Tail length

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The tail length is a body measurement and describes the length of the tail of land vertebrates from the base of the tail to the end of the skin over the last caudal vertebra. The standard measure is used especially in mammals . Hair that protrudes from the beet is not measured; Tail tassels can, however, also be specified. In some cases, the head-torso length is subtracted from the measured total length in order to determine the tail length.

The actual tail root, the joint between the sacrum and the first caudal vertebra , lies between the pelvic wings and can only be exposed through a skin incision and the removal of connective and muscle tissue . This is too expensive, especially when examining large series. Therefore, the anus or the externally visible root of the tail are often used as the front measuring point , which can lead to different and more fluctuating measurements. In old-world mice, for example, the anus is often only located below the fourth to sixth caudal vertebra. In addition, the tail, which is under a certain tension due to muscles and tendons , even in dead animals, can not be bent at right angles and straightened, especially at its attachment point.

Sufficiently accurate measurement results cannot usually be obtained on living animals. Measurement on freshly dead animals is recommended. After the rigor mortis , the tail can be due to slack belts slightly long pull, so that the measured length then usually greater than immediately after death. The measurement process can damage the tail of some species of mice , as the tail skin loosens with light pressure.

literature

  • Fritz Dieterlen : Classification, taxonomic features, dimensions and technical terms . In: Monika Braun, Fritz Dieterlen (Hrsg.): Die Säugetiere Baden-Württemberg. Volume 1 . Eugen Ulmer, Stuttgart 2003, ISBN 3-8001-3282-6 , pp. 299-310 .
  • Doris Freudig, Rolf Sauermost (Ed.): Lexicon of Biology. Volume 12: Reso to Sim . Spektrum Akademischer Verlag (Elsevier), Heidelberg 2003, ISBN 3-8274-0337-5 .
  • Martin Görner, Hans Hackethal: Mammals of Europe: Observe and determine . Ferdinand Enke / Deutscher Taschenbuch-Verlag, Stuttgart / Munich 1988, ISBN 3-432-96461-7 (or ISBN 3-423-03265-0 licensed edition).
  • E. Raymond Hall, Keith R. Kelson: The Mammals of North America . The Ronald Press Company, New York 1959.
  • Joachim Jenrich, Paul-Walter Löhr, Franz Müller: Small mammals: body and skull features, ecology . Michael Imhof, Fulda 2010, ISBN 978-3-86568-147-8 .
  • Erna Mohr: The free-living rodents in Germany and neighboring countries . 3. Edition. VEB Gustav Fischer, Jena 1954.
  • Jochen Niethammer, Franz Krapp (Hrsg.): Handbook of mammals in Europe. Volume 1: Rodents I . Akademische Verlagsgesellschaft, Wiesbaden 1978, ISBN 3-400-00458-8 .
  • Matthias Schaefer: Brohmer: Fauna of Germany . 21st edition. Quelle and Meyer, Wiebelsheim 2002, ISBN 3-494-01326-8 .

Remarks

  1. According to Freudig and Sauermost (2003, "Tail"), fish do not have a tail morphologically.
  2. a b c d e Niethammer and Krapp, 1978 (p. 46)
  3. ^ Hall and Kelson, 1959 (p. 1040)
  4. Schaefer, 2002 (p. I)
  5. a b Mohr, 1954 (pp. 73–74)
  6. Dieterlen, 2003 (p. 304)
  7. Mohr, 1954 (p. 73)
  8. a b c Jenrich and coworkers, 2010 (p. 16)
  9. Görner and Hackethal, 1988 [1987] (pp. 12-13)
  10. ^ Mohr, 1954 (p. 76)