A history of land mammals in the western hemisphereScott, William Berryman
History
A history of land mammals in the western hemisphere
Scott, William Berryman
Mammals; Mammals, Fossil
[Illustration: FIG. 40.—Left pes of Wolf, front side. _Cal._, calcaneum.
_As._, astragalus. _N._, navicular. _Ch._, cuboid. _Cn. 1_, _Cn. 2_,
_Cn. 3_, internal, middle and external cuneiforms. _Mt. I_, rudimentary
first metatarsal. _Mt. II-V_, second to fifth metatarsals. _Ph. 1_,
first phalanx. _Ph. 2_, second phalanx. _Ung._, ungual phalanx. _I_,
rudimentary hallux. _II-V_, second to fifth digits.]
[Illustration: FIG. 41.—Left pes of Man. Note the large size of _Mt. I_,
the metatarsal of the first digit, or hallux. Letters as in Fig. 40,
except _Cb._, cuboid.]
The hind foot, or _pes_, like the manus, is clearly divisible into
three parts, the bones of which are called respectively the _tarsus_,
_metatarsus_ and _phalanges_, and the correspondence in structure between
manus and pes is close and obvious. The tarsus consists typically of
seven bones, which are tightly packed and rarely permit any movement
between them. The upper row of the tarsus consists of two bones, which
are peculiarly modified to form the ankle-joint and heel; on the inner
side is the ankle-bone, or _astragalus_, the shape of which is highly
characteristic of the various mammalian orders. The upper or posterior
portion of the astragalus, according to the position of the foot, is a
pulley which glides upon the lower end of the tibia and is held firmly in
place by the internal and the external malleolus. Below the pulley-like
surface the astragalus usually contracts to a narrow neck, which ends in
a flat or convex head. The astragalus is supported behind (or beneath) by
the heel-bone, or _calcaneum_, which is elongate and extends well above
(or behind) the remainder of the tarsus; it frequently has a distinct
articulation with the fibula, but more commonly is not in contact with
that bone. The astragalus rests upon the _navicular_, which is moulded
to fit its head and corresponds in position to the central of the carpus,
but, unlike that carpal, it is a very important element and is never
suppressed or lost in any land mammal. The navicular, in turn, rests
upon three bones of the second row, which are called respectively the
_internal_, _middle_ and _external cuneiform_, which correspond to the
trapezium, trapezoid and magnum of the carpus and to which are attached
the three inner metatarsals, one to each. Finally, the _cuboid_, the
external element of the second row, is a large bone, which supports the
calcaneum and often part of the astragalus and to which the fourth and
fifth metatarsals are attached; it is the equivalent of the unciform
in the manus. The number of tarsals is more constant than that of the
carpals, but some suppressions and coössifications do occur.
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