Leveraging functional morphology to increase accuracy of body mass estimation: A study using canids

Body mass is an important facet of reconstructing the paleobiology of fossil species, and has, historically, been estimated from individual skeletal measurements. This paper demonstrates the potential advantages of estimating body mass using 3D geometric morphometrics on limb bones, which allows size to be explicitly contextualized within the functional morphology of the animal. Geometric morphometrics of the humerus and femur is used to estimate body mass in domestic dogs and wild canids, and the resulting estimates are compared to estimates made using limb bone dimensions and centroid size. In both groups, 3D methods produced more accurate estimates of body mass than linear dimensions. Additionally, centroid size was a poor predictor of body mass and should not be preferred over linear measurements. The use of 3D methods also reveals specific aspects of shape that are associated with different sizes. In general, relatively heavier individuals were associated with more robust bones and..., , , # Leveraging functional morphology to increase accuracy of body mass estimation: A study using canids

[https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.tx95x6b78](https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.tx95x6b78)

## Description of the data and file structure

This data was collected in order to compare the precision of body mass estimation methods, with a focus on testing how 3D geometric morphometric methods compare to element dimensions.

### Files and variables

#### File: Supplemental\_data.xlsx

**Description:** Raw humeri and femur measurements. Data is split into 3 groups: domestic dogs, wild canids, and fossil canids. Domestic dogs were measured digitally from CT scans in 3D Slicer, wild and fossil canids were measured from physical specimens using calipers. All measurements are in mm.

##### Variables

* HGL - humerus greatest length
* HDB - humerus distal breadth
* HPD - humerus proximal depth
* FGL - femur greatest length
* FHbr - femur head breadth
* FPB - femur proximal breadth
* N/A - Not Available...