User:Newmansr/sandbox

Intervertebral disc article feedback (Week 2--Disc Group):

References:

• Not every fact has a listed reference.
• The entire article only has ten references, even though there is a wide variety of scientific information that cannot clearly be understood as common knowledge.
• Not all of the references have links to the sources.
• Some links to the sources are inoperable for the average person, such as the link to the Connect learning tool from McGraw Hill.

Relevance to the topic:

• Most of the subject matter relates to the subject of the intervertebral disc itself.
• I am confused by the inclusion of spinal disorders on the same page, and would recommend a separate page for this subject.

Distracting Information:

• The clinical significance section is largely distracting to the subject of the intervertebral disc itself.
• I would not include information about the disorders or injuries associated with the intervertebral discs until their definition and natural history is more fully explained on the page.
• The long, Latin terms for some of the structures associated with the intervertebral discs are distracting, especially because they are poorly, if at all, defined.

Neutrality:

• This article maintains a neutral position about the subject.

Source Neutrality:

• Most of the sources come from journal articles or reputable sources.
• Some of the references have no affiliation at all, but also have no clear source content (need to fix).

Viewpoint Representation:

• There are no ideas on this page that relate to conflicting viewpoints.

Citation Link Function

• Not all citation links work.
• Not all citations have a link.

Plagiarism and Close-Paraphrasing

• There is clear plagiarism on the page. Not every fact is cited. This needs to be addressed and fixed.
• There is clear close-paraphrasing on the page that needs to be addressed.

Out-of-Date Information

• Some of the included journal articles listed as references are from the 1990s, which is relatively out of date for a journal article in the natural sciences. These should be updated with more recent sources, if possible.

Missing Information

• There is a lot of missing information on this page.
• The development section of this page is underrepresented and needs to be more fully addressed.
• The function section similarly needs to be better explained, as does the structure section. These need to include information that can be understood by the general public, not just full of scientific jargon, especially given the fact that this is a free encyclopedia to the public.
• There is little, if anything, listed about the evolutionary adaptation of the intervertebral discs, explicitly.
• The article only addresses the intervertebral discs in humans. What about other vertebrates/animals? Are they present?

Edit to Crest (feathers) Stub Article 02/24/2017 (Week 3--Sara Only):

New Text: Many domesticated bird species have crest feathers. These structures are known to have two origins: selective breeding or mutations. Crest feathers in domestic birds include a wide range of variations in form across species. The underlying molecular and genetic mechanisms that are responsible for crest feather formation in domesticated bird species are not well-understood. As such, crest feathers are widely studied in morphological research and other related biological disciplines, particularly concerning domesticated species.

Dissection Proposal 03/03/2017 (Week 4--Sara Only):

• Garter Snake Garter snake

- I'm interested in dissecting the iguana because it is an animal that I do not know very much about and would like to explore in depth. I'm interested in dissecting the garter snake because they were a big part of my childhood, and also because I'm interested in exploring the anatomy of an animal with a secondary loss of some feature, such as the snake's loss of limbs.

- Possible page edits: Brumation Dormancy#Brumation, Tetrodotoxin Tetrodotoxin, Heterothermy Heterothermy

• Iguana Iguana

- I'm interested in dissecting the iguana because it is an animal that I do not know very much about and would like to explore in depth.

- Possible page edits: Iguana Iguana, Parietal Eye Parietal eye, Dewlap Dewlap, Tympanum Tympanum (anatomy)

• Frog Frog

- I'm interested in dissecting the frog because it's an organism that I have some experience with, but not with any precise instruction or dissection. I'm interested in learning more about the frog, and applying new knowledge to an organism I already have a base with.

• - Possible page edits: Gills Gill, Vertebra Vertebra, Medulla Oblongata Medulla oblongata

Dissection Group Wikipedia Game Plan and Preliminary Sources 03/10/2017 (Week 5):

Our group, the garter snake, has collectively decided that we should work together to add information about the Garter snake's anatomy to it's specific page. We will attempt to take our own photographs of the Garter Snake, and try to flesh out the page as much as we can with respect to anatomical topics. We will link to the Snake when applicable, and may draw from sources listed on the snake site.

Aside from just working on the garter snake's page itself, our group has decided to undertake individual pages that relate to the Integumentary system of the snake.

