ArticleJournal of anatomy2017
Barn owls maximize head rotations by a combination of yawing and rolling in functionally diverse regions of the neck.
Article in Journal of anatomy, 2017. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 18 papers.
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Who cites it
18 citing papers in PubMed.
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- A new twist in the evolution of chameleons uncovers an extremely specialized optic nerve morphology.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- Centres of rotation and osteological constraints on caudal ranges of motion in the sauropod dinosaurRoyal Society open science · 2025Article
- Motion Coupling at the Cervical Vertebral Joints in the Horse-An Ex Vivo Study Using Bone-Anchored Markers.Animals : an open access journal from MDPI · 2025Article
- Analysis of morphological parameters of vertebrae in domestic geese and ducks.Frontiers in veterinary science · 2025Article
- Article
- Research on motion characterization of goose neck in narrow space.Frontiers in veterinary science · 2024Article
- The functional significance of aberrant cervical counts in sloths: insights from automated exhaustive analysis of cervical range of motion.Proceedings. Biological sciences · 2023Article
- Owl-Neck-Spine-Inspired, Additively Manufactured, Joint Assemblies with Shape Memory Alloy Wire Actuators.Biomimetics (Basel, Switzerland) · 2023Article
- In Vivo Analysis of the Dynamic Motion Stability Characteristics of Geese's Neck.Biomimetics (Basel, Switzerland) · 2022Article
- Optocollic responses in adult barn owls (Tyto furcata).Journal of comparative physiology. A, Neuroethology, sensory, neural, and behavioral physiology · 2022Article
- How the even-toed ungulate vertebral column works: Comparison of intervertebral mobility in 33 genera.Journal of anatomy · 2021Article
- Modeling intervertebral articulation: The rotule à doigt mechanical joint (RAD) in birds and mammals.Journal of anatomy · 2021Article
- Evolutionary versatility of the avian neck.Proceedings. Biological sciences · 2021Article
- Vertebral pneumaticity is correlated with serial variation in vertebral shape in storks.Journal of anatomy · 2021Article
- A mechanistic approach for the calculation of intervertebral mobility in mammals based on vertebrae osteometry.Journal of anatomy · 2021Article
- Homeotic transformations reflect departure from the mammalian 'rule of seven' cervical vertebrae in sloths: inferences on the Hox code and morphological modularity of the mammalian neck.BMC evolutionary biology · 2018Article
- Experimental determination of three-dimensional cervical joint mobility in the avian neck.Frontiers in zoology · 2017Article
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5 authors.
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No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Owls are known for their outstanding neck mobility: these birds can rotate their heads more than 270°. The anatomical basis of this extraordinary neck rotation ability is not well understood. We used X-ray fluoroscopy of living owls as well as forced neck rotations in dead specimens and computer tomographic (CT) reconstructions to study how the individual cervical joints contribute to head rotation in barn owls (Tyto furcata pratincola). The X-ray data showed the natural posture of the neck, and the reconstructions of the CT-scans provided the shapes of the individual vertebrae. Joint mobility was analyzed in a spherical coordinate system. The rotational capability was described as rotation about the yaw and roll axes. The analyses suggest a functional division of the cervical spine into several regions. Most importantly, an upper region shows high rolling and yawing capabilities. The mobility of the lower, more horizontally oriented joints of the cervical spine is restricted mainly to the roll axis. These rolling movements lead to lateral bending, effectively resulting in a side shift of the head compared with the trunk during large rotations. The joints in the middle of the cervical spine proved to contribute less to head rotation. The analysis of joint mobility demonstrated how owls might maximize horizontal head rotation by a specific and variable combination of yawing and rolling in functionally diverse regions of the neck.
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