eprintid: 10170098 rev_number: 8 eprint_status: archive userid: 699 dir: disk0/10/17/00/98 datestamp: 2023-06-13 14:32:25 lastmod: 2023-06-13 14:32:25 status_changed: 2023-06-13 14:32:25 type: working_paper metadata_visibility: show sword_depositor: 699 creators_name: Dutel, Hugo creators_name: Sharp, Alana creators_name: Jones, Marc creators_name: Evans, Susan creators_name: Fagan, Micheal creators_name: Gröning, Flora title: Comparative skull biomechanics in Varanus and Salvator ‘Tupinambis’ ispublished: pub divisions: UCL divisions: B02 divisions: C08 divisions: D09 divisions: F96 note: © 2017 Dutel et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (the “License”), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, reproduction and adaptation in any medium and for any purpose provided that it is properly attributed. For attribution, the original author(s), title, publication source (PeerJ Preprints) and either DOI or URL of the article must be cited. Notwithstanding the ProQuest Terms and Conditions, you may use this content in accordance with the terms of the License. abstract: The lizard species Salvator ‘ Tupinambis ’ merianae and Varanus ornatus evolved independently in South America and Africa but share similar ecology and feeding behaviour, despite having notable differences in their skull structure. Tupinambis has a compact, relatively short and wide snout, whereas that of Varanus is more slender and narrow. In addition, a postorbital bar (POB) is present in Tupinambis but absent in Varanus , and the former lacks the mid-frontal suture that is present in the latter. Here, we explore the biomechanical significance of these differences using 3D computer-based mechanical simulations based on micro-computed tomography, detailed muscle dissections, and in vivo data. First, we simulated muscle activity and joint-reaction forces during biting using Multibody Dynamics Analysis. Then, the forces calculated from these models were used as an input for Finite Element Analysis, to investigate and compare the strains of the skull in these two species. The effects of the presence/absence of structures, such as the POB, were investigated by constructing artificial models which geometry was altered. Our results indicate that strains in the skull bones are lower in Tupinambis than in Varanus , in particular at the back of the skull. The presence of a POB clearly reduces the strains in the bones during posterior biting in Tupinambis , but not in Varanus . Our results hence highlight how the morphological differences between these two taxa affect the mechanical behaviour of their respective skulls during feeding. date: 2017-08-22 date_type: published publisher: PeerJ Preprints official_url: https://doi.org/10.7287/peerj.preprints.3176v1 oa_status: green full_text_type: pub language: eng primo: open primo_central: open_green verified: verified_manual elements_id: 1618057 doi: 10.7287/peerj.preprints.3176v1 lyricists_name: Evans, Susan lyricists_name: Sharp, Alana lyricists_name: Jones, Marc lyricists_id: SEEVA33 lyricists_id: ACSHA71 lyricists_id: MEHJO63 actors_name: Evans, Susan actors_id: SEEVA33 actors_role: owner full_text_status: public place_of_pub: London, UK citation: Dutel, Hugo; Sharp, Alana; Jones, Marc; Evans, Susan; Fagan, Micheal; Gröning, Flora; (2017) Comparative skull biomechanics in Varanus and Salvator ‘Tupinambis’. PeerJ Preprints: London, UK. Green open access document_url: https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10170098/1/Dutel%20et%20al.%202017%20Comparative_skull_biomechanics.pdf