My Sandbox will serve as the group's sandbox page, and all of our collective work can be found here https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User:Newmansr/sandbox?veaction=edit&section=4

Sara, me, will be independently responsible for researching and adding to information about the Skin of the snake (Snakeskin). So far, the major information on Wikipedia about snake's skin is either fashion related, or has to deal almost exclusively with Snake scales. Very little is listed regarding the snakes actual soft integument. Other information that I will try to study about the snake's skin includes shedding of the skin, skin pigmentation, skin structure and function, and it's attachment to underlying muscle.

Ryan will be researching Duvernoy's gland independently. A lot of good sources are already listed on the page itself, but very little applicable information has been included on the page. He will be working to improve the page with it's existing references and new ones.

Huy will be researching Vomeronasal organ, also known as Jacobson's organ, and the sense organs of the garter snake. He hopes to be able to dissect out our garter snake's Jacobson's organ and include an actual photograph of the structure, and not just a drawing, on the page. He also wants to improve the information that is present on the page.

Group References:

- Bauchot, Roland. Snakes: A Natural History. New York: Sterling Pub., 1994. Print.

- Mattison, Christopher. The Encyclopaedia of Snakes. London: Blandford, 1995. Print.

- Mattison, Christopher. The New Encyclopedia of Snakes. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2007. Print.

- Parker, H.W. Snakes - A Natural History Talks. London: Cornell University Press, 1977. Print.

-  "Different effects of lesions of the vomeronasal and olfactory nerves of garter snake (Thamnophis sirtalis) responses to airborne chemical stimuli (PDF Download Available)" ResearchGate. Retrieved 2017-03-11.

Garter Snake Talk Page Post:

This page already has some great content on it, but I've noticed that there isn't much on the anatomy of the garter snake itself. Myself and two of my classmates are proposing to add an anatomy section to this page with linking subjects that already exist on the snake page. We want to further add to content that already exists on the page if possible as we undergo this endeavor. We plan to include photographs of the anatomy of the garter snake that come from public domain, and have a list of some proposed sources for page content that we would like to use to cover some of the basics. Photographs would be generated by ourselves as we dissect a garter snake in class. Our initial proposed sources are as follows:

-Bauchot, Roland. Snakes: A Natural History. New York: Sterling Pub., 1994. Print.

- Mattison, Christopher. The Encyclopaedia of Snakes. London: Blandford, 1995. Print. 

- Mattison, Christopher. The New Encyclopedia of Snakes. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2007. Print. 

- Parker, H.W. Snakes - A Natural History Talks. London: Cornell University Press, 1977. Print. 

If you think these would be good sources to begin with, please let me know. If you can point us in the direction of other useful sources that you are aware of, or other additions that you think would benefit the page that are along these lines, that information would also be helpful. Any input you have on our endeavor for this project would be useful, thank you.

Snakeskin Talk Page Post:

This page has a lot of potential, and I'd like to proposed adding to it. So far, there are not many sources for this page, and I'd like to propose a few that may be useful:

-Filippov, Alexander E., and Stanislav N. Gorb. "Modelling of the Frictional Behaviour of the Snake Skin Covered by Anisotropic Surface Nanostructures." Nature News. Nature Publishing Group, 23 Mar. 2016. Web. 10 Mar. 2017. <http://www.nature.com/articles/srep23539>.

-Bauchot, Roland. Snakes: A Natural History. New York: Sterling Pub., 1994. Print.

- Mattison, Christopher. The Encyclopaedia of Snakes. London: Blandford, 1995. Print.

- Mattison, Christopher. The New Encyclopedia of Snakes. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2007. Print.

- Parker, H.W. Snakes - A Natural History Talks. London: Cornell University Press, 1977. Print.

With the help of these sources, I would like to add information about the soft integument of snake skin to this page, as there is limited information about this on Wikipedia at present. Most of the information that I could find about §snakeskin has been about §snake scale, rather, and I think exploring snake skin on its own is important. It has a vital function, and I think it deserves some attention. it is a critical piece of §snake anatomy and is not well addressed. Further, I would like to add information to this page about snake skin §pigmentation or coloration, which may link to §albinism or §melanin or other such §pigments that contribute to the color of snakes.

Please let me know if you think these sources are appropriate, or if you can think of other sources or content areas that might be worth addressing as I endeavor to improve this page. 

