The Multivariate Analysis of The Shoulder Joint in Slow Loris

This paper dealted with the study of the shoulder joint in Nycticebus coucang.The results of the stepwise descriminate function analyses,which based on the indices of the shoulder joint in N.coucang and other primates,showed that the indices of the width of the glenoid cavity and the length of the scapula were the significantly important factors for distinguishing the species.The characteristics of the shoulder joint in slow loris is similar with that of P.francoisi.And the more distal insertions of m.acromiodeltoideus,m.teres major and the cranial part of m.trapezius,which could improve the abduction of the arm,are the features adapted to the arboreal quadrupedal locomotion.The robust humerus and the relatively longer clavicle and the lower brachial index in N.coucang are related to its special slow-climbing and hanging beneath the support with four limbs.