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本研究填补了国内在熊类形态学研究上的空白,对所获得的四川马熊标本及其他熊类标本进行了初步观察和测量,并将几种熊头骨进行对照研究。描述出四川马熊大体形态学特征是:体粗壮强健,头大躯短,四肢稍长。体重雄性140～160 kg,雌性125～140 kg; 尾短,隐于毛下。雄性乳头2对,雌性乳头3对。前后足均有宽大的脚掌,都具五趾。爪大而弯曲,不能伸缩。毛被长而厚实,有针毛、绒毛之分。毛色分布有棕褐色、黑褐色、棕黄色、白色或黄白色。因这几种色反差明显,俗名“花熊”。头骨大而厚实,骨板粗厚沉重,骨质细密,外观显得狭长形状接近棕熊而与黑熊区别较明显。鼻吻部延长,两性鼻骨长均大于第一上臼齿前头骨宽。头骨上的脊、突起均发达。齿式为3.1.3.2∕3.1.2.3或3.1.4.2∕3.1.2.3。经研究,我们认为四川马熊在分类上应属于棕熊青藏亚种(Ursus arctos pruinosus)的四川分布。

人工驯养野生动物是获取野生动物产品的重要手段，但是非法盗猎的野生动物产品以人工饲养的名义进入市场，就会对野生动物的保护形成挑战。因此，准确鉴别市场上的动物产品是来自养殖场还是野外，是保护野外种群，维持养殖业正常秩序的关键。本研究以北美水貂（Neovison vison）为例，基于颧骨内侧空间（ZAS）、颧宽（ZAA和ZBA）、颅基长（BSL）、下颌长（MDL）、眶后收缩（POC）和最大面部宽度（GFB）等量度，建立了9个头骨形态计量学指标：POC/GFB、POC/BSL、POC/MDL、ZASSQRT/BSL、ZASSQRT/MDL、ZBA×BSL/2ZAS、ZBA×MDL/2ZAS、ZBB×BSL/2ZAS和ZBB×MDL/2ZAS。野生组（n=32，9雄23雌）和饲养组（n=45，35雄10雌）的比较表明，除POC/GFB外，所有指标对于在两组样品之间均有显著差异，整体判别正确率为732%—855%。在性别已知的情况下，雄性的整体正确率为824%—938%，雌性为417%—857%。为此，应针对不同性别、不同来源的动物建立相应的参考数据，利用似然比进行鉴别。本研究的结果不仅可用于北美水貂的鉴别，也为其他小型食肉动物的鉴别提供经验。

为了探讨不同地区北树鼩(Tupaia belangeri)头骨的形态特征,本研究选取12个采样地:三亚、大新、乐业、兴义、河口、昆明、西昌、勐腊、大理、片马、腾冲和禄劝,采用主成分分析、薄片样条分析和多维尺度分析研究各采样地北树鼩上颌骨的背面、侧面、腹面和下颌侧面的形态。结果表明:主成分分析显示采样地中北树鼩头骨背面、侧面、腹面和下颌侧面中8个地区(乐业、兴义、何口、昆明、西昌、大理、勐腊和禄劝)的头骨侧面聚集为一枝,三亚和大新各为一枝,片马和腾冲聚集为一枝。薄片样条分析显示不同地区北树鼩头骨背面中颧弓、鼻骨和眼眶为形变多发生的部位; 头骨侧面中眼眶、鼻骨、颧骨和前臼齿为形变多发生的部位; 头骨腹面中听泡、第一臼齿上颌骨外侧最内凹点和第一臼齿齿冠内侧缘点为形变多发生的部位; 下颌侧面中角突前最上凹点、下颌中部最低点和臼齿齿槽为形变多发生的部位。多维尺度分析显示12个地区北树鼩头骨有一定差异,这可能与分布、海拔和地理阻隔有关。

In the present study, postnatal ontogenetic size and shape changes in the cranium of two lagomorph species, the plateau pika （Ochotona curzoniae） and woolly hare （Lepus oiostolus）, were investigated by geometric morphometrics. The ontogenetic size and shape changes of their cranium exhibited different growth patterns in response to similar environmental pressures on the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau. The overall size change in the cranium of the plateau pika was slower than that of the woolly hare. The percentage of ontogenetic shape variance explained by size in the woolly hare was greater than that in the plateau pika. The overall shape of the cranium was narrowed in both species, and morphological components in relation to neural maturity showed negative allometry, while those responsible for muscular development showed isometric or positive allometry. The most remarkable shape variations in the plateau pika were associated with food acquisition （temporalis development）, though other remarkable shape variations