Duvernoy's Gland Talk Page Post:

Considering using the current sources on this page to flesh out this article. Further sources may be used in the future as I find them/gain access to them. Kenneth Kardong, who wrote three of the current sources, has additional articles related to Duvernoy's gland which I am currently trying to accessMurry4329 (talk) 04:29, 11 March 2017 (UTC)

1. Weinstein, SA; Kardong, Kenneth (1994). "Properties of Duvernoy's secretions from opisthoglyphous and aglyphous colubrid snakes.". Toxicon. 32: 1161–85. PMID 7846688
2.  Kardong, Kenneth (1991). "The unique Duvernoy's secretion of the brown tree snake (Boiga irregularis).". Toxicon: Official Journal Of The International Society On Toxinology. 29: 532–35. PMID 1862527.

Vomeronasal Organ Talk Page Post:

The Wiki page of the structure has a great amount of information already. However, there is only one sentence about how snakes use the vomeronasal organ and it's not even cited. I'll look for sources to add to that and expand more on that section if possible. Since I'm going to dissect a garter snake, I'm planning to add an image of the organ from my project as well. Is that possible? The listed sources below can be used in my projects:

Bauchot, Roland (1994). Snakes A Natural History. Spain: Sterling Publishing. pp. 52–56. ISBN 0806906545.

Mattison, Christopher (2007). The New Encyclopedia of Snakes. Princeton University Press. p. 44. ISBN 9780691132952.

Parker, H. (1977). Snakes - A Natural History Talks. Cornell University Press. p. 28. ISBN 0801491649.

Dissection Group Wikipedia First Drafts/Planning 03/17/2017 (Week 6):

Garter Snake:

In thinking about the anatomical information that we want to add to this page, we've begun to make a plan regarding what pieces of anatomy we want to include in depth. We will be focusing on Duvernoy's gland, which is responsible for venom production, the Vomeronasal Organ (also known as Jacobson's organ), which is responsible for sense of smell, and the skin of the Garter Snake (as well as all of its many elements). Our dissection of the garter snake begins next week, and we will have more of an idea of what information regarding these structures we want to include then. We will link information about these three structures to their respective pages. We did find one new source since last week that we would like to include, which I have included here:

Kardong, Kenneth V. (2015). Vertebrates: Comparative Anatomy, Function, Evolution (7th ed.). New York: McGraw Hill. ISBN 9780078023026

We will try to get other photographs of the rest of the garter snake anatomy, but will be focusing on these specific regions. If you have any recommendations for us, we'd love to hear them.

Snakeskin:

From the sources that we gathered last week, I was able to find the following pertinent information regarding snakeskin. there is so much information that needs to be included on this page that is not there. As it stands right now, the article is a stub, and it really needs a lot of information that can be put into various sections in order to stand as something that is actually informative. The general group sources that we compiled last week were very helpful in finding some preliminary information on snakeskin and its many components. I pulled all of the information that I thought was informative out and compiled a list of information that can be woven into a cohesive article. All of this work has been paraphrased from the original texts to the best of my ability.

From The Encyclopedia of Snakes:

• Snakes can be ornately patterned. They can be striped, banded, solid, green, blue, yellow, red, black, orange, brown, spotted, or have a unique pattern all their own.
• These color schemes can serve may functions, including camouflage, heat absorption or reflection, or may play other, less understood roles.
• Carotenoids help produce orange and red colors.
• Melanin cells in the skin often overlap and form complex patterns and sheets that are highly recognizable.

From The New Encyclopedia of Snakes:

• The skin that lies beneath snake's scales is responsible for snakes' flexibility.
• Sometimes the soft integument of a snake is colored differently than their hard scales. This is often utilized as a method of predator determent.
• Some snakes polish their scales. They secrete an oily substance from their nasal passage, and then rub the secretion all over the scales. This is done at varying intervals depending on the species of snake, sometimes frequently, other times only after shedding or molting. It is thought that scale polishing is used as a method of waterproofing. and it may also play a role in chemical messaging.
• Skin permeability may change seasonally in snakes. It is known that desert snakes have generally impermeable skins, and that aquatic snakes have a more permeable skin that can sometimes trap water to prevent drying out. Some snakes may change their environment throughout the year, and may subsequently change their skin's permeability as a result. For instance, aquatic snakes may latch on to more water if they are in an environment that is drying out by attracting a layer of water under their scales.
• Snakes shed their skin periodically. This is done to allow for growth, and occurs often in young snakes. As snakes age and their growth rate decreases or ceases, shedding declines in frequency. The outer epidermis of snakes is separate from the internal epidermal layers. The outer layer sloughs off after the snake secretes an oily substance between the outer and inner layers. Generally, the outer layer will come off all at once during ecdysis (shedding), and the pattern of the scales can be seen in the shed skin, although pigmentation will be absent. Females may shed their skin before laying a clutch of eggs, and other species may do this after their hibernation period in winter ends.

