Carpal bones and Tarsal bones in Korean Chinese water deer (Hydropotes inermis argyropus, Heude 1884)

Abstract

Hydropotes inermis argyropus, Chinese water deer living in Korea, belongs to Order of Artiodactyla and Family of Cervidae. However, it was regarded as a primitive deer in its large laniary canine teeth and the absence of antlers. Carpal bone and tarsal bone are different in their number among animals even in Cervidae caused by absent or fusion between them. So, the shape and number of carpal bones and tarsal bones were used for the morphological feature in determining Cervidae affinities. We investigated the carpal bone and tarsal bones in skeletons in 11 H. inermis arygyropus. Their body weights were above 10 kg. 10 H. inermis arygyropus had 7 carpal bones that were consisted of radial carpal, intermediate carpal, ulnar carpal, and accessory carpal bone in proximal row, firs carpal bone, fused second and third carpal bones, and fourth carpal bone in distal row. This arrangement and articulation with antebrachium, metacarpal and each other was similar with other telemetacarpal type deer. 5 tarsal bones were shown in 10 animals. Calcaneus and talus consist of proximal row, the first tarsal, fused second and third tarsal bones, and fused centroquartal bone in distal row. The arrangement and number of tarsal bone are similar with other Cervidae except Pudu, Muntiacus, and Elaphodus. There is no sesamoid bone which was observed occasionally in small ruminants. One female had one more carpal bone and tarsal bone that might be considered as the fifth carpal bone and the fifth tarsal bone with regarding the location and references. These bones were so tiny with size of 2.0×1.5×1.0mm.These results suggest that H. inermis arygyropus could be a good deer to study on the limb skeleton in phylogenetic research.This study was supported by Korea Research Foundation