. The Australian zoologist. Zoology; Zoology; Zoology. P. M. JOHNSON and R. STRAHAN. 19 20Cm'21 22 23 24 Fig. 10. Mounted skeleton of Hypsiprymnodon moschatus (AM, uncatalogued). Tail and fifth digit of hind foot are incomplete. distal elements. The tibia is 31-36% of the length of the presacral vertebral column in the two possums, 46% in H. moschatus, 43-56% in the two potoroines, and 68% in M. robust us. Relative length of the pes increases from 29% in the possums to 58% in the kangaroo. Similarities between the limb proportions of Hypsiprymnodon and Dendro- lagus bennettianus are of interes
. The Australian zoologist. Zoology; Zoology; Zoology. P. M. JOHNSON and R. STRAHAN. 19 20Cm'21 22 23 24 Fig. 10. Mounted skeleton of Hypsiprymnodon moschatus (AM, uncatalogued). Tail and fifth digit of hind foot are incomplete. distal elements. The tibia is 31-36% of the length of the presacral vertebral column in the two possums, 46% in H. moschatus, 43-56% in the two potoroines, and 68% in M. robust us. Relative length of the pes increases from 29% in the possums to 58% in the kangaroo. Similarities between the limb proportions of Hypsiprymnodon and Dendro- lagus bennettianus are of interest in that the latter demonstrates a secondary adaptation to an arboreal way of life. The evolutionary plasticity of macropods is indicated by the fact that the limb proportions of this tree-kangaroo are closer to those of possums than to Hypsiprymnodon, a fact which raises the possibility that the condition seen in Hypsiprymnodon could also be the result of a secondary adaptation. However, when viewed in the context of its other unspecialised characters, it seems much more likely that the Musky Rat-kangaroo is representative of an early stage of evolution of macropods from an arboreal, possum-like stock. The unique presence of a hallux and the lack of hypertrophy of the fourth digit are characters that have been cited as primitive ever since Owen's (1879) description of the foot but the significance of the pedal pads warrants further 42 Aust. Zool. 21(1), 1982. Please note that these images are extracted from scanned page images that may have been digitally enhanced for readability - coloration and appearance of these illustrations may not perfectly resemble the original Royal Zoological Society of New South Wales; Royal Zoological Society of New South Wales. Proceedings. [Sydney, Royal Zoological Society of New South Wales]
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1900, bookdecade1910, booksubjectzoology, bookyear1914
