In most vertebrates, locomotor activity begins at the time hatching or birth. Although handicapped by small size, rapidly growing tissues, and naiveté, juveniles of most species must maneuver in the same environment and avoid the same predators as adults.
OUR STUDIES
Carrier, D. R. (1983). Postnatal ontogeny of the musculo-skeletal system in the Black-tailed jack rabbit (Lepus californicus). J. Zool. (Lond.) 201, 27-55. Full text of this article in PDF
Carrier, D. R. and L. R. Leon. (1990). Skeletal growth and function in the California Gull. J. Zool., (Lond.) 222, 375-389. Full text of the article in PDF
Carrier, D. R. and J. Auriemma. (1992). A developmental constraint on the fledging time of birds. Biol. J. Linn. Soc. 47, 61-77. Full text of this article in PDF
Carrier, D. R. (1995). Ontogeny of jumping performance in the black-tailed jackrabbit (Lepus californicus). Zoology 98, 309-313. Full text of this article in PDF
Carrier, D. R. (1996). Ontogenetic limits on locomotor performance. Physiol. Zool. 69, 467-488. Full text of this article in PDF
Walter, R. M. and D. R. Carrier. (2002). Scaling of rotational inertia in murine rodents and two species of lizard. J. Exp. Biol. 205, 2135-2141. Full text of this article in PDF
Dial T. R. and D. R. Carrier. (2012). Precocial hindlimbs and altricial forelimbs: partitioning ontogenetic strategies in Mallard ducks (Anas platyrhynchos). J. Exp. Biol. 215, 3703-3710. Full text of this article in PDF
SELECTED STUDIES ON THIS TOPIC BY OTHER AUTHORS
Brear, K., Currey, J. D. and Pond, C. M. (1990). Ontogenetic changes in the mechanical properties of the femur of the polar bear Ursus maritimus. Journal of Zoology 222, 49-58.
Eilam, D. A. V. I. D. (1997). Postnatal development of body architecture and gait in several rodent species. Journal of Experimental Biology 200, 1339-1350.
Heinrich, R. E., Ruff, C. B. andAdamczewski, J. Z. (1999). Ontogenetic changes in mineralization and bone geometry in the femur of muskoxen (Ovibos moschatus). Journal of Zoology 247, 215-223.
Hale, M. E. (1999). Locomotor mechanics during early life history: effects of size and ontogeny on fast-start performance of salmonid fishes. The Journal of experimental biology 202, 1465-1479.
Currey, J. D. (1999). The design of mineralised hard tissues for their mechanical functions. Journal of Experimental Biology 202, 3285-3294.
Irschick, D. J. (2000). Effects of behaviour and ontogeny on the locomotor performance of a West Indian lizard, Anolis lineatopus. Functional Ecology 14, 438-444.
Erickson, G. M. and Tumanova, T. A. (2000). Growth curve of Psittacosaurus mongoliensis Osborn (Ceratopsia: Psittacosauridae) inferred from long bone histology. Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 130, 551-566.
RICQLÈS, A. J., PADIAN, K., HORNER, J. R. and FRANCILLON‐VIEILLOT, H. É. L. È. N. E. (2000). Palaeohistology of the bones of pterosaurs (Reptilia: Archosauria): anatomy, ontogeny, and biomechanical implications. Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 129, 349-385.
Wilson, R. S., Franklin, C. E. and James, R. S. (2000). Allometric scaling relationships of jumping performance in the striped marsh frog Limnodynastes peronii. Journal of Experimental Biology 203, 1937-1946.
Quillin, K. J. (2000). Ontogenetic scaling of burrowing forces in the earthworm Lumbricus terrestris. Journal of Experimental Biology 203, 2757-2770.
Lammers, A. R. and German, R. Z. (2002). Ontogenetic allometry in the locomotor skeleton of specialized half-bounding mammals. Journal of Zoology 258, 485-495.
Azizi, E. and Landberg, T. (2002). Effects of metamorphosis on the aquatic escape response of the two-lined salamander (Eurycea bislineata). Journal of Experimental Biology 205, 841-849.
Trillmich, F., Bieneck, M., Geissler, E. and Bischof, H. J. (2003). Ontogeny of running performance in the wild guinea pig (Cavia aperea). Mammalian Biology-Zeitschrift für Säugetierkunde 68, 214-223.
Skedros, J. G., Hunt, K. J., Hughes, P. E. and Winet, H. (2003). Ontogenetic and regional morphologic variations in the turkey ulna diaphysis: implications for functional adaptation of cortical bone. The Anatomical Record Part A: Discoveries in Molecular, Cellular, and Evolutionary Biology 273, 609-629.
Main, R. P. and Biewener, A. A. (2004). Ontogenetic patterns of limb loading, in vivo bone strains and growth in the goat radius. Journal of Experimental Biology 207, 2577-2588.
Skedros, J. G., Hunt, K. J. and Bloebaum, R. D. (2004). Relationships of loading history and structural and material characteristics of bone: development of the mule deer calcaneus. Journal of morphology 259, 281-307.
Young, J. W. (2005). Ontogeny of muscle mechanical advantage in capuchin monkeys (Cebus albifrons and Cebus apella). Journal of Zoology 267, 351-362.
Schilling, N. (2005). Ontogenetic development of locomotion in small mammals-a kinematic study. Journal of experimental biology 208, 4013-4034.
Adolph, K. E. and Berger, S. E. (2006). Motor development. Handbook of child psychology.
Noren, S. R., Biedenbach, G. and Edwards, E. F. (2006). Ontogeny of swim performance and mechanics in bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus). Journal of Experimental Biology 209, 4724-4731.
