Computational Modeling of Gluteus Medius Muscle Moment Arm in Caviomorph Rodents Reveals Ecomorphological Specializations

The data stored in this repository allow the reproduction of the study described in the following. Vertebrate musculoskeletal locomotion is realized through lever-arm systems. The instantaneous muscle moment arm (IMMA), which is expected to be under selective pressure and thus of interest for ecomorphological studies, is a key aspect of these systems. The IMMA changes with joint motion and its length change is technically difficult to acquire—usually, proxies such as osteological in-levers are used instead—and has not been compared in a larger phylogenetic ecomorphology framework, yet. We used 18 species of the ecologically diverse clade of caviomorph rodents to test whether its diversity is reflected in the IMMA of the hip extensor M. gluteus medius. A large IMMA is beneficial for torque generation; a small IMMA facilitates fast joint excursion. We expected large IMMAs in scansorial species, small IMMAs in fossorial species, and somewhat intermediate IMMAs in cursorial species, dependi...