The axial musculature of Pontoporia blainvillei, with comments on the organization of this system and its effect on fluke‐stroke dynamics in the cetacea

Abstract

The axial muscular system of Pontoporia blainvillei is described and compared with published reports of this system in other cetaceans. A comprehensive system for classification of axial muscles is presented, based on the studies of Slijper. A discrete obliquus capitis inferior is described for the first time in cetacea, and it is suggested that its absence in previous descriptions may have been due partly to dissection error. The major axial muscle-masses are organized in a similar way in most cetaceans, comprising a set of tail elevators and depressors, and a set of tendons with similar actions on the flukes. The anatomy of the axial musculature does not support the idea that the upstroke is the main propulsive stroke in cetaceans, but suggests similar roles of the upstroke and downstroke in propulsion.