A comparative study of degeneration of the posterior limbs and girdles of some scelotes species.

dc.contributor.advisorSkinner, J.H
dc.contributor.advisorLeonard, C.J
dc.contributor.authorWilson, Brain .A
dc.date.accessioned2024-04-10T13:40:30Z
dc.date.accessioned2024-10-30T11:28:19Z
dc.date.available2024-04-10T13:40:30Z
dc.date.available2024-10-30T11:28:19Z
dc.date.issued1981
dc.descriptionMasters of Scienceen_US
dc.description.abstractThe genus Scelotes was instituted by Fitzinger in 1826 and is represented by nineteen species and subspecies in Southern Africa (Fitzsimons, 1943) . Valuable contributions have been made to our knowledge of the Lacertilia by pioneers such as Gadow (1881) , Cope (1892) , El-Toubi (1938) , King (1964) and Tiedeman et al . (1975) who investigated the osteology and myology. Essex (1927) , Stokely (1947) , Lande (1978) and Leonard (1979) dealt with the evolution of limb loss and pelvic girdle degeneration in the lizards , and especially in the skinks. van der Klaauw (1948), Snyder (1952; 1954) and Gans (1962; 1966; 1973) studied the ecology and behaviour of limbless tetrapods, while De Witte and Laurent (1943) and Greer (1970) contributed to our knowledge on the systematics of the skinks. Partial or complete loss of limbs and degeneration in the pelvic arch have possibly evolved independently in a variety of tetrapods. The genus Scelotes exhibits a full range of degeneration - from fully pentadactyle tetrapodous forms to limbless species. The question arises : Can a general pattern of devolution be observed in this genus? Al though many of the Scelotes species have already been described, it will here for the first time be attempted to compare the different stages of degeneration as exhibited in this genus. A major objective of this work will , therefore be to analyze the pattern of degeneration in Scelotes. Firstly, the osteology of the pelvic girdle and hindlimbs of the Scelotes species will be described and, secondly, these structures will be compared. Thirdly, an attempt will be made to graphically reflect the major trends associated with limb regression by employing morphometric data obtained from the limited number of specimens availableen_US
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/10566/16774
dc.language.isoenen_US
dc.publisherUniversity of the Western Capeen_US
dc.rights.holderUniversity of the Western Capeen_US
dc.subjectPelvic girdle degenerationen_US
dc.subjectLimb lossen_US
dc.subjectTendency for jointsen_US
dc.subjectLoss of hindlimbsen_US
dc.subjectScelotes speciesen_US
dc.titleA comparative study of degeneration of the posterior limbs and girdles of some scelotes species.en_US
dcterms.subjectLizardsen

Files

Original bundle
Now showing 1 - 1 of 1
Loading...
Thumbnail Image
Name:
wilson_MA_Nsc_1981.pdf
Size:
18.16 MB
Format:
Adobe Portable Document Format
License bundle
Now showing 1 - 1 of 1
No Thumbnail Available
Name:
license.txt
Size:
1.71 KB
Format:
Plain Text
Description: