The Tammar Wallaby: A Model Organism for Fetal-Stage Growth Manipulation

Abstract

The developing mammal is incredibly plastic in its ability to cope with diminished or excessive resources, and to modify its growth trajectory and developmental progress accordingly. Possibly the best example of this are the classic experiments of Walton and Hammond and later by Allen et al. that demonstrate the rapid and excessive growth of ponies gestated in thoroughbred horses and the opposite effect of horses gestated in ponies.