From Snakes- A Natural History Talks:

• The skin of a snake is a physically protective layer. It helps prevent injury, prevents drying out, and helps snakes to minimize friction.
• Before shedding their skins, snakes will take on a sort of milky blue hue that indicates that the outer epidermal layer has become loosened from the inner epidermal layers.

From Snakes: A Natural History:

• A snake's epidermis is comprised of multiple layers. They have four epidermal layers in total. The outer layer of a snake's skin is shed periodically, and is a highly keratinized layer. Beneath the outer layer is the corneal layer, which is thickened and flexible. Under the corneal layer is intermediary zone and the basal layer.
• The dermis of a snake resides beneath the epidermis. Pigment cells are numerous in this layer. The dermis also houses nerves and collagen fibers.
• The hypodermis is below the dermis. This layer mainly stores fat.
• Coloration of snakes is largely due to pigment cells and their distribution. Some scales have lightly colored centers, which arise from regions with a reduced cuticle. A thinner cuticle indicates that some sensory organ is present. Scales in general are numerous and coat the epidermis, and they come in all shapes and colors. They are helpful in identification of snake species. For more on this see the page dedicated to snake scale.
• Snake scales are not dermal in origin, which is unique among reptiles. Other unique structures of the snake integument include the rattle, and corneal tips that cover vestigial limbs in some species.
• Nerve fibers extend into the snake epidermis and anchor near scales, generally at the rostral ed of the snake. Specifically, nerves anchor to sensory spines and pits, which are touch and thermal detection organs, respectively.
• Chromatophores in the dermis yield coloration when light shines through the corneal layer of the epidermis. There are many kinds of chromatophores.
• Melanophores yield brown pigmentation, and when paired with guanophores, yield grey. When paired with guanophores and lipophores, yellow results, and when guanophore and allophores are added to melanophores, red pigment results.
• Males and females may show varied coloration, as might hatchlings and adults of the same species.
• Dark snakes, dark brown or black in color, appear as such due to melanocytes that are active in the epidermis. When melanin is absent, albino individuals result.
• Snakes do not possess blue or green pigments. these arise from guanophores, which are also called iridocytes. These reside in the dermis. Iridocytes are also responsible for the iridescent appearance of many dark colored snakes.
• Not many glands are present in snake skin. Most snake glands are holocrine glands, meaning that the gland's cells are secreted along with the substance the gland makes. These holocrine glands in snakes do not have their own blood supply, and thus lie closely with vascularized connective tissue. Snakes also possess glands that aid in attracting mates, and some marine snake species possess a salt gland that helps remove excess salt that they have consumed.

From Modeling of the Frictional Behaviour of the Snake Skin Covered By Anisotropic Structure Nanostructures:

• Because snakes lack limbs, their bodies are in contact with some surface at all times, which produces a huge amount of friction. As a result, they have to both minimize friction in order to move forward, and generate their own friction in order to generate enough propulsion to move. Scale and skin orientation helps to accomplish this, and it has been demonstrated that nanostructures on their scales may play a role in this process.

From Vertebrates: Comparative Anatomy, Function, Evolution:

• Reptilian skin is made for land. Reptiles possess extensive keratinization of the epidermis. they also have very few skin glands. They have non-dermal scales, and flexible regions between their scales made of soft integument.
• Reptilian dermis is generally fibrous in nature. The epidermis has three true layers, the stratum basale, stratum granulosum, and stratum corneum.
• Molting is common, and results in the entire outer layer of epidermis being lost.
• Most glands in reptiles are poorly understood, as there are not many. They are thought to play a role in mating behavior.

I will be drafting this information into cohesive sections that I will include on the page. If you have any recommendations for me, or any sources that you think would be useful, please let me know.

