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Updated: Sep 16, 2025

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A Geometric Morphometric Study of Scapular Ontogeny in Modern Humans.

Erica Noble1, John Hawks1

  • 1Department of Anthropology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Wisconsin, USA.

American Journal of Biological Anthropology
|July 8, 2025
PubMed
Summary

Human scapula growth shows significant shape changes during development, with juvenile forms differing from adults and great apes. This research aids in understanding human evolution and interpreting fossil records.

Keywords:
developmenthominin evolutionhuman growthshoulder

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Area of Science:

  • Paleoanthropology
  • Human Anatomy
  • Developmental Biology

Background:

  • Previous studies on human scapular ontogeny exist, but none have utilized 3D geometric morphometrics exclusively on human data.
  • Understanding human scapular development is crucial for interpreting the immature hominin fossil record.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To quantify the size and shape changes of the human scapula throughout ontogeny.
  • To enhance the understanding of human growth trajectories.
  • To improve analyses of immature hominin fossils.

Main Methods:

  • Utilized deidentified CT scans of human non-adults and adults from The Cancer Imaging Archive.
  • Placed 21 digital landmarks on the scapula.
  • Analyzed data using linear regression and 3D geometric morphometrics.

Main Results:

  • Scapula size increases faster than body size proxies (femur head diameter) during growth.
  • Features distinguishing human from great ape scapulae, like the scapular spine angle, change during development.
  • Juvenile scapulae exhibit more laterally oriented scapular spines compared to adults, suggesting a developmental convergence towards the adult human form from a distinct ancestral shape.

Conclusions:

  • The study enhances understanding of human shoulder development and the interpretation of juvenile hominin scapulae.
  • Juvenile human scapulae morphology appears less adapted for arboreal locomotion compared to adults, despite more frequent climbing behavior in juveniles.
  • Further comparative analyses are needed to explore the evolutionary or functional drivers behind these developmental patterns.