Calcar

A picture illustrating the location of the calcar on a bat.

The calcar, also known as the calcaneum,[1] is the name given to a spur of cartilage arising from inner side of ankle and running along part of outer interfemoral membrane in bats,[1][2] This is to help spread the interfemoral membrane,[3] which is part of the wing membrane between the tail and the hind legs.

This membrane can form a basket or pouch to help catch and hold insects captured in flight.[4] The oldest known ancestor to present day bats, Icaronycteris index, apparently did not have a calcar or spur as evidenced by fossil remains.[5] The oldest known bat with a calcar is Onychonycteris.

Calcar (Femorale) also refers to the dense, vertically oriented bone present in the posteroemedial region of the femoral shaft inferior to the lesser trochanter of the femur.

References

  1. 1 2 The Anatomy of Bats
  2. ↑ The Handbook of British Mammals (ASIN B000WPL1CO)
  3. ↑ Encyclopedia Smithsonian: Bat Facts
  4. ↑ The Anatomy of Bats
  5. ↑ Ontogeny, Functional Ecology, and Evolution of Bats (ISBN 978-0-52-162632-3)


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