2014/03/25 by J.W.F. Reumer, Clara M. A. ten Broek, Frietson Galis · 31 citations
Earth and Planetary Sciences · Environmental Science · Mathematics · #Anatomy #Biology #Cervical rib #Cervical vertebrae #Evolution and Paleontology Studies #Evolutionary biology #Extant taxon #Incidence (geometry) #Morphological variations and asymmetry #Paleontology #Pleistocene #Rib cage #Vertebra #Vulpes #Wildlife Ecology and Conservation
paper · doi:10.7717/peerj.318
published in PeerJ 2, e318 (PeerJ, Inc.)
openalex publication_date 2014/03/25 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/08/08
The number of cervical vertebrae in mammals is highly conserved at seven. We have shown that changes of this number are selected against due to a coupling with major congenital abnormalities (pleiotropic effects). Here we show that the incidence of abnormal cervical vertebral numbers in Late Pleistocene mammoths from the North Sea is high (33.3%) and approximately 10 times higher than that of extant elephants (3.6%). Abnormal numbers were due to the presence of large cervical ribs on the seventh vertebra, which we deduced from the presence of rib articulation facets on sixth (posterior side) and seventh (anterior side) cervical vertebrae. The incidence of abnormal cervical vertebral numbers in mammoths appears to be much higher than in other mammalian species, apart from exceptional sloths, manatees and dugongs and indicates a vulnerable condition. We argue that the increased incidence of cervical ribs in mammoths is probably caused by inbreeding and adverse conditions that impact early pregnancies in declining populations close to extinction in the Late Pleistocene.