. S., De Iuliis, G., & Vizcaíno, S. F. (2006a). Hypsodonty in Pleistocene ground sloths. Acta Palaeontologica Polonica, 51, 53.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bargo, M. S., Toledo, N., & Vizcaíno, S. F. (2006b). Muzzle of South American Pleistocene ground sloths (Xenarthra, Tardigrada). Journal of Morphology, 267, 248–263.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Barr, W. A. (2014). Functional morphology of the bovid astragalus in relation to habitat: controlling phylogenetic signal in ecomorphology. Journal of Morphology, 275, 1201–1216.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Barr, W. A. (2015). Paleoenvironments of the Shungura Formation (Plio-Pleistocene: Ethiopia) based on ecomorphology of the bovid astragalus. Journal of Human Evolution, 88, 97–107.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Barr, W. A., & Scott, R. (2014). Phylogenetic comparative methods complement discriminant function analysis in ecomorphology. American Journal of Physical Anthropology, 153, 663–674.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bernardes, C., Sicuro, F. L., Avilla, L. S., & Pinheiro, A. E. P. (2013). Rostral reconstruction of South American hippidiform equids: new anatomical and ecomorphological inferences. Acta Palaeontologica Polonica, 58, 669–678.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bishop, L., Hill, A., & Kingston, J. (1999). Paleoecology of Suidae from the Tugen Hills, Baringo, Kenya. In P. Andrews & P. Banham (Eds.), Late Cenozoic environments and hominid evolution: A tribute to Bill Bishop (pp. 99–111). London: Geological Society, London.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bishop, L. C., King, T., Hill, A., & Wood, B. (2006). Palaeoecology of Kolpochoerus heseloni (=K. limnetes): a multiproxy approach. Transactions of the Royal Society of South Africa, 61, 81–88.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bock, W. J. (1989). From biologische Anatomie to ecomorphology. Netherlands Journal of Zoology, 40, 254–277.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bock, W. J. (1994). Concepts and methods in ecomorphology. Journal of Biosciences, 19, 403–413.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bock, W. J., & von Wahlert, G. (1965). Adaptation and the form-function complex. Evolution, 19, 269–299.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cerling, T. E., Andanje, S. A., Blumenthal, S. A., Brown, F. H., Chritz, K. L., Harris, J. M., et al. (2015). Dietary changes of large herbivores in the Turkana Basin, Kenya from 4 to 1 Ma. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, USA, 112, 11467–11472.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chen, M., & Wilson, G. P. (2015). A multivariate approach to infer locomotor modes in Mesozoic mammals. Paleobiology, 41, 280–312.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Clauss, M., Kaiser, T., & Hummel, J. (2008). The morphophysiological adaptations of browsing and grazing mammals. In I. J. Gordon & H. H. T. Prins (Eds.), The ecology of browsing and grazing. Ecological Studies, 195, 47–88.

    Google Scholar 

  • Croft, D. A., Flynn, J. J., & Wyss, A. R. (2008). The Tinguiririca fauna of Chile and the early stages of “modernization” of South American mammal faunas. Arquivos do Museu Nacional, 66, 191–211.

    Google Scholar 

  • Curran, S. C. (2012). Expanding ecomorphological methods: geometric morphometric analysis of Cervidae post-crania. Journal of Archaeological Science, 39, 1172–1182.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Curran, S. C. (2015). Exploring Eucladoceros ecomorphology using geometric morphometrics. The Anatomical Record, 298, 291–313.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Curran, S. C. (2018). Three-dimensional geometric morphometrics in paleoecology. In D. A. Croft, D. F. Su & S. W. Simpson (Eds.), Methods in paleoecology: Reconstructing Cenozoic terrestrial environments and ecological communities (pp. 317–335). Cham: Springer.

