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The Journal of Experimental Biology 206, 1739-1749 (2003)
doi: 10.1242/jeb.00349

Kinematics of 90° running turns in wild mice

Rebecca M. Walter

Department of Biology, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah 84112, USA

e-mail: walter{at}biology.utah.edu

Accepted 27 February 2003

Turning is a requirement for locomotion on the variable terrain that most terrestrial animals inhabit and is a deciding factor in many predator–prey interactions. Despite this, the kinematics and mechanics of quadrupedal turns are not well understood. To gain insight to the turning kinematics of small quadrupedal mammals, six adult wild mice were videotaped at 250 Hz from below as they performed 90° running turns. Four markers placed along the sagittal axis were digitized to allow observation of lateral bending and body rotation throughout the turn. Ground contact periods of the fore- and hindlimbs were also noted for each frame. During turning, mice increased their ground contact time, but did not change their stride frequency relative to straight running at maximum speed. Postcranial body rotation preceded deflection in heading, and did not occur in one continuous motion, but rather in bouts of 15–53°. These bouts were synchronized with the stride cycle, such that the majority of rotation occurred during the second half of forelimb support and the first half of hindlimb support. In this phase of the stride cycle, the trunk was sagittally flexed and rotational inertia was 65% of that during maximal extension. By synchronizing body rotation with this portion of the stride cycle, mice can achieve a given angular acceleration with much lower applied torque. Compared with humans running along curved trajectories, mice maintained relatively higher speeds at proportionately smaller radii. A possible explanation for this difference lies in the more crouched limb posture of mice, which increases the mechanical advantage for horizontal ground force production. The occurrence of body rotation prior to deflection in heading may facilitate acceleration in the new direction by making use of the relatively greater force production inherent in the parasagittal limb posture of mice.

Key words: agility, maneuverability, moment of inertia, locomotion, running, mouse, Mus musculus

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