Sexual dimorphism of tooth size in anthropoids

The Correlation of Tooth Sizes and Jaw Dimensions with Biological Sex and Stature in a Contemporary Central European Population

Dental anthropology provides a deep insight into biological, ecological and cultural aspects associated with human individuality, behaviour and living conditions and the environment. Our study uses a correlation analysis to test the metric relationships between tooth sizes and jaw dimensions and juxtaposes them with biological sex and stature. A sample of n = 100 dental casts was used to record metric dental data including the mesio-distal and bucco-lingual tooth crown diameters and nine upper and lower jaw dimensions. All crown diameters were highly correlated with both stature and biological sex, with the canines exhibiting the highest correlation. The majority of jaw dimensions exhibited similar correlations. Our results suggest that the differences between the sexes in most crown diameters and some jaw dimensions may be related to the stature of the individuals measured. Two groups of closely correlating features emerged among the jaw dimensions, differing in their degree of correlation with crown diameters and with sex. The results and insights obtained are highly relevant for evolutionary biology, dentistry, craniofacial research, bioarchaeology and forensic odontology.

Post-Mortem Dental Profile as a Powerful Tool in Animal Forensic Investigations—A Review

Veterinary forensics is becoming more important in our society as a result of the growing demand for investigations related to crimes against animals or investigations of criminal deaths caused by animals. A veterinarian may participate as an expert witness or may be required to give forensic assistance, by providing knowledge of the specialty to establish a complete picture of the involvement of an animal and allowing the Courts to reach a verdict. By applying diverse dental profiling techniques, not only can species, sex, age-at-death, and body size of an animal be estimated, but also data about their geographical origin (provenance) and the post-mortem interval. This review concentrates on the dental techniques that use the characteristics of teeth as a means of identification of freshly deceased and skeletonised animals. Furthermore, this highlights the information that can be extracted about the animal from the post-mortem dental profile.

Intrasexually selected weapons

We propose a practical concept that distinguishes the particular kind of weaponry that has evolved to be used in combat between individuals of the same species and sex, which we term intrasexually selected weapons (ISWs). We present a treatise of ISWs in nature, aiming to understand their distinction and evolution from other secondary sex traits, including from 'sexually selected weapons', and from sexually dimorphic and monomorphic weaponry. We focus on the subset of secondary sex traits that are the result of same-sex combat, defined here as ISWs, provide not previously reported evolutionary patterns, and offer hypotheses to answer questions such as: why have only some species evolved weapons to fight for the opposite sex or breeding resources? We examined traits that seem to have evolved as ISWs in the entire animal phylogeny, restricting the classification of ISW to traits that are only present or enlarged in adults of one of the sexes, and are used as weapons during intrasexual fights. Because of the absence of behavioural data and, in many cases, lack of sexually discriminated series from juveniles to adults, we exclude the fossil record from this review. We merge morphological, ontogenetic, and behavioural information, and for the first time thoroughly review the tree of life to identify separate evolution of ISWs. We found that ISWs are only found in bilateral animals, appearing independently in nematodes, various groups of arthropods, and vertebrates. Our review sets a reference point to explore other taxa that we identify with potential ISWs for which behavioural or morphological studies are warranted. We establish that most ISWs come in pairs, are located in or near the head, are endo- or exoskeletal modifications, are overdeveloped structures compared with those found in females, are modified feeding structures and/or locomotor appendages, are most common in terrestrial taxa, are frequently used to guard females, territories, or both, and are also used in signalling displays to deter rivals and/or attract females. We also found that most taxa lack ISWs, that females of only a few species possess better-developed weapons than males, that the cases of independent evolution of ISWs are not evenly distributed across the phylogeny, and that animals possessing the most developed ISWs have non-hunting habits (e.g. herbivores) or are faunivores that prey on very small prey relative to their body size (e.g. insectivores). Bringing together perspectives from studies on a variety of taxa, we conceptualize that there are five ways in which a sexually dimorphic trait, apart from the primary sex traits, can be fixed: sexual selection, fecundity selection, parental role division, differential niche occupation between the sexes, and interference competition. We discuss these trends and the factors involved in the evolution of intrasexually selected weaponry in nature.