    Google Scholar 

  • Damuth, J., & Janis, C. M. (2011). On the relationship between hypsodonty and feeding ecology in ungulate mammals, and its utility in palaeoecology. Biological Reviews, 86, 733–758.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Damuth, J., & Janis, C. M. (2014). A comparison of observed molar wear rates in extant herbivorous mammals. Annales Zoologici Fennici, 51, 188–200.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • DeGusta, D., & Vrba, E. (2003). A method for inferring paleohabitats from the functional morphology of bovid astragali. Journal of Archaeological Science, 30, 1009–1022.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • DeGusta, D., & Vrba, E. (2005). Methods for inferring paleohabitats from the functional morphology of bovid phalanges. Journal of Archaeological Science, 32, 1099–1113.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dunn, R. H. (2018). Functional morphology of the postcranial skeleton. In D. A. Croft, D. F. Su & S. W. Simpson (Eds.), Methods in paleoecology: Reconstructing Cenozoic terrestrial environments and ecological communities (pp. 23–36). Cham: Springer.

    Google Scholar 

  • du Plessis, W. P. (1999). Linear regression relationships between NDVI, vegetation and rainfall in Etosha National Park, Namibia. Journal of Arid Environments, 42, 235–260.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Elton, S. (2001). Locomotor and habitat classification of cercopithecoid postcranial material from Sterkfontein Member 4, Bolt’s Farm and Swartkrans Members 1 and 2, South Africa. Palaeontologia Africana, 37, 115–126.

    Google Scholar 

  • Elton, S. (2002). A reappraisal of the locomotion and habitat preference of Theropithecus oswaldi. Folia Primatologica, 73, 252–280.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Elton, S., Jansson, A.-U., Meloro, C., Louys, J., Plummer, T. W., & Bishop, L. C. (2016). Exploring morphological generality in the Old World monkey postcranium using an ecomorphological framework. Journal of Anatomy, 228, 534–560.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Eronen, J. T., Polly, P. D., Fred, M., Damuth, J., Frank, D. C., Mosbrugger, V., et al. (2010a). Ecometrics: the traits that bind the past and present together. Integrative Zoology, 5, 88–101.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Eronen, J. T., Puolamäki, K., Liu, L., Lintulaakso, K., Damuth, J., Janis, C. M., et al. (2010b). Precipitation and large herbivorous mammals I: estimates from present-day communities. Evolutionary Ecology Research, 12, 217–233.

    Google Scholar 

  • Evans, A. R., & Pineda-Munoz, S. (2018). Inferring mammal dietary ecology from dental morphology. In D. A. Croft, D. F. Su & S. W. Simpson (Eds.), Methods in paleoecology: Reconstructing Cenozoic terrestrial environments and ecological communities (pp. 37–51). Cham: Springer.

    Google Scholar 

  • Faith, J. T., Potts, R., Plummer, T. W., Bishop, L. C., Marean, C. W., & Tryon, C. A. (2012). New perspectives on middle Pleistocene change in the large mammal faunas of East Africa: Damaliscus hypsodon sp. nov. (Mammalia, Artiodactyla) from Lainyamok, Kenya. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology, 361–362, 84–93.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Felsenstein, J. (1985). Phylogenies and the comparative method. American Naturalist, 125, 1–15.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Figueirido, B., MacLeod, N., Krieger, J., De Renzi, M., Pérez-Claros, J. A., & Palmqvist, P. (2011). Constraint and adaptation in the evolution of carnivoran skull shape. Paleobiology, 37, 490–518.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Flynn, J. J., Wyss, A. R., Croft, D. A., & Charrier, R. (2003). The Tinguiririca Fauna, Chile: biochronology, paleoecology, biogeography, and a new earliest Oligocene South American Land Mammal “Age”. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology, 195, 229–259.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fortelius, M. (1985). Ungulate cheek teeth: developmental, functional, and evolutionary interrelations. Acta Zoologica Fennica, 180, 1–76.

