We are pleased to announce Hady George to give their 2nd Year PhD talk on the topic of: Variation in jaw function across the fish-tetrapod transition.
Abstract:
The fish-tetrapod transition represents a key event in the history of life on Earth, laying the foundation for vertebrate success and diversity in the terrestrial realm. Numerous changes were made to the mandibular apparatus that increased the capacity for prey capture through forceful yet careful biting while reducing the capacity for suction-feeding. However, previous research on the morphology and biomechanics of 2D mandibles of early tetrapods suggested that there was little change in the form and function of the mandible until well after terrestrialisation had occurred. My research aims to test these conclusions by running dissection-informed finite element analyses on 3D models of mandibles of extant fishes and amphibians. Preliminary results so far indicate the material composition of the mandible, the proportion of cartilage to bone in particular, is the limiting factor that determines the distribution and magnitude of tensile and compressive strains. Considering there is a decreased contribution of cartilage to the mandible along the fish-tetrapod transition, this suggests the mandible’s capacity to resist loads increased gradually across the transition. My research will also encompass running finite element analyses on deformed mandibles of extant taxa to quantify the loss of functional data in deformed fossils, as well as analysing the disparity in functional traits of the mandibles of early tetrapods.