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Animals
Special Issues
Form, Function, and Diversity in Animal Anatomy
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Form, Function, and Diversity in Animal Anatomy

A special issue of Animals (ISSN 2076-2615). This special issue belongs to the section "Veterinary Clinical Studies".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 January 2027 | Viewed by 1680

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Tomasz Szara

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Morphological Sciences, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Warsaw University of Life Sciences, Warsaw, Poland
Interests: animal anatomy; geometric morphometrics; sexual dimorphism; osteometry
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Animal anatomy, a foundational discipline that bridges biology and veterinary sciences, reveals the intricate interplay of form, function, and diversity that shapes life across all animal species. This Special Issue will explore the remarkable designs of anatomical structures, their adaptive significance, and the extraordinary diversity that they underpin, offering insights into evolutionary, ecological, and functional dynamics.

We invite you to contribute your research to this exciting publication, which will explore how anatomical features influence behavior, survival, and ecological roles. Potential topics include, but are not limited to, the following: 

- Evolutionary adaptations in anatomical structures and their functional roles;

- Biomechanical innovations driving locomotion, feeding, or reproduction;

- Comparative anatomy across species, highlighting convergent or divergent evolutionary pathways;

- The role of anatomy in ecological interactions, such as predator–prey dynamics or symbiotic relationships;

- Developmental biology and its impact on anatomical diversity;

- Applications of geometric morphometrics to quantify and analyze shape variations in anatomical structures;

- Integrative studies combining anatomy with physiology, behavior, or genetics to understand organismal function;

- Zooarchaeological perspectives on the evolution of anatomical forms.

We look forward to receiving your contributions and working together to advance our understanding of the complexity and beauty of animal anatomy, as well as fostering interdisciplinary dialog.

Dr. Tomasz Szara
Guest Editor

Buket Çakar
Guest Editor Assistant

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Animals is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • animal anatomy
  • morphological diversity
  • functional adaptation

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Published Papers (3 papers)