    Google Scholar 

  • Fortelius, M., Eronen, J., Jernvall, J., Liu, L., Pushkina, D., Rinne, J., et al. (2002). Fossil mammals resolve regional patterns of Eurasian climate change over 20 million years. Evolutionary Ecology Research, 4, 1005–1016.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gebo, D. L., & Sargis, E. J. (1994). Terrestrial adaptations in the postcranial skeletons of guenons. American Journal of Physical Anthropology, 93, 341–371.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gordon, I. J., & Prins, H. H. T. (Eds.). (2008). The ecology of browsing and grazing. Ecological Studies (Vol. 195). Berlin: Springer.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gosselin-Ildari, A. (2013). The evolution of cercopithecoid locomotion: A morphometric, phylogenetic, and character mapping approach. Ph.D. Dissertation, Stony Brook University.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hoffman, J. M., Fraser, D., & Clementz, M. T. (2015). Controlled feeding trials with ungulates: a new application of in vivo dental molding to assess the abrasive factors of microwear. Journal of Experimental Biology, 218, 1538–1547.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hofmann, R. R., & Stewart, D. R. M. (1972). Grazer or browser: a classification based on the stomach-structure and feeding habits of East African ruminants. Mammalia, 36, 226–240.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jacobs, B. F., Kingston, J. D., & Jacobs, L. L. (1999). The origin of grass-dominated ecosystems. Annals of the Missouri Botanical Garden, 86, 590–643.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Janis, C. M. (1988). An estimation of tooth volume and hypsodonty indices in ungulate mammals, and the correlation of these factors with dietary preference. In D. E. Russell, J. P. Santoro & D. Sigogneau-Russell (Eds.), Teeth revisited: Proceedings of the VII international symposium on dental morphology, Mémoirs de Museé d’Histoire Naturelle, Paris, Serie C, Volume 53 (pp. 371–391). Paris: Editions du Muséum.

    Google Scholar 

  • Janis, C. M. (1990). Correlation of cranial and dental variables with body size in ungulates and macropodids. Memoirs of The Queensland Museum, 28, 349–366.

    Google Scholar 

  • Janis, C. M. (2008). An evolutionary history of browsing and grazing ungulates. In I. J. Gordon & H. H. T. Prins (Eds.), The ecology of browsing and grazing. Ecological Studies, 195, 21–45.

