Year: 2026
Type: article
Abstract: The diversity of brain size and organization across mammals reflects how evolutionary and ecological pressures have shaped neural architecture through time. Yet, how these selective pressures translated into measurable variation in the proportions and overall shape of the brain across species remains poorly understood. In this study, we used high-resolution virtual endocasts from 41 musteloid species (e.g., otters, skunks, raccoons) to quantify variation in endocranial composition and shape. We analyzed both the complete endocast and its principal subdivisions (olfactory bulbs (OB), cerebrum, and hindbrain) using a combination of compositional data analysis and 3D geometric morphometrics. Phylogenetically informed regressions (PGLS) and model comparisons were used to assess the effects of endocranial size, locomotion, diet, and taxonomy on both the regional proportions and the overall shape of the endocranial cast. Musteloid brain organization is mostly driven by size-dependent scaling: larger brains have enlarged cerebra, reduced olfactory and hindbrain regions, and rounder endocasts. However, some lineages markedly deviate from this largely conserved allometry: otters (Lutrinae) exhibit proportionally enlarged cerebra and strongly reduced OB, whereas skunks (Mephitidae) show the reverse pattern, emphasizing enhanced olfactory investment. Feeding ecology also contributes to variation in brain organization, as piscivores show disproportionately smaller OB compared with other feeding guilds. In contrast, locomotor mode has little explanatory power for either endocranial composition or shape. Brain evolution in musteloids is therefore not uniform: a common scaling pattern dominates, but lineage- and diet-specific adjustments modify how brain regions are proportioned.
Source: Journal of Anatomy
DOI: 10.1111/joa.70226
Institutions: University of Liège, UniLaSalle, Université d'Artois, Southern Utah University, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle, Centre de recherche en paléontologie - Paris, University College London, University of York, Museum für Naturkunde, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Carnegie Museum of Natural History, Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont
Language: English
Subfield: Geometry and Topology
Field: Mathematics
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: green
Funders: National Science Foundation, American Museum of Natural History, Ministerio de Ciencia, Innovación y Universidades, Centres de Recerca de Catalunya, National Natural Science Foundation of China, Generalitat de Catalunya, Fondation Fyssen, Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, Koninklijk Belgisch Instituut voor Natuurwetenschappen, Agència de Gestió d'Ajuts Universitaris i de Recerca, Agencia Estatal de Investigación, European Social Fund, Direcció General de Recerca, Generalitat de Catalunya
Awards: G1105844351, The oUTCT PEN: Outwardly Mobilizing the UTCT Vertebrate Archive for Research and Training, G2064873908, G2140282106, G2462415295, G288263039, G3005324705, G385695093, G4097673074, G4121811399, G491712853, Quantitative Computed Tomography and Histological Analysis of Carnivoran Turbinates, G5635532810, Doctoral Dissertation Research: Encephalic Arterial Canals and their Functional Significance, G5852091828, G593054264, G6656126374, G7805626310, G7863371703, G8497050386
OpenAlex ID: W7204143715