DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.15425732
title: Supplementary Data and Code for "Joint angular excursions and angular range utilization during stance-phase locomotion in terrestrial mammals: a comparative morphofunctional dataset"

description: Description

This dataset supports a comparative morphofunctional analysis of limb angular excursion and angular range utilization in terrestrial mammals during the stance phase of walking. It compiles angular data from 182 species across 15 mammalian orders, incorporating both new video-based measurements and published sources. The dataset was developed under FONDECYT Project No. 11231111 and is intended to enable cross-taxon comparisons of joint use and locomotor strategy.

Angular variables were extracted at touchdown, midstance, and toe-off for shoulder, elbow, wrist, hip, knee, and ankle joints using a validated vector-based digitizing protocol. The dataset also includes species-specific biological classifications (e.g., posture, body mass, top speed, locomotor habit), reliability statistics, stride length estimates, and joint-level correlation analyses. These data form the empirical basis for the angular utilization index (AUI; TAE/∑JAE × 100) introduced in the accompanying manuscript.

R code (phylogenetic analyses). This record also includes two reproducible R scripts used for phylogenetic robustness checks: (i) phylogenetic generalized least-squares (PGLS) models testing scaling relationships between log₁₀ body mass and limb-level metrics (TAE and AUI%), and (ii) a phylogenetic ANOVA (phylANOVA) evaluating posture-related differences in stance-phase TAE using simulations and Holm-corrected pairwise comparisons. The scripts are intended to be run on Supplementary File 3 (the analysis dataset). The phylogenetic input tree is referenced in the manuscript (Upham et al., 2019; VertLife) and can be retrieved from that source.

Contents





Supplementary File 1Title: Source List for Joint Angle Extraction by Species and Gait PhaseDescription: Complete list of data sources used to extract joint angles by species and gait phase, including taxonomic identity and type of source (peer-reviewed article or open-access video).




Supplementary File 2Title: Locomotor Habit Classification and Justification by SpeciesDescription: Species-level classification of locomotor habits with justification based on anatomy, behavior, and literature references.




Supplementary File 3Title: Joint Excursion, Total Angular Excursion, Angular Efficiency DataDescription: JAE, TAE, and AUI% (TAE/∑JAE × 100) values by joint and limb, as well as stride length and normalized stride length (SL/BM^0.33), categorized by biological factor.




Supplementary File 4Title: Intra-Rater Test–Retest Reliability of Joint Angular MeasurementsDescription: Reliability statistics (ICC(3,1), SEM) for all joint measurements during stance, confirming high repeatability of the digitizing method.




Supplementary File 5Title: Correlation Matrix Between Body Mass and Joint Angular Excursion by Biological FactorDescription: Correlation analyses between body mass and angular excursion at each joint, stratified by posture, speed, and habit.




Supplementary File 6Title: Correlation Between Joint Angular Excursion and Body-Size–Normalized Stride LengthDescription: Correlations between joint excursions and normalized stride length across species, with supporting scatter plots.




Supplementary File 7Title: Quadrant-Based Limb Efficiency Analysis, Frequency Distributions, and Contingency TestingDescription: Quadrant assignment based on forelimb and hindlimb AUI% values (threshold: 50%), with χ² and Fisher’s exact tests assessing associations with biological factors.




R script 01

File: 01_PGLS_angular_excursions.RDescription: PGLS models (robustness checks) relating log₁₀ body mass to limb-level TAE and AUI% under strong phylogenetic dependence.




R script 02

File: 02_phyloANOVA_posture_TAE.RDescription: Phylogenetic ANOVA (phylANOVA) testing posture effects on stance-phase TAE, including simulations and Holm-corrected pairwise comparisons.



This dataset provides a standardized and scalable framework for evaluating limb kinematics and mechanical performance in both extant and extinct mammalian taxa.