    Google Scholar 

  • Janis, C. M., & Ehrhardt, D. (1988). Correlation of relative muzzle width and relative incisor width with dietary preference in ungulates. Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society, 92, 267–284.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Janis, C. M., & Fortelius, M. (1988). On the means whereby mammals achieve increased functional durability of their dentitions, with special reference to limiting factors. Biological Reviews of the Cambridge Philosophical Society, 63, 197.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Janis, C. M., Damuth, J., & Theodor, J. M. (2000). Miocene ungulates and terrestrial primary productivity: where have all the browsers gone? Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, USA, 97, 7899–7904.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Janis, C. M., Theodor, J. M., & Boisvert, B. (2002). Locomotor evolution in camels revisited: a quantitative analysis of pedal anatomy and the acquisition of the pacing gait. Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology, 22, 110–121.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Janis, C. M., Shoshitaishvili, B., Kambic, R., & Figueirido, B. (2012). On their knees: distal femur asymmetry in ungulates and its relationship to body size and locomotion. Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology, 32, 433–445.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jarman, P. J. (1974). The social organisation of antelope in relation to their ecology. Behaviour, 48, 215–267.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kappelman, J. (1988). Morphology and locomotor adaptations of the bovid femur in relation to habitat. Journal of Morphology, 198, 119–130.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kappelman, J. (1991). The paleoenvironment of Kenyapithecus at Fort Ternan. Journal of Human Evolution, 20, 95–129.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kappelman, J., Plummer, T. W., Bishop, L., Duncan, A., & Appleton, S. (1997). Bovids as indicators of Plio-Pleistocene paleoenvironments in East Africa. Journal of Human Evolution, 32, 229–256.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Klein, R. G., Franciscus, R. G., & Steele, T. E. (2010). Morphometric identification of bovid metapodials to genus and implications for taxon-free habitat reconstruction. Journal of Archaeological Science, 37, 389–401.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kovarovic, K., & Andrews, P. (2007). Bovid postcranial ecomorphological survey of the Laetoli paleoenvironment. Journal of Human Evolution, 52, 663–680.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kovarovic, K., Aiello, L. C., Cardini, A., & Lockwood, C. A. (2011). Discriminant function analyses in archaeology: are classification rates too good to be true? Journal of Archaeological Science, 38, 3006–3018.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kovarovic, K., Su, D. F. & Lintulaakso, K. (2018). Mammal community structure analysis. In D. A. Croft, D. F. Su, & S. W. Simpson (Eds.), Methods in paleoecology: Reconstructing Cenozoic terrestrial environments and ecological communities (pp. 349–370). Cham: Springer.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lewis, M. E. (1997). Carnivoran paleoguilds of Africa: implications for hominid food procurement strategies. Journal of Human Evolution, 32, 257–288.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Louys, J., Montanari, S., Plummer, T. W., Hertel, F., & Bishop, L. C. (2013). Evolutionary divergence and convergence in shape and size within African antelope proximal phalanges. Journal of Mammalian Evolution, 20, 239–248.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Manly, B. F. J. (2004). Multivariate statistical methods: A primer (3rd ed.). New York: Chapman & Hall/CRC.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Martin, L. (1985). Significance of enamel thickness in hominoid evolution. Nature, 314, 260–263.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Meloro, C. (2011a). Feeding habits of Plio-Pleistocene large carnivores as revealed by the mandibular geometry. Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology, 31, 428–446.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Meloro, C. (2011b). Locomotor adaptations in Plio-Pleistocene large carnivores from the Italian Peninsula: palaeoecological implications. Current Zoology, 57, 269–283.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Meloro, C., & O’Higgins, P. (2011). Ecological adaptations of mandibular form in fissiped Carnivora. Journal of Mammalian Evolution, 18, 185–200.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Meloro, C., Elton, S., Louys, J., Bishop, L. C., & Ditchfield, P. (2013). Cats in the forest: predicting habitat adaptations from humerus morphometry in extant and fossil Felidae (Carnivora). Paleobiology, 39, 323–344.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Meloro, C., Clauss, M., & Raia, P. (2015). Ecomorphology of Carnivora challenges convergent evolution. Organisms Diversity & Evolution, 15, 711–720.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mendoza, M., Janis, C. M., & Palmqvist, P. (2002). Characterizing complex craniodental patterns related to feeding behaviour in ungulates: a multivariate approach. Journal of Zoology, 258, 223–246.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Münkemüller, T., Lavergne, S., Bzeznik, B., Dray, S., Jombart, T., Schiffers, K., et al. (2012). How to measure and test phylogenetic signal. Methods in Ecology and Evolution, 3, 743–756.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pérez-Barbería, F. J., & Gordon, I. J. (2001). Relationships between oral morphology and feeding style in the Ungulata: a phylogenetically controlled evaluation. Proceedings of the Royal Society of London. Series B: Biological Sciences, 268, 1023.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Plummer, T. W., & Bishop, L. C. (1994). Hominid paleoecology at Olduvai Gorge, Tanzania as indicated by antelope remains. Journal of Human Evolution, 27, 47–75.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Plummer, T. W., Bishop, L. C., & Hertel, F. (2008). Habitat preference of extant African bovids based on astragalus morphology: operationalizing ecomorphology for palaeoenvironmental reconstruction. Journal of Archaeological Science, 35, 3016–3027.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Plummer, T. W., Ferraro, J. V., Louys, J., Hertel, F., Alemseged, Z., Bobe, R., et al. (2015). Bovid ecomorphology and hominin paleoenvironments of the Shungura Formation, lower Omo River Valley, Ethiopia. Journal of Human Evolution, 88, 108–126.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Polly, P. (2010). Tiptoeing through the trophics: geographic variation in carnivoran locomotor ecomorphology in relation to environment. In A. Goswami & A. Friscia (Eds.), Carnivoran evolution: New views on phylogeny, form, and function (pp. 347–410). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Polly, P. D., Eronen, J. T., Fred, M., Dietl, G. P., Mosbrugger, V., Scheidegger, C., et al. (2011). History matters: ecometrics and integrative climate change biology. Proceedings of the Royal Society of London B: Biological Sciences, 278, 1131–1140.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Radinsky, L. B. (1981). Evolution of skull shape in carnivores: 1. Representative modern carnivores. Biological Journal of the Linnean Society, 15, 369–388.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Raia, P., Carotenuto, F., Meloro, C., Piras, P., & Pushkina, D. (2010). The shape of contention: adaptation, history, and contingency in ungulate mandibles. Evolution, 64, 1489–1503.

