Ecological and phylogenetic influences on maxillary dentition in snakes

Abstract

Ecological and phylogenetic influences on maxillary dentition in snakes. The maxillary dentition of snakes was used as a system with which to investigate the relative importance of the interacting forces of ecological selective pressures and phylogenetic constraints in determining morphology. The maxillary morphology of three groups of snakes having different diets, with each group comprising two distinct lineages-boids and colubroids-was examined. Our results suggest that dietary selective pressures may be more significant than phylogenetic history in shaping maxillary morphology.

Keywords

• Serpentes
• dentition
• diet
• ecology
• evolution
• morphology