Duvernoy's Gland: Mackessey et. al. suggest Duvernoy’s gland does secrete venom and is homologous to the venom gland found in front-fanged snakes. The evolutionary path of these separate glands may come from “venom proteins” whose genes are widely expressed in tissues of both venomous and non-venomous snakes. These genes are overexpressed in the venom glands (including Duvernoy’s gland), indicating the secretions from these glands evolved separately, rather than sequentially.Murry4329 (talk) 04:22, 18 March 2017 (UTC)

Vormeronasal Organ:

Both sources Snakes A Natural History and Snakes - A Natural History talk briefly about functions of the vomeronasal organ. The male snakes use it as a preliminary sexual attraction. The vomeronasal organ is able to detect the sense by tongue flicking action of the snake. However, if the tip of the tongue is cut off, the snake will lose its primary tool to detect the chemo cues in the environment; thus improving the important of the vomeronasal organ.

Furthermore, I plan to describe the anatomy of the organ in reptiles and its relative position to other organs. In most of the reptiles, the organ is located ventrally to the nasal chamber in which part of it concaves dorsally with a duct connect to the mouth ventrally

Moreover, I will focus on how the tongue flicking behavior in the snake attracts the chemoreceptors to the vomeronasal organ  then compared this mechanism to that of the dog.

I will be adding all these information to the vomeronasal organ Wiki page under the section of "Animals" for snakes as well as a cut section view of the organ. For the Garter snake Wiki page, I tend to add a sub-section about tongue flicking behavior as it has not been mentioned in the page at all.

Draft 1 Peer Copy Edits (Week 7--Sara Only):

Team Perch:

• Joe:

 A dorsal fin is classified as a medial, unpaired fin that is located on the dorsal side of aquatic vertebrates. In bony fish, fins are made of dermal fin rays known as lepidotrichia, and an endoskeletal base with associated muscles for movement.^[5] During embryogenesis, the dorsal fin and other medial fins are derived from the caudal fin fold, which is itself made of a mix of peridermis and epidermis.^[5] Larval development and skeletogenesis of the median fins of adult teleost fish results in pterygiophores, which are the internal skeletal elements that support the fin.^[3] The pterygiophores have proximal, medial, and distal portions. The distal portions are comprised of cartilage, whereas the elongated proximal and medial portions are made of bone.^[3]These serve as attachments points for expaxial muscle, which ultimately works to aid in mobility.^[3]

• Notes for Joe:

Over all, your draft seems complete, concise, and your sources seem to provide neutral information. At this point, I would suggest fleshing out this article more, as this seems like an awfully small amount of information for such an important differentiation of analogous structures. You definitely have me hooked in and following what you’re describing, but I want to know more. Really think on what information is still lacking from this piece. Further, everything seems to be appropriately cited.

Do you have plans for pictures of any of these structures if they are not already included? I ask particularly for the pterygiophores. You spend a significant amount of time discussing these, but I'm having a difficult time visualizing them from the text alone. I would look into that if it is a possibility.

Define what dorsal is, or maybe link to a page that defines dorsal. Make sure you include links to other technical biological language that may not be self-evident for the general public. Do the same for proximal, medial, and distal in the later portions of your paragraph.

I definitely think this is a great start to editing the available information on the dorsal fin!

• Connor:

Ctenoid scales, similar to other epidermal appendages, originate from placodes, and specific cellular differentiation makes them exclusive from other appendages that arise from the integument.^[6] The developmental process begins with an accumulation of fibroblasts between the epidermis and dermis, forming the papillae.^[6] After more differentiation, collagen fibrils start to organize themselves in the dermal layer, which leads to the initiation of mineralization.^[6] The circumference of the scales grows first, followed by thickness when overlapping layers mineralize together.^[6]

• Notes for Connor:

Everything appears to be appropriately cited. The content appears neutral, concise, and informative. Everything is phrased in a way that is logical and makes sense.

If you can, provide links to scientific or biological words that may not be self-explanatory, such as papillae or integument. Normal, every-day people may not know what those are off hand.

I’m definitely on board with you wanting to include a clear picture of a ctenoid scale. It will really tie your description in and provide good visual cues, especially if you label the image with a numbered pin system (if possible).

I like the overall trajectory of your project, and it seems like you have a really good plan to work off of.

