Subject: abstract - arterial system of sperm whale (fwd)
Mike Williamson (pita@www1.wheelock.edu)
Mon, 27 Oct 1997 23:20:37 -0500 (EST)
To: MARMAM@UVVM.UVIC.CA
Subject: abstract - arterial system of sperm whale
Melnikov, V.V. 1997. The arterial system of the sperm whale
(_Physeter macrocephalus_). Journal of Morphology 234: 37-50.
The angioarchitecture of the sperm whale is basically similar to that
of other mammals, but it has specific attributes associated with the
aquatic environment of this animal and its tolerance for deep and long
diving. Specialized features include an expansive aortic arch,
unusually far anterior localization of the arch, symmetrical branching
of common carotid and subclavian arteries from the aorta, the
absence of direct connection between internal carotid arteries and
brain arteries, the absence of a costocervical artery, and the
presence of a well-developed occipital artery. The sperm whale has
extraordinarily well-developed retia mirabilia, distributed in the
cranial cavity, vertebral canal, neck and thoracic cavity, around the
optic nerve, and in the walls of the uterus. These retia are more
extensively developed in the sperm whale than in any other cetacean
previously studied.