The evolution of anthropoid molar proportions

BACKGROUND

Developmental processes that underpin morphological variation have become a focus of interest when attempting to interpret macroevolutionary patterns. Recently, the Dental Inhibitory Cascade (DIC) model has been suggested to explain much of the variation in mammalian molar size proportions. We tested the macroevolutionary implications of this model using anthropoid primate species (n=100), focusing on overall morphological patterns, as well as predictions made about molar size variability, direct developmental control, and diet.

RESULTS

Of the species sampled, 56 % had centroids that fell within regions of molar proportion morphospace consistent with the DIC model. We also found that the third molar had greater variation in size than either the first or second molars, as expected by the model. Some DIC model predictions were not supported, however, such as the expected proportion of M 2/M 1 when the third molar is absent. Furthermore, we found that some variability in third molar size could not be explained by the influence of the inhibitory cascade. Overall, we found considerable clade-specific differences in relative molar sizes among anthropoid primates, with hominoids and cercopithecins strongly divergent from DIC model predictions, and platyrrhines, colobines, and papionins more consistent with the inhibitory cascade. Finally, we investigated reasons why some clades deviated from DIC model expectations. Adaptations for frugivory (e.g., bunodont cusp relief) appeared to be one driver of relatively larger second molars and have evolved independently in multiple lineages of anthropoids.

CONCLUSIONS

The DIC model explains some of the variation in anthropoid primate molar proportions. However, there are interesting deviations away from this broad mammalian pattern, particularly in hominoids and cercopithecins, which suggest the model is only one of multiple mechanisms determining morphological variability in mammalian teeth.

Impact of intrasexual selection on sexual dimorphism and testes size in the Mexican howler monkeys Alouatta palliata and A. pigra

One of the goals of physical anthropology and primatology is to understand how primate social systems influence the evolution of sexually selected traits. Howler monkeys provide a good model for studying sexual selection due to differences in social systems between related species. Here, we examine data from the sister howler monkey species Alouatta palliata and A. pigra inhabiting southeastern Mexico and northern Guatemala. We use a resampling approach to analyze differences in sexual dimorphism of body and canine size. In addition, we compare testes size as a way of gauging the intensity of sperm competition in both species. Morphometric data were collected from wild-caught individuals, including body mass and length, and dental data were obtained from casts from wild individuals and from museum specimens. Although A. pigra individuals are larger than their A. palliata counterparts, we find that both species exhibit similar levels of sexual dimorphism for all of the variables considered. Testicular volume results indicate that A. palliata male testes are on average twice as large as those of A. pigra males, suggesting more intense sperm competition in the former species. Our study shows that A. pigra is not highly sexually dimorphic as was once thought, and testes size differences suggest the need for a clearer understanding of howler monkey social systems.

Inferences regarding the diet of extinct hominins: structural and functional trends in dental and mandibular morphology within the hominin clade

This contribution investigates the evolution of diet in the Pan-Homo and hominin clades. It does this by focusing on 12 variables (nine dental and three mandibular) for which data are available about extant chimpanzees, modern humans and most extinct hominins. Previous analyses of this type have approached the interpretation of dental and gnathic function by focusing on the identification of the food consumed (i.e. fruits, leaves, etc.) rather than on the physical properties (i.e. hardness, toughness, etc.) of those foods, and they have not specifically addressed the role that the physical properties of foods play in determining dental adaptations. We take the available evidence for the 12 variables, and set out what the expression of each of those variables is in extant chimpanzees, the earliest hominins, archaic hominins, megadont archaic hominins, and an inclusive grouping made up of transitional hominins and pre-modern Homo. We then present hypotheses about what the states of these variables would be in the last common ancestor of the Pan-Homo clade and in the stem hominin. We review the physical properties of food and suggest how these physical properties can be used to investigate the functional morphology of the dentition. We show what aspects of anterior tooth morphology are critical for food preparation (e.g. peeling fruit) prior to its ingestion, which features of the postcanine dentition (e.g. overall and relative size of the crowns) are related to the reduction in the particle size of food, and how information about the macrostructure (e.g. enamel thickness) and microstructure (e.g. extent and location of enamel prism decussation) of the enamel cap might be used to make predictions about the types of foods consumed by extinct hominins. Specifically, we show how thick enamel can protect against the generation and propagation of cracks in the enamel that begin at the enamel-dentine junction and move towards the outer enamel surface.