• Liz:

The operculum has many components that have different positions and anatomical and morphological appearances. There is the preoperculum, operculum, suboperculum, and the interoperculum. In smaller species, these components are more basic in relation to their placement in larger species where they are tubercle.^[7] The pre-operculum is crescent-shaped in all Halecomorphi, which are known to be bony fish (minus the Parasemionotiformes species).^[7] Parasemionotiformes pre-operculum anatomy differs in its ovoid shape and is known to be long and narrow.^[7] The operculum is the largest bone out of the other components. It is broad, rectangular in shape, and has circular-shaped dorsal margins.^[7] Its ventral margins are oriented anteriorly where the suboperculum is ventral from its position.^[7] The pre-operculum also has a series of ridges that are directed posterodorsally to the organism’s canal pores.^[7] The sub-operculum has long, concave shaped dorsal margins and convex posterior margins associated with this bone.^[7] It has very short anterodorsal and anteroventral margins and boarders the operculum dorsally.^[7] The inter-operculum is triangular shaped and boarders the suboperculum posterodorsally and the preoperculum anterodorsally.^[7] It is also known to be short on the dorsal and ventral surrounding boarders.^[7] 

• Notes for Liz:

All of the information appears to be concise and neutral. It is super informative, and I am in complete agreement that there needs to be an image or multiple images included about the operculum and its many regions. Without the image, making a mental map off of the included paragraph itself would be difficult. Further, everything seems to be appropriately cited.

I would suggest moving your definition of what the operculum actually is to the top of your section so that people know what they’re reading about from the beginning. As it currently stands, I wouldn’t know that the operculum was a bone until midway through the paragraph.

Try to link as much of the scientific and anatomical terms as you can to pages where they might be defined (if you are not going to define them yourself). I had a hard time following the information you included because there wasn’t a lot of every-day language being used. Try to make this more approachable for the general public.

Overall, this is a really information-rich paragraph, and I like the trajectory that you have for your project!

Team Iguana:

• Courtney:

I'd like to expand on the Reptile page (that I'd add a link to on the Iguana page), or create a section on the Iguana page itself regarding the anatomy/structure of the Iguana heart, specifically going into more detail on the muscles that are involved with the heart.

All of my sources could provide useful information, but my primary source that seems to be the most helpful is my third reference.

·        It speaks of the reptile heart generally and is also specific for the Iguana heart, comparing hearts between different lizards, describing function and reason for anatomy and structures, clear/useful pictures, relationship between the anatomy and physiology of the heart, why this anatomy was favored evolutionarily, etc.

·        http://vetmed.illinois.edu/mmitch/pdf/reptilecardiology.pdf

A new source I found discusses more general reptile heart anatomy and function, discussing the muscular ridges that divide the subchambers in the heart

·        http://veterinarycalendar.dvm360.com/reptilian-cardiovascular-anatomy-and-physiology-evaluation-and-monitoring-proceedings

• Notes for Courtney:

All of this information appears to be neutral. You appear to have appropriate citations, as well. I would recommend embedding these new sources into a reference list if you haven't already, and citing this information in your sandbox. The information that you want to add seems to be very informative, and that initial new source that you write about seems like it would be a very useful reference that you should use. I think it is a good idea to link the reptile page to the iguana page if that is not already in existence.

Overall, I like the trajectory of your project and think that this is a really good game plan to be following!

• Lexie:

I would like to add more to the dewlap page about the color of the dewlap and how it forms from carotenoid and pterin pigments. (http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1096495906002612) There is some information on the coloration of the dewlap on the page, but not much. I would also like to take this subject and talk more about WHY the coloration is the way it is, both of these articles go into all of that.(http://www.jstor.org/stable/1563454?seq=1#page_scan_tab_contents).

I would also like to add more to the mechanics of the reptile dewlap (http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0166432805800828), since the dewlap page doesn't seem to discuss the mechanics of reptile's dewlap at all. I would simply give a brief overview of the anatomy/structure, this could connect back to Courtney and Mikayla's articles on the muscles and the skeletal structure.

• Notes for Lexie:

Overall, this information appears to be neutral, and its great that you have these links included. I would recommend making formal citations for these in a reference list somewhere if you have not already. This might make it simpler for both you and your other group members to use these sources in the future. The information seems like it would be informative and concise, and I like that you are interested in approaching the "why" question of the coloration of the dewlap.

I noticed that you haven't included plans to search the evolutionary history of the dewlap, and that might be something that you could look into or contribute to as a way to link to what we're learning about in class evolutionarily to what you're learning anatomically.

