Derek den Ouden, Paleosoricidologist

@denoudenderek.bsky.social

136 Followers 163 Following

Evo Bio PhD student @ASU. Paleo MS @ETSU, Bio+Geo BS @IowaStateU. Trying to tame shrews, enjoyer of all Cenozoic oddballs. He/him, views mine.

Sevenfingered threadfin (Polydactylus virginicus) from iNaturalist user kenman2000
Dorsal view of the skull of Notoryctes typhlops, showing elevated and rugose nasals. From Digimorph.
Photograph of a zebra-tailed lizard (Callisaurus draconoides) standing on a rock.
A scientific plot showing the faces of multiple monkey (cercopithecines specifically) alongside two Dr. Seuss creatures: the Foot Book creature and the Lorax. The Lorax appears to plot somewhat closer to the patas monkey ( Erythrocebus patas). From: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41559-018-0628-x
Big Al the Aldabra giant tortoise, grazing on grass and banana leaves
Photo of an Assam Mole Shrew (Anourosorex assamensis) running. Photo is from iNaturalist user abizid
Painting of a Japanese giant squirrel by artist Kawahara Keiga. It has wings like a dragon for some reason.
A diagram depicting the respiratory system of Typhlonectes natans, showing relatively normal lungs (albeit the left lung is notably smaller than the right) plus an expansion of the trachea. This expansion acts as an additional lung, compensating for the small size of the left lung. Figure is from Prabha et al., 2000. Ventilatory Mechanics and the Effects of Water Depth on Breathing Pattern in the Aquatic Caecilian Typhlonectes Natans.
Video from Volodin et al., 2012. Measuring airborne components of seismic body vibrations in a Middle-Asian sand-dwelling Insectivora species, the piebald shrew (Diplomesodon pulchellum). Journal of Experimental Biology 215, 2849-2852.
Type material of Amblycoptus oligodon, including multiple views of the upper and lower dentition. Figure from Kormos,I. (1926). Amblycoptus oligodon n. g. & n. sp. Eine neue Spitzmaus aus dem ungarischen Pliozan. Annales Historic-naturales Muse Nationalis Hungaricio, 24: 352-370.
Upper and lower jaw in multiple views of Kordosia topali. Figure from Mészáros, L. G. (1997). Kordosia, a new genus for some Late Miocene Amblycoptini shrews (Mammalia, Insectivora). Neues Jahrbuch für Geologie und Paläontologie-Monatshefte, 1997(2), 65-78.
The holotype left dentary of Arctisorex polaris, with occlusal view of the second and third lower molars. Figure modified from: Hutchison, J. H., & Harington, C. R. (2002). A peculiar new fossil shrew (Lipotyphla, Soricidae) from the High Arctic of Canada. Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences, 39(4), 439-443.
Upper cheek teeth of Promylagaulus riggsi, an early diverging mylagaulid with more typical rodent teeth. From McGrew, 1941