Ontogenetic development of skeletal weight in a small delphinid,Delphinus delphis (Cetacea,Odontoceti) |
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| Authors: | V de Buffrénil A Collet M Pascal |
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| Institution: | (1) Centre National d'Etude des Mammifères Marins. Laboratoire d'Anatomie Comparée, Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, 55, rue de Buffon, F-75005 Paris, France;(2) Centre National d'Etude des Mammifères Marins, Musée Océanographique, Port des Minimes, F-17000 La Rochelle, France;(3) Laboratoire de la Faune Sauvage et Cynégétique, CNRZ-INRA, Domaine de Vilvert, F-78350 Jouy-en-Josas, France;(4) Equipe  Formations Squelettique , Laboratoire d'Anatomie Comparée, Université Paris VII, 2, Place Jussieu, F-75221 Paris, Cedex 05, France |
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| Abstract: | Summary Total body weight and skeletal weight, from clean and dry bones, were measured in 61 common dolphins, Delphinus delphis of known ages (age determinations using both growth lines in the jaw, and growth layer groups in dentine). The relative skeletal weight in adults, expressed as a percentage of total body weight, is notably less than that of any cetaceans previously described. Appearently, this ratio is also smaller than that for any other vertebrate. In particular, skeletons of delphinids tend to be proportionally lighter than those of bony fishes. Classical hypotheses concerning the effect of buoyancy on the mass of supportive tissues can only partially explain such a relative reduction of skeletal weight. |
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