Sex- and age-related morphological and functional differences in the skull of "Eira barbara" (Linnaeus, 1758) (Carnivora, Mustelidae)

Fernando Lencastre Sicuro received financial support from UID Centro de Estudos do Ambiente e do Mar (CESAM) +LA/P/0094/2020 through the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology, FCT/MCTES.

Bibliographic Details
Authors: Perini, Fernando Araujo, Sicuro, Fernando L.
Format: article
Status:Published version
Publication Date:2025
Country:Brasil
Institution:Fundação Oswaldo Cruz (FIOCRUZ)
Repository:Repositório Institucional da FIOCRUZ (ARCA)
Language:English
OAI Identifier:oai:arca.fiocruz.br:icict/72796
Online Access:https://arca.fiocruz.br/handle/icict/72796
Access Level:Open access
Keyword:Sex Characteristics
Mustelidae
Dimorfismo sexual
Guloninae
Ontogenia
Morfometria
Tayra
Neotrópicos
Sexual dimorphism
Ontogeny
Morphometrics
Neotropics
Eira barbara
ecologia
zoologia
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dc.title.none.fl_str_mv Sex- and age-related morphological and functional differences in the skull of "Eira barbara" (Linnaeus, 1758) (Carnivora, Mustelidae)
title Sex- and age-related morphological and functional differences in the skull of "Eira barbara" (Linnaeus, 1758) (Carnivora, Mustelidae)
spellingShingle Sex- and age-related morphological and functional differences in the skull of "Eira barbara" (Linnaeus, 1758) (Carnivora, Mustelidae)
Perini, Fernando Araujo
Sex Characteristics
Mustelidae
Dimorfismo sexual
Guloninae
Ontogenia
Morfometria
Tayra
Neotrópicos
Sexual dimorphism
Guloninae
Ontogeny
Morphometrics
Tayra
Neotropics
Mustelidae
Ontogenia
Eira barbara
ecologia
zoologia
title_short Sex- and age-related morphological and functional differences in the skull of "Eira barbara" (Linnaeus, 1758) (Carnivora, Mustelidae)
title_full Sex- and age-related morphological and functional differences in the skull of "Eira barbara" (Linnaeus, 1758) (Carnivora, Mustelidae)
title_fullStr Sex- and age-related morphological and functional differences in the skull of "Eira barbara" (Linnaeus, 1758) (Carnivora, Mustelidae)
title_full_unstemmed Sex- and age-related morphological and functional differences in the skull of "Eira barbara" (Linnaeus, 1758) (Carnivora, Mustelidae)
title_sort Sex- and age-related morphological and functional differences in the skull of "Eira barbara" (Linnaeus, 1758) (Carnivora, Mustelidae)
dc.creator.none.fl_str_mv Perini, Fernando Araujo
Sicuro, Fernando L.
author Perini, Fernando Araujo
author_facet Perini, Fernando Araujo
Sicuro, Fernando L.
author_role author
author2 Sicuro, Fernando L.
author2_role author
dc.subject.mesh.none.fl_str_mv Sex Characteristics
Mustelidae
topic Sex Characteristics
Mustelidae
Dimorfismo sexual
Guloninae
Ontogenia
Morfometria
Tayra
Neotrópicos
Sexual dimorphism
Guloninae
Ontogeny
Morphometrics
Tayra
Neotropics
Mustelidae
Ontogenia
Eira barbara
ecologia
zoologia
dc.subject.other.none.fl_str_mv Dimorfismo sexual
Guloninae
Ontogenia
Morfometria
Tayra
Neotrópicos
dc.subject.en.none.fl_str_mv Sexual dimorphism
Guloninae
Ontogeny
Morphometrics
Tayra
Neotropics
dc.subject.decs.none.fl_str_mv Mustelidae
Ontogenia
Eira barbara
ecologia
zoologia
description Fernando Lencastre Sicuro received financial support from UID Centro de Estudos do Ambiente e do Mar (CESAM) +LA/P/0094/2020 through the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology, FCT/MCTES.
publishDate 2025
dc.date.accessioned.fl_str_mv 2025-10-14T20:06:16Z
dc.date.issued.fl_str_mv 2025-07-15
dc.type.status.fl_str_mv info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion
dc.type.driver.fl_str_mv info:eu-repo/semantics/article
format article
status_str publishedVersion
dc.identifier.citation.fl_str_mv Perini FA, Sicuro FL. 2025. Sex- and age-related morphological and functional differences in the skull of Eira barbara (Linnaeus, 1758) (Carnivora, Mustelidae). PeerJ 13:e19730 DOI 10.7717/peerj.19730
dc.identifier.uri.fl_str_mv https://arca.fiocruz.br/handle/icict/72796
dc.identifier.issn.none.fl_str_mv 2167-8359
dc.identifier.doi.none.fl_str_mv 10.7717/peerj.19730
identifier_str_mv Perini FA, Sicuro FL. 2025. Sex- and age-related morphological and functional differences in the skull of Eira barbara (Linnaeus, 1758) (Carnivora, Mustelidae). PeerJ 13:e19730 DOI 10.7717/peerj.19730
2167-8359
10.7717/peerj.19730
url https://arca.fiocruz.br/handle/icict/72796
dc.language.iso.fl_str_mv eng
language eng
dc.relation.ispartof.none.fl_str_mv PeerJ
dc.rights.driver.fl_str_mv info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess
eu_rights_str_mv openAccess
dc.publisher.none.fl_str_mv PeerJ
publisher.none.fl_str_mv PeerJ
dc.source.none.fl_str_mv reponame:Repositório Institucional da FIOCRUZ (ARCA)
instname:Fundação Oswaldo Cruz (FIOCRUZ)
instacron:FIOCRUZ
instname_str Fundação Oswaldo Cruz (FIOCRUZ)
instacron_str FIOCRUZ
institution FIOCRUZ
reponame_str Repositório Institucional da FIOCRUZ (ARCA)
collection Repositório Institucional da FIOCRUZ (ARCA)