Predicting evolutionary patterns of mammalian teeth from development

One motivation in the study of development is the discovery of mechanisms that may guide evolutionary change. Here we report how development governs relative size and number of cheek teeth, or molars, in the mouse. We constructed an inhibitory cascade model by experimentally uncovering the activator-inhibitor logic of sequential tooth development. The inhibitory cascade acts as a ratchet that determines molar size differences along the jaw, one effect being that the second molar always makes up one-third of total molar area. By using a macroevolutionary test, we demonstrate the success of the model in predicting dentition patterns found among murine rodent species with various diets, thereby providing an example of ecologically driven evolution along a developmentally favoured trajectory. In general, our work demonstrates how to construct and test developmental rules with evolutionary predictability in natural systems.

Rethinking incisor size and diet in anthropoids: Diet, incisor wear and incisor breadth in the African apes

In a seminal study Hylander (1975) concluded that the length of the incisor row in catarrhines considered frugivores is longer relative to body mass than in those classified as folivores. Assuming that large fruits require greater incisal processing than do leaves, stems, berries, and seeds, he argued that the larger incisors of frugivores increased their resistance to wear. The present analysis examines diet, incisor wear, and incisor crown breadth in cranial samples of western lowland gorillas and chimpanzees. Incisor wear rate was assessed on the basis of the extent of incisor crown reduction observed at sequential stages of first molar wear. Incisor metrics were obtained from the unworn teeth of juveniles. Results suggest that incisor wear is greater in the more folivorous western lowland gorillas than in more frugivorous chimpanzees. Moreover, incisor crown dimensions do not differ appreciably among African apes. These findings fail to support the hypothesis that slower wear rates are associated with broader incisor crowns, and raise new questions regarding the significance of incisor row length in anthropoids.

Flores hominid: New species or microcephalic dwarf?

The proposed new hominid "Homo floresiensis" is based on specimens from cave deposits on the Indonesian island Flores. The primary evidence, dated at approximately 18,000 y, is a skull and partial skeleton of a very small but dentally adult individual (LB1). Incomplete specimens are attributed to eight additional individuals. Stone tools at the site are also attributed to H. floresiensis. The discoverers interpreted H. floresiensis as an insular dwarf derived from Homo erectus, but others see LB1 as a small-bodied microcephalic Homo sapiens. Study of virtual endocasts, including LB1 and a European microcephalic, purportedly excluded microcephaly, but reconsideration reveals several problems. The cranial capacity of LB1 ( approximately 400 cc) is smaller than in any other known hominid < 3.5 Ma and is far too small to derive from Homo erectus by normal dwarfing. By contrast, some associated tools were generated with a prepared-core technique previously unknown for H. erectus, including bladelets otherwise associated exclusively with H. sapiens. The single European microcephalic skull used in comparing virtual endocasts was particularly unsuitable. The specimen was a cast, not the original skull (traced to Stuttgart), from a 10-year-old child with massive pathology. Moreover, the calotte does not fit well with the rest of the cast, probably being a later addition of unknown history. Consideration of various forms of human microcephaly and of two adult specimens indicates that LB1 could well be a microcephalic Homo sapiens. This is the most likely explanation for the incongruous association of a small-brained recent hominid with advanced stone tools.

Ontogeny of canine dimorphism in extant hominoids

Many behavioral and ecological factors influence the degree of expression of canine dimorphism for different reasons. Regardless of its socioecological importance, we know virtually nothing about the processes responsible for the development of canine dimorphism. Our aim here is to describe the developmental process(es) regulating canine dimorphism in extant hominoids, using histological markers of tooth growth. Teeth preserve a permanent record of their ontogeny in the form of short- and long-period incremental markings in both enamel and dentine. We selected 52 histological sections of sexed hominoid canine teeth from a total sample of 115, from which we calculated the time and rate of cuspal enamel formation and the rate at which ameloblasts differentiate along the future enamel-dentine junction (EDJ) to the end of crown formation. Thus, we were able to reconstruct longitudinal growth curves for height attainment in male and female hominoid canines. Male hominoids consistently take longer to form canine crowns than do females (although not significantly so for our sample of Homo). Male orangutans and gorillas occasionally take up to twice as long as females to complete enamel formation. The mean ranges of female canine crown formation times are similar in Pan, Gorilla, and Pongo. Interspecific differences between female Pan canine crown heights and those of Gorilla and Pongo, which are taller, result from differences in rates of growth. Differences in canine crown heights between male Pan and the taller, more dimorphic male Gorilla and Pongo canines result both from differences in total time taken to form enamel and from faster rates of growth in Gorilla and Pongo. Although modern human canines do not emerge as significantly dimorphic in this study, it is well-known that sexual dimorphism in canine crown height exists. Larger samples of sexed modern human canines are therefore needed to identify clearly what underlies this.

