MORPHOMETRICAL STUDIES ON THE CARPAL BONES OF INDIAN BLACKBUCK (ANTILOPE CERVICAPRA).

The present study has been carried out on the carpal bones of Indian blackbuck. The carpal bones consisted of six short bones arranged in two transverse rows one above the other. The bones of the proximal row from medial to lateral were: radial carpal or scaphoid, intermediate carpal or semilunar, ulnar carpal or cuneiform and accessory carpal or pisiform. The bones of the distal row were second and third fused carpal or os magnum and fourth carpal or unciform. The radial carpal bone was the medial-most of the proximal row and presented six surfaces. The intermediate carpal bone was wedge shaped, being constricted in middle and wide in front. The ulnar carpal was outermost irregular bone situated lateral to the intermediate carpal. The accessory carpal was a short, medially curved bone. It was placed behind the ulnar carpal. In the distal row, the fused second and third carpal bone was situated medially and was larger than fourth carpal. The fourth carpal bone was smaller of the two bones of the distal row. It was roughly quadrilateral in outline and decreased in thickness cranio-caudally. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]