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spelling 2025-10-14T20:06:16Z2025-07-15Perini FA, Sicuro FL. 2025. Sex- and age-related morphological and functional differences in the skull of Eira barbara (Linnaeus, 1758) (Carnivora, Mustelidae). PeerJ 13:e19730 DOI 10.7717/peerj.197302167-8359https://arca.fiocruz.br/handle/icict/7279610.7717/peerj.19730Fernando Lencastre Sicuro received financial support from UID Centro de Estudos do Ambiente e do Mar (CESAM) +LA/P/0094/2020 through the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology, FCT/MCTES.Departamento de Zoologia, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, MG, Brasil.Instituto de Biologia Roberto Alcantara Gomes, Universidade do Estado do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brasil.lCentro de Estudos do Ambiente e Mar, Universidade de Aveiro, Aveiro, Aveiro, Portugal.Programa Internacional para Ciência, Tecnologia e Inovação em Saúde, Creative Science Park, Ílhavo, Aveiro, Portugal.Background Morphological differences related to age and sex have been extensively documented in Nearctic and Palearctic mustelids, largely due to the interest in the commercial management of species such as martens and fishers. However, sexual dimorphism and ontogenetic development in Neotropical species, such as the tayra (Eira barbara), remain poorly studied. Methods We investigated the skull development and sexual differences in E. barbara through qualitative and morphometric analyses of 376 skull specimens from museum collections. Specimens were classified into four age classes based on tooth eruption, cranial suture closure, and skull morphology. Linear measurements were used to assess biomechanical parameters related to the masticatory function, including temporal and masseter muscle force indices. Results The results show that male and female tayras follow two distinct growth pathways. While juveniles (Age Classes I–II) share nearly identical skull proportions, males rapidly surpass females in size and robustness by the subadult stage (Age Class III). Fully mature males (Age Class IV) develop broader zygomatic arches, thicker sagittal crests, and significantly stronger bite forces driven by enlarged temporal muscles. On the other hand, E. barbara adult females exhibit a narrower post-orbital constriction and palatal region which denotes distinct ontogenetic trajectories between males and females. Multivariate statistical analyses (principal component analysis/discriminant function analysis) confirmed these morphological trends, highlighting allometric growth patterns and functional differences in masticatory biomechanics. Males exhibit greater bite force, particularly in the temporal muscle system, which may be linked to territorial defense or mating behaviors. These findings align with patterns observed in other Guloninae species, such as fishers (Pekania pennanti) and wolverines (Gulo gulo), but highlight unique aspects of E. barbara’s tropical ecology, including non-seasonal breeding, flexible growth patterns, and broad habitat use. Additionally, tayras’ asynchrony in sexual maturity and sexual dimorphism in skull biomechanics may be related to distinct ecological roles for the sexes. We hypothesize that these differences are adaptative responses to the dynamic and resource-rich environments of the Neotropics. Our work underscores the role of ontogenetic and sexual variation in understanding the evolutionary and ecological adaptations of Neotropical mustelids, providing new light on E. barbara’s morphology and masticatory function.engPeerJPeerJSex CharacteristicsMustelidaeDimorfismo sexualGuloninaeOntogeniaMorfometriaTayraNeotrópicosSexual dimorphismGuloninaeOntogenyMorphometricsTayraNeotropicsMustelidaeOntogeniaEira barbaraecologiazoologiaSex- and age-related morphological and functional differences in the skull of "Eira barbara" (Linnaeus, 1758) (Carnivora, Mustelidae)info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersioninfo:eu-repo/semantics/articleinfo:eu-repo/semantics/openAccessreponame:Repositório Institucional da FIOCRUZ (ARCA)instname:Fundação Oswaldo Cruz (FIOCRUZ)instacron:FIOCRUZPerini, Fernando AraujoSicuro, Fernando L.13LICENSElicense.txtlicense.txttext/plain; charset=utf-82991https://arca.fiocruz.br/bitstreams/dbc444a4-be03-4fed-9343-5fbcf0f49306/download5a560609d32a3863062d77ff32785d58MD51falseAnonymousREADORIGINALSicuro peerj-19730.pdfSicuro peerj-19730.pdfapplication/pdf10034402https://arca.fiocruz.br/bitstreams/f453e358-edc9-4557-bf3b-4c9ebd7bba6b/download7cce0a0e4491bbaa551d4c332539a792MD55trueAnonymousREADTEXTSicuro peerj-19730.pdf.txtSicuro peerj-19730.pdf.txtExtracted texttext/plain90214https://arca.fiocruz.br/bitstreams/b16406c8-701a-47e2-8fe8-3aceeec84f56/download5c6dc533dfd2f129a0cb351ae610737eMD510falseAnonymousREADTHUMBNAILSicuro peerj-19730.pdf.jpgSicuro peerj-19730.pdf.jpgGenerated Thumbnailimage/jpeg44254https://arca.fiocruz.br/bitstreams/0daa0eb8-5d80-4868-afef-e55e46f67181/download3bd43ad2594b69f2317c43c3ff98bd2dMD511falseAnonymousREADicict/727962025-12-09 15:15:44.545open.accessoai:arca.fiocruz.br:icict/72796https://arca.fiocruz.brRepositório InstitucionalPUBhttps://www.arca.fiocruz.br/oai/requestrepositorio.arca@fiocruz.bropendoar:21352025-12-09T18:15:44Repositório Institucional da FIOCRUZ (ARCA) - 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