    Google Scholar 

  • Reed, K. E. (1997). Early hominid evolution and ecological change through the African Plio-Pleistocene. Journal of Human Evolution, 32, 289–322.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Reed, K. E. (1998). Using large mammal communities to examine ecological and taxonomic structure and predict vegetation in extant and extinct assemblages. Paleobiology, 24, 384–408.

    Google Scholar 

  • Samuels, J. X. (2009). Cranial morphology and dietary habits of rodents. Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society, 156, 864–888.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Samuels, J. X., & Van Valkenburgh, B. (2008). Skeletal indicators of locomotor adaptations in living and extinct rodents. Journal of Morphology, 269, 1387–1411.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schaeffer, B. (1947). Notes on the origin and function of the artiodactyl tarsus. American Museum Novitates, 1356, 1–24.

    Google Scholar 

  • Schaeffer, B. (1948). The origin of a mammalian ordinal character. Evolution, 2, 164–175.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Scott, K. (1985). Allometric trends and locomotor adaptations in the Bovidae. Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History, 179, 197–288.

    Google Scholar 

  • Scott, R. S., & Barr, W. A. (2014). Ecomorphology and phylogenetic risk: implications for habitat reconstruction using fossil bovids. Journal of Human Evolution, 73, 47–57.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Scott, R. S., Kappelman, J., & Kelley, J. (1999). The paleoenvironment of Sivapithecus parvada. Journal of Human Evolution, 36, 245–274.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Shockey, B. J., & Anaya, F. (2011). Grazing in a new late Oligocene mylodontid sloth and a mylodontid radiation as a component of the Eocene-Oligocene faunal turnover and the early spread of grasslands/savannas in South America. Journal of Mammalian Evolution, 18, 101–115.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Simpson, G. G. (1951). Horses: The story of the horse family in the modern world and through sixty million years of history. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Solounias, N., & Moelleken, S. M. C. (1993). Dietary adaptation of some extinct ruminants determined by premaxillary shape. Journal of Mammalogy, 74, 1059–1071.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Spencer, L. M. (1995). Morphological correlates of dietary resource partitioning in the African Bovidae. Journal of Mammalogy, 76, 448–471.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Spencer, L. M. (1997). Dietary adaptations of Plio-Pleistocene Bovidae: implications for hominid habitat use. Journal of Human Evolution, 32, 201–228.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Spradley, J. P., Glander, K. E., & Kay, R. F. (2016). Dust in the wind: how climate variables and volcanic dust affect rates of tooth wear in central american howling monkeys. American Journal of Physical Anthropology, 159, 210–222.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Stebbins, G. L. (1981). Coevolution of grasses and herbivores. Annals of the Missouri Botanical Garden, 68, 75–86.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Strömberg, C. A. E., Dunn, R. E., Crifò, C., & Harris, E. B. (2018). Phytoliths in paleoecology: analytical considerations, current use, and future directions. In D. A. Croft, D. F. Su & S. W. Simpson (Eds.), Methods in paleoecology: Reconstructing Cenozoic terrestrial environments and ecological communities (pp. 233–285). Cham: Springer.