I overall think this is a great start and that you have a good plan to follow!

• Mikayla:

I will add a subsection to the Anatomy/Physiology section, focusing on aspects of the skeletal structure. This will also help organize this section, as the information present is sparse and scattered.

Bones/Structures I would like to focus on:

Skull: I would look at anything that would distinguish the iguana from other species of lizards; plus, I would be able to simultaneously research dewlap bone function. http://archeozoo-archeobota.mnhn.fr/IMG/pdf/bochaton_et_al._in_press_iguana.pdf; http://www.jstor.org/stable/pdf/40664967.pdf (plus the other two resources indicated by me previously).

Dewlap: It is thought that the hyoid bone/skeleton is the mechanism behind dewlap extension in the Anolis equestris, a lizard in the same family as the green iguana. https://eurekamag.com/pdf.php?pdf=007364568

I think that focusing on these aspects of the skeletal system will relate very well to the work of my teammates as well. Courtney would be able to provide input regarding the muscles surrounding the dewlap/its function, and Lexie and I could collaborate on how to simultaneously examine the dewlap from different angles (Me skeletal structure, her more of the mechanism/function).

Finally, I would like to compile the above information in an integrative, yet concise manner. My teammates will also provide valuable information regarding my topic.

• Notes for Mikayla:

Overall, this information is presented as neutral. I like that you have included sources that you would like to use here, and I would suggest compiling these into a reference list in your sandbox if you have not already done so. The information you plan to include seems informative and relatively easy to understand from the perspective of the general public. I also like that you have chosen a really integrative approach to your project with your teammates. Overall, it seems like you have a good project trajectory and a great game plan.

I didn't see anything mentioned about including pictures of these structures. If they are not already well-represented, you should consider taking your own photos and using them to enhance the iguana page.

Group Responses to Peer Reviews 04/07/2017 (Week 9):

Sara:

Based on feedback from my classmates and Dr. Schutz, there are some clear steps that I need to take to edit my draft.

1. I need to thoroughly look through the reptile page and see what (if anything) is present on the integument of reptiles, particularly that of the snake. If I find relevant topics, I will start to add links to them in my draft, and omit the addition of repetitive content. I've skimmed through the page a few times to see if the integument was represented, but noticed that most of the information present was surrounding the scales of reptiles. I'll go through the page more closely before developing my second draft.
2. I need to start to organize the information that I found into cohesive sections that make the content more comprehensible for the reader. As it stands now, it's just a list of facts. There need to be organization into headings, and potentially subheadings. I really liked Connor's suggestion of Display, Function, and Evolution sections to split up the information, and I may develop further sections to place the information into.
3. I like the suggestion of looking for more information through journal articles. I tried this once before without much success, but I will give it another try with more search parameters in an attempt to find some quality information on the evolutionary history of snakeskin. When I looked for journal articles before, a lot of the information was on experiments, and not so much observation, which wasn't much of a help to me.
4. Look into the position of snakes within the reptile group to try to understand what adaptations they have and why, particularly surrounding the skin. I will try to find new sources regarding this topic, and will look into what exists on Wikipedia already. If there is substantial information already present, I will link to it from the snakeskin page.
5. I will update our group sources to include revisions to articles that were not cited correctly the first time, and will make sure that the reference list contains any new sources that have been added to my sandbox since the last time the list was updated.
6. I'm still waiting on feedback from other Wikipedians on both the snakeskin page and the Garter snake page, so I'm primarily working off of feedback from the class and Dr. Schutz. More feedback please!!

Ryan:

Based on feedback from classmates and Dr. Schutz:

1. Find more sources. I have one lined up that I can use for the anatomy of Duvernoy's gland, which I could use and add a new section to the article.
2. I might try and use my snake to get a picture of its Duvernoy's gland, which I could potentially use on the article's page, or attempt to find a decent picture, though initial searches have proven unsuccessful.
3. I realize I did not provide good context with my information. My post was supposed to be the specific language I would add directly to the article, as it is currently somewhat outdated and my information came from a recent article. I should have provided better context and more specifically a link straight to the page so it is clear how my information could directly insert into the article.
4. I will continue to search for more sources I could use to expand this topic, potentially with the goal of evolutionary history of the Duvernoy's gland.

