Ecomorphology reveals Euler spiral of mammalian whiskers.

Journal article

Dougill, G., Starostin, E.L., Milne, A.O., van der Heijden, G.H.M., Goss, G.A. and Grant, R.A. (2020). Ecomorphology reveals Euler spiral of mammalian whiskers. Journal of morphology. https://doi.org/10.1002/jmor.21246
AuthorsDougill, G., Starostin, E.L., Milne, A.O., van der Heijden, G.H.M., Goss, G.A. and Grant, R.A.
AbstractWhiskers are present in many species of mammals. They are specialised vibrotactile sensors that sit within strongly innervated follicles. Whisker size and shape will affect the mechanical signals that reach the follicle, and hence the information that reaches the brain. However, whisker size and shape have not been quantified across mammals before. Using a novel method for describing whisker curvature, this study quantifies whisker size and shape across 19 mammalian species. We find that gross two-dimensional whisker shape is relatively conserved across mammals. Indeed, whiskers are all curved, tapered rods that can be summarised by Euler spiral models of curvature and linear models of taper, which has implications for whisker growth and function. We also observe that aquatic and semi-aquatic mammals have relatively thicker, stiffer, and more highly tapered whiskers than arboreal and terrestrial species. In addition, smaller mammals tend to have relatively long, slender, flexible whiskers compared to larger species. Therefore, we propose that whisker morphology varies between larger aquatic species, and smaller scansorial species. These two whisker morphotypes are likely to induce quite different mechanical signals in the follicle, which has implications for follicle anatomy as well as whisker function. [Abstract copyright: © 2020 The Authors. Journal of Morphology published by Wiley Periodicals LLC.]
Keywordscurvature; mechanoreception; morphology; touch; vibrissae
Year2020
JournalJournal of morphology
PublisherWiley
ISSN1097-4687
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)https://doi.org/10.1002/jmor.21246
Funder/ClientEngineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC)
Publication dates
Online01 Aug 2020
Publication process dates
Accepted18 Jul 2020
Deposited17 Aug 2020
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Open
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