The skull and mandible of a Late Miocene fossil pig, Chleuastochoerus, are compared morphologically with those of extant pigs and peccaries, and subjected to a functional analysis. The presence of a rostral bone in the skull and relatively strong ros- tral muscles indicates that Chleuastochoerus possessed considerable digging ability, though the relatively narrow occipital surface and the shortness of the skull would have restricted the range of motion through which the skull could be swung. The distinctive pre-zygomatic plate and over-canine arch-niche may have played a role in protecting the skull and canines during digging. The massive masticatory muscles, reconstructed based on well-developed parietal and zygomatic crests, would have enabled the mouth to close quickly and contributed to moving the mandible both longitudinally and laterally. The configura- tion of the cranio-mandibular joint and its relatively high position show clearly that Chleuastochoerus was capable of both crushing and grinding movements during mastication. The comparatively simple structure of the crown surfaces of the cheek teeth suggests that the food of Chleuastochoerus may have been softer than that of extant suids. The diet of Chleuastochoerus is postulated to fall between those of true forest pigs and open habitat pigs, and the habitat of Chleuastochoerus to be relatively humid forest edge or nearby areas of open steppe.

A new species of Tsaidamotherium （Bovidae, Artiodactyla）, T. brevirostrum, described here represents only the second dis covery of the genus. Tsaidamotherium is a midsized late Miocene bovid with an oddlooking platelike horncore apparatus so far known only from northwestern China. The holotype of T. brevirostrum is a cranial part of skull from the Liushu Formation （late Miocene） of the Linxia Basin. The new species differs from the type species, T. bohlini, mainly in horncore morphology, having the frontal horncores proper much smaller and less distinctly separated from the plateshaped posterior portion. Fur thermore, the new species has smaller frontal sinuses, but a thicker layer of compact bone beneath the horncore apparatus as seen in frontal section. A complete skull with a smaller horncore apparatus is considered to represent a female individual of T. brevirostrum. The facial part of the skull, which is first known for this genus, is very short and high, with a high nasal cavity, strongly retracted nasals, and shortened premaxillae and premolar rows. All this probably suggests that the animal with an en larged nasal cavity, like the modern Saiga and Budorcas, may have had a special adaptation to the high plateau environment.

Micrastur semitorquatus é popularmente conhecido como falcão-relógio, habitante das florestas da região Neotropical. Estudos sobre sua osteologia craniana são escassos na literatura. Procurou-se, neste trabalho, descrever sua osteologia craniana e, com base nesta descrição, comparar com outras espécies de aves de rapina, buscando ampliar o conhecimento sobre a anatomia dessa espécie. Foram utilizados três espécimes de M. semitorquatus, que fazem parte da coleção osteológica da Bird Division at the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History (USNM), Washington, DC, EUA (USNM: 245788, USNM 013493 e USNM 289773). Apesar da relação entre a forma de uma estrutura e sua função não seja completamente estabelecida, muitas das adaptações do crânio de M. semitorquatus podem estar relacionadas aos seus hábitos de vida e comportamento, como o estreitamento da largura interorbital,; a robustez da pila supranasal aliado ao procinetismo do cranio; um desenvolvido processo pós-orbital, e a expansão do palatino. Além disso, a osteologia craniana de M. semitorquatus pode fornecer caracteres úteis à análise cladística, podendo sustentar hipóteses de relacionamento filogenético dessa espécie com outras do mesmo gênero ou da mesma família. Micrastur semitorquatus, popularly known as Collared Forest-Falcon is an inhabitant of the rainforests of the Neotropical Region. Studies on the cranial osteology are scarce in the literature. To increase the knowledge about the anatomy of this species its cranial osteology was described and compared with other species of birds of prey. Three specimens of M. semitorquatus were examined at the Bird Division of the osteological collection at the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History (USNM), Washington, DC (USNM: 245788, USNM 013493 and USNM 289773). Although the relationship between the form of a structure and its function is not fully established, many of the adaptations of the skull of M. semitorquatus may be related to this lifestyle and behavior, such as narrowing of the interorbital width, the robustness of pila supranasalis coupled with the prokinesis of the skull, a process developed post-orbital, and palatine expansion. In addition, the cranial osteology of M. semitorquatus can provide useful characters for cladistic analysis, sustaining the hypothesis of phylogenetic relationships with other species of the same genus or the same family.

Here we report the first discovery of a relatively complete skull of Choerolophodon from the late early Miocene Dalanggou quarry of Linxia Basin, Gansu Province in China. The skull is low and elongated, with two enamel-less and outward-and-upward curved incisors and the choerolophodont molars. These characters indicate that the new specimen can be assigned to the genus Choerolophodon, as it is quite distinct from other common gomphotheres in northern China such as Gomphotherium, Platybelodon, and Sinomastodon. The skull is also primitive in possessing laterally-expanded zygomatic arches, anteriorly-positioned orbits, weakly-developed cheek teeth cement, and retention of a P4. Prior to this discovery, Choerolophodon was found primarily from the middle-late Miocene of Africa, Eastern Europe, and western and southern Asia. The discovery of this new material expands the known temporal and spatial distributions of this taxon and helps us better understand the phylogeny, evolution, and adaptive radiation of gomphotheres in early Miocene of China.