quadrate bone
Skull-jaw connector bone
The quadrate bone is a small bone in the skull of birds, reptiles, amphibians, and fish that connects the jaw to the cranium, enabling the mouth to open.
In mammals, this bone evolved into the incus—one of the tiny bones of the middle ear.
The term appears mainly in anatomy and paleontology.
- skullHead's bone casing
- articulationClear vocal expression
- vertebrateSpinal column animal
- palateOral cavity ceiling
- jawboneLower skull bone
jaw joint · cranial · anatomy · tuatara · kinetic · bone structure · osteology · lower jaw · phylogeny · reptile · jaw · fossil record · comparative anatomy · temporal · structure · maxilla · dinosaur · snake
- snake anatomyfangs, scales, forked tongue, venom glands, hood
- jaw suspension
- reptile bonesskull, femur, tibia, fibula, humerus