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17 pages, 3112 KB  
Article
Morphometric Characterization of the Domestic Yak Skull (Bos grunniens Linnaeus, 1766)
by Hasan Hüseyin Arı, Hasan Alpak, Nariste Kadiraliyeva, Aziz Begaliyev, Milena Djordjevic and Ozan Gündemir
Animals 2026, 16(9), 1320; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani16091320 - 25 Apr 2026
Viewed by 343
Abstract
This study presents a morphometric characterization of the cranial structure of Bos grunniens based on linear measurements taken from adult skulls. Twenty yak skulls (10 males and 10 females) were collected from slaughterhouses in the Bishkek region of Kyrgyzstan. A total of 27 [...] Read more.
This study presents a morphometric characterization of the cranial structure of Bos grunniens based on linear measurements taken from adult skulls. Twenty yak skulls (10 males and 10 females) were collected from slaughterhouses in the Bishkek region of Kyrgyzstan. A total of 27 linear cranial measurements were recorded from each specimen, focusing on neurocranial, facial, orbital, and occipital regions. The aim of this study was to describe morphological patterns and structural integration within the yak skull, and to provide baseline morphometric data for a species that remains relatively underrepresented in the literature. Correlation analyses indicated a high degree of morphological association among cranial length, width, and dental parameters. Notably, highly correlated measurement clusters were observed among total cranial length, condylobasal length, dental length, and lateral facial length, indicating coordinated growth and dimensional interdependence in the skull. The first two principal components together explained approximately 75% of the total morphometric variance. PC1 was primarily associated with global skull size and elongation, while PC2 reflected variation in orbital and frontal structures. Additionally, independent t-tests revealed statistically significant differences in selected measurements such as total cranial length, dental length, greatest mastoid breadth, greatest inner height of the orbit, and occipital heights, indicating a secondary role of sexual dimorphism in shaping cranial morphology. The findings contribute to anatomical standardization, taxonomic studies, and future comparative morphometric research in large ruminants. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Form, Function, and Diversity in Animal Anatomy)
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17 pages, 2108 KB  
Article
Morphological Variation and Integration of the Ethmoidal and Prechiasmatic Regions in Sheep
by Eylem Bektaş Bilgiç, Barış Can Güzel, Fatma İşbilir, Aycan Korkmazcan, Yusuf Altundağ, Nedžad Hadžiomerović and Ozan Gündemir
Animals 2026, 16(7), 1098; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani16071098 - 2 Apr 2026
Viewed by 471
Abstract
This study investigated breed- and sex-related variation in two adjacent regions of the sheep cranial base on the endocranial surface, namely the ethmoidal region (fossa ethmoidalis–crista galli complex) and the prechiasmatic region centered on the sulcus chiasmatis. We hypothesized that breed-related morphometric differences [...] Read more.
This study investigated breed- and sex-related variation in two adjacent regions of the sheep cranial base on the endocranial surface, namely the ethmoidal region (fossa ethmoidalis–crista galli complex) and the prechiasmatic region centered on the sulcus chiasmatis. We hypothesized that breed-related morphometric differences would be detectable in this cranial base region and that the ethmoidal and prechiasmatic regions would show modular separation despite substantial covariation. Three-dimensional landmark data from 113 adult Akkaraman, Morkaraman, and Zom sheep were analyzed. Whole-configuration size differed by breed and sex, ethmoidal size mainly by sex, and prechiasmatic size mainly by breed. Shape analyses showed significant breed effects in the whole configuration and in both regional modules, whereas sex effects were weaker and limited to the whole configuration and prechiasmatic region. Allometry was significant at all levels and was strongest in the two regional modules, especially the prechiasmatic region. Modularity analysis supported the separation of the ethmoidal and prechiasmatic landmarks into two modules, whereas integration analysis indicated a high degree of covariation between them (r-PLS = 0.933), with most shared covariance concentrated on the first PLS axis. These findings indicate that variation in this endocranial cranial base region is detectable in both size and shape, with shape differences identified more consistently across the whole configuration and the two regional modules, although the associated effect sizes were modest. Overall, the results highlight that variation between adjacent cranial base regions is primarily expressed through shape and covariation rather than size alone, providing a morphometric framework for future studies of cranial structure. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Form, Function, and Diversity in Animal Anatomy)
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13 pages, 1641 KB  
Article
Morphometric Assessment of Pelvic Asymmetry in Domestic Cats and Dogs
by Yusuf Altundağ, Ebru Eravci Yalin, Simge Bayraktar, Murat Karabağlı, Eylem Bektaş Bilgiç, Barış Can Güzel, Alexandra-Andreea Cherșunaru, Aycan Korkmazcan, Nicoleta Manuta, Ozan Gündemir and Mihaela-Claudia Spataru
Animals 2026, 16(5), 744; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani16050744 - 27 Feb 2026
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 473
Abstract
This study used 3D landmark-based geometric morphometrics under an object-symmetry framework to quantify pelvic asymmetry in domestic cats and dogs while explicitly accounting for measurement error through replicate digitizations. Procrustes ANOVA revealed significant components of both directional asymmetry (DA) and fluctuating asymmetry (FA) [...] Read more.
This study used 3D landmark-based geometric morphometrics under an object-symmetry framework to quantify pelvic asymmetry in domestic cats and dogs while explicitly accounting for measurement error through replicate digitizations. Procrustes ANOVA revealed significant components of both directional asymmetry (DA) and fluctuating asymmetry (FA) in the overall dataset, and DA was further visualized as a structured, non-random pattern across the landmark configuration. Measurement error remained smaller than the FA component, yielding high repeatability, indicating that the detected asymmetry patterns were not driven by landmarking imprecision. Group-wise summaries are presented as descriptive patterns of the sample (rather than direct between-group inference). In these descriptive summaries, cats tended to show a more coherent DA pattern, whereas dogs showed greater individual variation consistent with a relatively stronger FA component; males also tended to exhibit greater FA-related dispersion than females. In regression models of FA, age showed no association, body mass exhibited only a weak trend, and sex emerged as a significant predictor, while species showed no detectable effect when covariates were included. Collectively, these results support the hypothesis that pelvic shape contains both systematic (DA) and individual-specific (FA) asymmetry components, with sex-related differences in FA magnitude, but limited evidence for age- or weight-related effects within the sampled range. The study provides a repeatable framework and baseline reference for pelvic asymmetry in cats and dogs. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Form, Function, and Diversity in Animal Anatomy)
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