Testing the hypothesis of morphological integration on a skull of a vertebrate with a biphasic life cycle: a case study of the alpine newt.

Abstract excerpt

In this article, we explore the possible influences of the developmental and functional relationships between skeletal elements on the pattern of morphological integration in the adult skull of the alpine newt. Like many tailed amphibians, the alpine newt has a biphasic life cycle, which implies the possibility that two distinct sets of constraints on development and function of the cranial skeleton may act at...

Topics

• Animals
• Life Cycle Stages
• Metamorphosis, Biological
• Phenotype
• Salamandridae
• Skull
• Vertebrates