Husak, J. F. (2006). Does speed help you survive? A test with collared lizards of different ages. Functional Ecology 20, 174-179.
Herrel, A. and Gibb, A. C. (2006). Ontogeny of Performance in Vertebrates. Physiological and biochemical Zoology 79, 1-6.
Herrel, A. and O’Reilly, J. C. (2006). Ontogenetic Scaling of Bite Force in Lizards and Turtles. Physiological and Biochemical Zoology 79, 31-42.
Gibb, A. C., Swanson, B. O., Wesp, H., Landels, C. and Liu, C. (2006). Development of the Escape Response in Teleost Fishes: Do Ontogenetic Changes Enable Improved Performance?. Physiological and Biochemical Zoology 79, 7-19.
Kirkton, S. D. and Harrison, J. F. (2006). Ontogeny of locomotory behaviour in the American locust, Schistocerca americana: from marathoner to broad jumper. Animal Behaviour 71, 925-931.
Main, R. P. and Biewener, A. A. (2006). In Vivo Bone Strain and Ontogenetic Growth Patterns in Relation to Life‐History Strategies and Performance in Two Vertebrate Taxa: Goats and Emu. Physiological and Biochemical Zoology 79, 57-72.
Schilling, N. and Petrovitch, A. (2006). Postnatal allometry of the skeleton in Tupaia glis (Scandentia: Tupaiidae) and Galea musteloides (Rodentia: Caviidae)–A test of the three-segment limb hypothesis. Zoology 109, 148-163.
Main, R. P. and Biewener, A. A. (2007). Skeletal strain patterns and growth in the emu hindlimb during ontogeny. Journal of Experimental Biology 210, 2676-2690.
Miller, C. E., Basu, C., Fritsch, G., Hildebrandt, T. and Hutchinson, J. R. (2008). Ontogenetic scaling of foot musculoskeletal anatomy in elephants. Journal of The Royal Society Interface 5, 465-475.
Young, J. W. (2008). Ontogeny of locomotion in Saimiri boliviensis and Callithrix jacchus: implications for primate locomotor ecology and evolution. ProQuest.
Jackson, B. E., Segre, P. and Dial, K. P. (2009). Precocial development of locomotor performance in a ground-dwelling bird (Alectoris chukar): negotiating a three-dimensional terrestrial environment. Proceedings of the Royal Society of London B: Biological Sciences, rspb20090794.
Garwicz, M., Christensson, M. and Psouni, E. (2009). A unifying model for timing of walking onset in humans and other mammals. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 106, 21889-21893.
Young, J. W. (2009). Ontogeny of joint mechanics in squirrel monkeys (Saimiri boliviensis): functional implications for mammalian limb growth and locomotor development. Journal of Experimental Biology 212, 1576-1591.
Landberg, T. and Azizi, E. (2010). Ontogeny of escape swimming performance in the spotted salamander. Functional ecology 24, 576-587.
Kilbourne, B. M. and Makovicky, P. J. (2010). Limb bone allometry during postnatal ontogeny in non‐avian dinosaurs. Journal of Anatomy, 217, 135-152.
Young, J. W., Fernández, D. and Fleagle, J. G. (2010). Ontogeny of long bone geometry in capuchin monkeys (Cebus albifrons and Cebus apella): implications for locomotor development and life history. Biology letters 6, 197-200.
Hutchinson, J. R., Bates, K. T., Molnar, J., Allen, V. and Makovicky, P. J. (2011). A computational analysis of limb and body dimensions in Tyrannosaurus rex with implications for locomotion, ontogeny, and growth. PLoS One 6, e26037.
Dial, T. R., Heers, A. M. and Tobalske, B. W. (2012). Ontogeny of aerodynamics in mallards: comparative performance and developmental implications. The Journal of experimental biology 215, 3693-3702.
Kilbourne, B. M. and Makovicky, P. J. (2012). Postnatal long bone growth in terrestrial placental mammals: Allometry, life history, and organismal traits. Journal of morphology 273, 1111-1126.
Picasso, M. B. J. (2012). Postnatal ontogeny of the locomotor skeleton of a cursorial bird: greater rhea. Journal of Zoology 286, 303-311.
Stiller, R. B. and McBrayer, L. D. (2013). The ontogeny of escape behavior, locomotor performance, and the hind limb in Sceloporus woodi. Zoology 116, 175-181.
Ruff, C. B., Burgess, M. L., Bromage, T. G., Mudakikwa, A. and McFarlin, S. C. (2013). Ontogenetic changes in limb bone structural proportions in mountain gorillas (Gorilla beringei beringei). Journal of human evolution 65, 693-703.
Lamas, L. P., Main, R. P. and Hutchinson, J. R. (2014). Ontogenetic scaling patterns and functional anatomy of the pelvic limb musculature in emus (Dromaius novaehollandiae). PeerJ 2, e716.
Helmsmüller, D., Anders, A., Nolte, I. and Schilling, N. (2014). Ontogenetic change of the weight support pattern in growing dogs. Journal of Experimental Zoology Part A: Ecological Genetics and Physiology 321, 254-264.
Picasso, M. B. J. (2014). Ontogenetic scaling of the hindlimb muscles of the greater Rhea (Rhea americana). Anatomia, histologia, embryologia.
Golubović, A. (2015). Ontogenetic shift of antipredator behaviour in Hermann’s tortoises. Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology 1-8.
Heers, A. M. and Dial, K. P. (2015). Wings versus legs in the avian bauplan: Development and evolution of alternative locomotor strategies. Evolution 69, 305-320.