    Google Scholar 

  • Tennant, J. P., & MacLeod, N. (2014). Snout shape in extant ruminants. PLoS ONE, 9, e112035.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Van Valen, L. (1960). A functional index of hypsodonty. Evolution, 14, 531–532.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Van Valkenburgh, B. (1987). Skeletal indicators of locomotor behavior in living and extant carnivores. Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology, 7, 162–182.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Van Valkenburgh, B. (1988). Trophic diversity in past and present guilds of large predatory mammals. Paleobiology, 14, 155–173.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Van Valkenburgh, B. (1989). Carnivore dental adaptations and diet: a study of trophic diversity within guilds. In J. L. Gittleman (Ed.), Carnivore behavior, ecology, and evolution (pp. 410–436). Ithaca: Cornell University Press.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Van Valkenburgh, B., & Ruff, C. B. (1987). Canine tooth strength and killing behaviour in large carnivores. Journal of Zoology, 212, 379–397.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Vermillion, W. A., Polly, P. D., Head, J. J., Eronen, J. T., & Lawing, A. M. (2018). Ecometrics: a trait-based approach to paleoclimate and paleoenvironmental reconstruction. In D. A. Croft, D. F. Su & S. W. Simpson (Eds.), Methods in paleoecology: Reconstructing Cenozoic terrestrial environments and ecological communities (pp. 371–392). Cham: Springer.

    Google Scholar 

  • Vizcaíno, S. F., Cassini, G. H., Fernicola, J. C., & Bargo, M. S. (2011). Evaluating habitats and feeding habits through ecomorphological features in glyptodonts (Mammalia, Xenarthra). Ameghiniana, 48, 305–319.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wainwright, P. C., & Reilly, S. M. (1994). Ecological morphology: Integrative organismal biology. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Walmsley, A., Elton, S., Louys, J., Bishop, L. C., & Meloro, C. (2012). Humeral epiphyseal shape in the Felidae: the influence of phylogeny, allometry, and locomotion. Journal of Morphology, 273, 1424–1438.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Weinand, D. C. (2007). A study of parametric versus non-parametric methods for predicting paleohabitat from Southeast Asian Bovid astragali. Journal of Archaeological Science, 34, 1774–1783.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Werdelin, L., & Wesley-Hunt, G. D. (2010). The biogeography of carnivore ecomorphology. In A. Goswami & A. Friscia (Eds.), Carnivoran evolution: New views on phylogeny, form and function (pp. 225–245). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Werdelin, L., & Wesley-Hunt, G. D. (2014). Carnivoran ecomorphology: patterns below the family level. Annales Zoologici Fennici, 51, 259–268.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wesley-Hunt, G. D. (2005). The morphological diversification of carnivores in North America. Paleobiology, 31, 35–55.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • White, T. D., Ambrose, S. H., Suwa, G., Su, D. F., DeGusta, D., Bernor, R. L., et al. (2009). Macrovertebrate paleontology and the Pliocene habitat of Ardipithecus ramidus. Science, 326, 67–93.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Williams, S. H., & Kay, R. F. (2001). A comparative test of adaptive explanations for hypsodonty in ungulates and rodents. Journal of Mammalian Evolution, 8, 207–229.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wing, S., Sues, H., Potts, R., DiMichele, W., & Behrensmeyer, A. (1992). Evolutionary paleoecology. In A. K. Behrensmeyer, J. D. Damuth, W. A. DiMichele, R. Potts, H.-D. Sues & S. L. Wing (Eds.), Terrestrial ecosystems through time: Evolutionary paleoecology of terrestrial plants and animals (pp. 1–14). Chicago: University of Chicago Press.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Anthropology, Center for the Advanced Study of Human Paleobiology, The George Washington University, Washington, DC, USA

    W. Andrew Barr

Authors
  1. W. Andrew Barr
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to W. Andrew Barr .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Anatomy, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH, USA

    Darin A. Croft

  2. Department of Paleobotany and Paleoecology, Cleveland Museum of Natural History, Cleveland, OH, USA

    Denise F. Su

  3. Department of Anatomy, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH, USA

    Scott W. Simpson

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2018 Springer International Publishing AG, part of Springer Nature

About this chapter

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this chapter

Andrew Barr, W. (2018). Ecomorphology. In: Croft, D., Su, D., Simpson, S. (eds) Methods in Paleoecology. Vertebrate Paleobiology and Paleoanthropology. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-94265-0_15

Download citation

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation