An Introduction to an Evolutionary Tail: EvoDevo, Structure, and Function of Post-Anal Appendages

Although tails are common and versatile appendages that contribute to evolutionary success of animals in a broad range of ways, a scientific synthesis on the topic is yet to be initiated. For our Society for Integrative and Comparative Biology (SICB) symposium, we brought together researchers from different areas of expertise (e.g., roboticists, biomechanists, functional morphologists, and evolutionary and developmental biologists), to highlight their research but also to emphasise the interdisciplinary nature of this topic. The four main themes that emerged based on the research presented in this symposium are: (1) How do we define a tail?, (2) Development and regeneration inform evolutionary origins of tails, (3) Identifying key characteristics highlights functional morphology of tails, and (4) Tail multi-functionality leads to the development of bioinspired technology. We discuss the research provided within this symposium, in light of these four themes. We showcase the broad diversity of current tail research and lay an important foundational framework for future interdisciplinary research on tails with this timely symposium.