32. Vertebrates
Chordates
Problem 15c
Textbook Question
Textbook QuestionThe size and shape of the vertebrate skull can reveal a great deal about an animal's lifestyle and evolutionary relationships. Consider your own skull. If you put your finger in your ear and move your jaw up and down, you can feel the space near the hinge of your jaw. Nestled in this space are the tiny bones that make your hearing possible: the malleus, incus, and stapes. All mammals have these three ear bones, but reptiles such as this T. rex don't. Where did ear bones come from? Researchers studied mice embryos as a model organism to determine whether the cells of the ear bones originated from the same embryonic cells as the cells that form the jaw in other vertebrates. Why would the researchers use mice instead of humans? Do the results from mice tell you something about your own ears? Why or why not?

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