The Terrific Skink bite force suggests insularity as a likely driver to exceptional resource use.
Sci Rep
; 12(1): 4596, 2022 03 17.
Article
en En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-35301350
ABSTRACT
Natural history museum collections hold extremely rare, extinct species often described from a single known specimen. On occasions, rediscoveries open new opportunities to understand selective forces acting on phenotypic traits. Recent rediscovery of few individuals of Bocourt´s Terrific Skink Phoboscincus bocourti, from a small and remote islet in New Caledonia allowed to genetically identify a species of land crab in its diet. To explore this further, we CT- and MRI-scanned the head of the holotype, the only preserved specimen dated to about 1870, segmented the adductor muscles of the jaw and bones, and estimated bite force through biomechanical models. These data were compared with those gathered for 332 specimens belonging to 44 other skink species. Thereafter we recorded the maximum force needed to generate mechanical failure of the exoskeleton of a crab specimen. The bite force is greater than the prey hardness, suggesting that predation on hard-shelled crabs may be an important driver of performance. The high bite force seems crucial to overcome low or seasonal variations in resource availability in these extreme insular environments. Phoboscincus bocourti appears to be an apex predator in a remote and harsh environment and the only skink known to predate on hard-shelled land crabs.
Texto completo:
1
Colección:
01-internacional
Banco de datos:
MEDLINE
Asunto principal:
Braquiuros
/
Lagartos
Tipo de estudio:
Prognostic_studies
Límite:
Animals
/
Humans
Idioma:
En
Revista:
Sci Rep
Año:
2022
Tipo del documento:
Article
País de afiliación:
Portugal