2000 · 156 citations · 14 references
DentistryPaleontologyEvolutionary PaleontologyOral AnatomyPaleobiologyDental MorphologyFunctional MorphologyOcclusal MorphologyTooth FormTooth MorphologyTooth WearComparative Dental MorphologyDental Wear PatternsMammalian Functional MorphologyOcclusal Morphology AnalysisOcclusal Surface TopographyTeeth MorphologyTooth Wear MorphologyTooth Wear Pattern Analysis
Mammalian tooth form reflects the material proper-ties of foods. Much research has focused on relation-ships between aspects of dental morphology and diet. Understanding these relationships allows us to infer feeding adaptations from the teeth of fossil forms. Most such studies have focused on unworn (rather than worn) teeth because these are easier to characterize and com-pare among species. Nevertheless, tooth shape changes with wear, and most fossil teeth are worn. How does wear affect functional efficiency? Can dental morphol-ogy of worn teeth be used to infer diets of fossil species? The study described here presents a new way to exam-ine the shapes of worn teeth so that we may begin to answer these important questions.
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