Other Species
In primitive tetrapods, the main points of muscle attachment along the femur are the internal trochanter and fourth trochanter, and a ridge along the ventral surface of the femoral shaft referred to as the adductor crest. The neck of the femur is generally minimal or absent in the most primitive forms, reflecting a simple attachment to the acetabulum. The greater trochanter was present in the extinct archosaurs, as well as in modern birds and mammals, being associated with the loss of the primitive sprawling gait. The lesser trochanter is a unique development of mammals, which lack both the internal and fourth trochanters. The adductor crest is also often absent in mammals or alternatively reduced to a series of creases along the surface of the bone.
Some species of whales, snakes, and other non-walking vertebrates have vestigial femurs.
One of the earliest known vertebrates to have a femur is the Eusthenopteron, a prehistoric lobe-finned fish from the Late Devonian period.
Read more about this topic: Femur
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