Inferring social behavior from sexual dimorphism in the fossil record

Sexual dimorphism is commonly used as evidence of the behavior of extinct species. Even so, few analyses scrutinize whether extant comparative data support inferences of mating systems or behavior in extinct species. This analysis evaluates the relations between measures of dimorphism and several estimates of mating system and intrasexual competition. Dimorphism alone provides poor resolution for reconstructing behavior. Many behavioral inferences based on perceived dimorphism are not supported by extant comparative data. This reflects the large standard errors of relations between dimorphism estimates and behavioral classifications. Used with caution, dimorphism can provide a hint of the behavior of extinct species in some cases. However, in many cases inferred dimorphism allows little more than an inference of polygyny, without any indication of specific types of mating systems.

Correlated response, competition, and female canine size in primates

Recently, comparative analyses of female canine tooth size in primates have yielded two hypotheses to explain interspecific variation in female relative canine size. Greenfield ([1992] Int. J. Primatol. 13:631-657; [1992] Yrbk. Phys. Anthropol. 35:153-184; [1996] J. Hum. Evol. 31:1-19) suggested that covariation in male and female canine size across species indicates that female canine size reflects correlated response (in which the expression of a trait in one sex causes the expression of the same trait in the other sex). Plavcan et al. ([1995] J. Hum. Evol. 28:245-276) noted that female canine size in primates is associated with variation in categorical estimates of the intensity of female-female agonistic competition, suggesting that selection favors large female canine size in many species. While it may seem that the two models are in conflict, they are not. To simultaneously evaluate these two models, this analysis examines the joint relations between male canine size, female canine size, and estimates of female-female competition in a sample of 108 primate species. Overall, female canine size is correlated with variation in male canine size. Controlling for variation in male canine size, female canine size is also correlated with estimates of the intensity of female-female agonistic competition. The relation between these variables differs strongly between anthropoid and strepsirhine primates. In anthropoids, the data suggest that selection for the development of large canines in females is not constrained by any affect of correlated response. In strepsirhines, the evidence suggests that sexual selection may affect male canine size but that correlated response affects female canine size, resulting in monomorphism for most species. These observations help reconcile the observations of Greenfield ([1992] Int. J. Primatol. 13:631-657; [1996] J. Hum. Evol. 31:1-19) and Plavcan et al. ([1995] J. Hum. Evol. 28:245-276) and provide a more precise model for understanding interspecific variation in female canine size and hence canine dimorphism.

Intrasexual competition and body weight dimorphism in anthropoid primates

Body weight dimorphism in anthropoid primates has been thought to be a consequence of sexual selection resulting from male-male competition for access to mates. However, while monogamous anthropoids show low degrees of weight dimorphism, as predicted by the sexual selection hypothesis, polygynous anthropoids show high variation in weight dimorphism that is not associated with measures of mating system or sex ratio. This observation has led many to debate the role of other factors such as dietary constraints, predation pressure, substrate constraints, allometric effects, and phylogeny in the evolution of anthropoid weight dimorphism. Here, we re-evaluate variation in adult body weight dimorphism in anthropoids, testing the sexual selection hypothesis using categorical estimates of the degree of male-male intrasexual competition ("competition levels"). We also test the hypotheses that interspecific variation in body weight dimorphism is associated with female body weight and categorical estimates of diet, substrate use, and phylogeny. Weight dimorphism is strongly associated with competition levels, corroborating the sexual selection hypothesis. Weight dimorphism is positively correlated with increasing female body weight, but evidence suggests that the correlation reflects an interaction between overall size and behavior. Arboreal species are, on average, less dimorphic than terrestrial species, while more frugivorous species tend to be more dimorphic than folivorous or insectivorous species. Several alternative hypotheses can explain these latter results. Weight dimorphism is correlated with taxonomy, but so too are competition levels. We suggest that most taxonomic correlations of weight dimorphism represent "phylogenetic niche conservatism"; however, colobines show consistently low degrees of weight dimorphism for reasons that are not clear.

