Plantigrade

2025-06-06T00:16:37Z

208.161.6.149: /* List of plantigrade animals */

{{short description|Walking with the toes and metatarsals flat on the ground}}

{{Refimprove|date=June 2017}}
[[image:Plantigrade.png|right|151px|thumb|Portion of a human skeleton, showing plantigrade habit]]
In terrestrial [[animal]]s, '''plantigrade locomotion''' means [[walking]] with the toes and [[metatarsal]]s flat on the ground. It is one of three forms of locomotion adopted by terrestrial [[mammal]]s. The other options are [[digitigrade]], walking on the [[toe]]s and fingers with the [[heel]] and [[wrist]] permanently raised, and [[ungulate|unguligrade]], walking on the [[nail (anatomy)|nail]] or nails of the toes (the [[hoof]]) with the heel/wrist and the [[digit (anatomy)|digit]]s permanently raised. The leg of a plantigrade mammal includes the bones of the upper leg ([[femur]]/[[humerus]]) and lower leg ([[tibia]] and [[fibula]]/[[Radius (bone)|radius]] and [[ulna]]). The leg of a digitigrade mammal also includes the [[metatarsal]]s/[[metacarpal]]s, the bones that in a human compose the arch of the foot and the palm of the hand. The leg of an unguligrade mammal also includes the [[phalanges]], the finger and toe bones.

Among extinct animals, most early mammals such as [[Pantodonta|pantodonts]] were plantigrade. A plantigrade foot is the primitive condition for mammals; [[digitigrade]] and [[unguligrade]] locomotion evolved later. Among archosaurs, the [[pterosaurs]] were partially plantigrade and walked on the whole of the hind foot and the fingers of the hand-wing.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://pterosaur.net/terrestrial_locomotion.php |title = Pterosaur.net :: Terrestrial Locomotion}}</ref> Out of the plantigrade animals, only a few, such as humans, kangaroos and certain rodents, are obligate [[Bipedalism|bipeds]], while most others are functional bipeds.

==List of plantigrade animals==
Plantigrade [[animals]] species include (but are not limited to):
*[[Mammal]]s
**Several [[primate]]s (including [[Homo (genus)|humans]] and [[lemur]]s)
**[[Carnivora]]:
***[[Bear|Ursidae]]: bears
***[[Amphicyonidae|amphicyonids]]
***[[Musteloidea]]: [[skunk]]s, [[raccoon]]s, [[weasel]]s, [[badger]]s, [[otter]]s, and [[red panda]]s
***''[[Barbourofelis]]:'' false saber-tooth cats
**[[Rodents]]: [[mice]], [[rat]]s, [[porcupine]]s
**[[Hedgehog]]s
**[[Hyrax|Hyraxes]]
**[[Marsupialia]]: [[kangaroo]]s, [[opossum]]s
**Nearly all basal mammals and non-mammalian [[synapsid]]s were plantigrade
*[[Bird]]s
**[[Loon]]s, [[grebe]]s
*[[Reptile]]s
**Nearly all reptiles (including [[pterosaur]]s but excluding [[dinosaur]]s (including most [[bird]]s) which are digitigrade or semi-digitigrade) are plantigrade
*[[Amphibians]]
**All amphibians are plantigrade

==Evolution==
The primary advantages of a plantigrade foot are stability and weight-bearing ability; plantigrade feet have the largest surface area. The primary disadvantage of a plantigrade foot is speed. With more bones and joints in the foot, the leg is both shorter and heavier at the far end, which makes it difficult to move rapidly.

In humans and other great apes, another possible advantage of a plantigrade foot is that it may enhance fighting performance by providing a more powerful stance for striking and grappling.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Carrier|first1=David R|last2=Cunningham|first2=Christopher|title=The effect of foot posture on capacity to apply free moments to the ground: implications for fighting performance in great apes|journal=Biology Open|date=15 February 2017|volume=6|issue=2|pages=269–277|doi=10.1242/bio.022640|pmc=5312108|pmid=28202470}}</ref>

Plantigrade foot occurs normally in humans in static postures of [[standing]] and [[sitting]]. It should also occur normally in [[gait]] (walking). [[Hypertonia|Hypertonicity]], [[spasticity]], [[clonus]], limited range of motion, abnormal flexion neural pattern, and a plantar flexor (calf) muscle contracture, as well as some forms of [[footwear]] such as [[high heeled shoes]] may contribute to an individual only standing and/or walking on their toes. It would be evident by the observable heel rise.

==References==
{{Reflist}}
{{Locomotion}}
[[Category:Terrestrial locomotion]]

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Plantigrade