Canine size and shape in male anthropoid primates

While studies of canine dimorphism in primates are common, only a few have examined canine tooth size independently within each sex. Recently, Greenfield and Washburn (Am. J. Phys. Anthropol. 84:17-34, 1991) proposed that there are two types of male canines which reflect different allometric scaling patterns of canine crown height against canine occlusal dimensions. They also suggest that proportional canine shape, measured as canine crown height (or projection) relative to the occlusal dimensions, provides an estimate of the canine's function as a weapon, though they provide no test of this hypothesis. This analysis critically examines the claim that there are two types of male canines among anthropoids. It then tests the hypothesis that relative male canine size (measured against body weight) and proportional canine shape are related to estimates of intermale competition, diet, and substrate (used as a surrogate measure of predation pressure). While there is strong taxonomic variation in canine size and shape among male anthropoids, no evidence is found for two discrete canine types. Rather, within families and subfamilies, canine dimensions scale isometrically against body weight and against each other, with a continuum of canine shapes among different taxa. While variation in male canine size is associated with intermale competition and substrate, even when taxonomic variation is controlled, variation in proportional canine shape is not. Neither canine size nor shape are generally associated with variation in diet.

Systematics and body size: implications for feeding adaptations in New World monkeys

The relationship between body size and feeding ecology is well established for primates. It is argued that the evolutionary history of modern New World monkeys and, in particular, the path to attainment of current body size is significant in understanding the similarities and differences between dietary strategies and other ecological parameters of similar-sized monkeys. Current interpretations of New World monkey evolutionary relationships are reviewed. Based on a synthesis of available body weights and the assumption that the earliest New World monkeys weighed close to 1 kg, similar to modern Aotus and Callicebus, predicted patterns of body size change in each lineage are given. Restrictions on directions of body size change in primates are discussed, and it is shown that "Stanley's Rule" offers a good explanation for differing body size ranges in New and Old World anthropoids. Predicted ecological correlates to body size drawn from the mammalian literature are offered and tested using data on New World monkeys, which show some concurrence and several interesting departures from predicted patterns. Sexual dimorphism in body weight of New World monkey species is reviewed, based on the new summary of body weight data given.

Intrasexual competition and canine dimorphism in anthropoid primates

A number of factors, including sexual selection, body weight, body-weight dimorphism, predation, diet, and phylogenetic inertia have been proposed as influences on the evolution of canine dimorphism in anthropoid primates. Although these factors are not mutually exclusive, opinions vary as to which is the most important. The role of sexual selection has been questioned because mating system, which should reflect its strength, poorly predicts variation in canine dimorphism, particularly among polygynous species. Kay et al. (1988) demonstrate that a more refined estimate of intermale competition explains a large proportion of the variation in canine dimorphism in platyrrhine primates. We expand their analysis, developing a more generalized measure of intermale competition based on the frequency and intensity of male-male agonism. We examine the relative influences of predation (inferred by substrate use), female body weight, body-weight dimorphism, diet, and sexual selection on the evolution of anthropoid canine dimorphism. Intermale competition is very strongly associated with canine dimorphism. Predation also has a marked effect on canine dimorphism, in that savanna-dwelling species consistently show greater canine dimorphism than other species, all other factors being held equal. Body-weight dimorphism is also strongly associated with canine dimorphism, though apparently through a common selective basis, rather than through allometric effects. Body weight seems to play only a minor, indirect role in the evolution of canine dimorphism. Diet plays no role. Likewise, we find little evidence that phylogenetic inertia is a constraint on the evolution of canine dimorphism.

Polymorphic aspects of male anthropoid canines

Interspecific variation in the architecture of male anthropoid maxillary canines is documented. Extant taxa are polymorphic, and most can be sorted into two major groupings based on quantitative measures of shape, distal edge sharpness, and interspecific changes in their linear dimensions (projection, mesiodistal length, and buccolingual breadth) relative to each other and to body mass (scaling). One group includes the great apes and ceboids; the other includes cercopithecoids and hylobatids. Statistically significant differences between these groups were found for canine shape, for trajectories of regressions for canine projection on canine length and canine breadth, and for canine projection and canine breadth relative to body mass. The data indicate that explantations of canine variation in male anthropoids must include a mechanical interpretation of form in addition to assessments of habitus, heritage, and body mass.