Huy:

Below are some suggestions for improvement after looking at comments from Dr. Schutz and my classmates:

1. Clarification on adding an image. My plan is to add a real image of the vomeronasal organ of the garter snake after finishing my dissection project, which won't happen for the next few weeks until I start dissecting the animal and look for the organ.
2. Taking comment from my peer, I might not add or work on the relative position of the vomeronasal organ comparing to that of others. However, the cited source in the Structure section of the Wiki page of the vomeronasal organ is not accessible at all. I can try and contact with the author about this problem and suggest the replacement for this source.
3. In response to comments from Dr. Schutz specifically, the vomeronasal organ plays an important role in some vertebrates with its sensitivity toward chemicals that are related to mating or sensing prey. Particularly, there should be a distinction made between the odors and vomodors. Odors are chemicals detected by the sensory cells in the nasal epithelium through the process of olfaction. Vomodors are chemicals detected by the sensory cells from the vomeronasal organ through the process of vomerolfaction.
4. I will look into experiments that demonstrate the function of the vomeronasal organ. Megamanhuy (talk) 20:57, 7 April 2017 (UTC)
5. Finally, I might have to add a sepration section in the Wiki page of the garter snake since not a lot of details have been covered about my topic.

Dissection Group Second Drafts 04/14/2017 (Week 10):

Garter Snake:

For the Garter snake page, we have begun to assemble photographs of the various organs and integument elements that we are investigating. I have photographed the scales and soft integument of the garter snake, both the large scutes of the ventral surface and the small scales that cover the rest of the body. Ryan, with Dr. Schutz’s help, successfully dissected out Duvernoy’s Gland, and has photographed it. Huy will begin his dissection of the vomeronasal organ next week, and will photograph it for inclusion on the page. When we have completed our individual topics, we will link them to the Garter snake page.

Snakeskin:

For the second draft, I’ve started to compose my sections for the snakeskin page. I went back to the reptile page to make sure that there was no overlapping information about skin. The only information included on the reptile page was about the scales of reptiles, and not the soft integument and the many functions it provides, so there is limited overlap (if any). I searched for some more journal articles about snakeskin and its evolutionary history, but came up short, either because the literature went too far over my head or was more concerned with experiments that did not relate to snakeskin in a way that was useful to my project. I also took photographs with the dissection microscope of the skin of a garter snake up close. I took a few of the skin as it appeared originally with the scales attached, a few with the large scutes removed or pulled back away from the skin, and a few photographs of the skin after removing the small overlying epidermal scales. The purpose of these photographs will serve to draw attention to the fact that snakeskin is more than just scales. I still need to work on creating sub headings, and I'm at a little bit of an impasse with the evolution section for the snakeskin. I'm considering leaving this section out because I cannot find enough sources about the evolution of snakeskin to warrant its own section. Instead, I'm considering including a brief blurb about the phylogeny of snakes at the end and linking to the Lepidosauria and Squamata pages to emphasize what groups include this sort of skin. Likewise, I am thinking of linking both the Squamata and Lepidosauria pages, as well as the snake page to the Snakeskin page once it has been edited to include the following information. I would also like to link the Snakeskin page to the Ecdysis page, and back link that page to the snake page to include snake molting without rewriting what is already included on Wikipedia.

Here are the preliminary drafted sections for the snakeskin page:

Display:

Snakes can be ornately patterned. They can be striped, banded, solid, green, blue, yellow, red, black, orange, brown, spotted, or have a unique pattern all their own. These color schemes can serve may functions, including camouflage, heat absorption or reflection, or may play other, less understood roles. Melanin cells in the skin often overlap and form complex patterns and sheets that are highly recognizable. Sometimes the soft integument of a snake is colored differently than their hard scales. This is often utilized as a method of predator determent.

Coloration of snakes is largely due to pigment cells and their distribution. Some scales have lightly colored centers, which arise from regions with a reduced cuticle. A thinner cuticle indicates that some sensory organ is present. Scales in general are numerous and coat the epidermis, and they come in all shapes and colors. They are helpful in identification of snake species. Chromatophores in the dermis yield coloration when light shines through the corneal layer of the epidermis. There are many kinds of chromatophores. Melanophores yield brown pigmentation, and when paired with guanophores, yield grey. When paired with guanophores and lipophores, yellow results, and when guanophore and allophores are added to melanophores, red pigment results. Carotenoids also help produce orange and red colors. Dark snakes, dark brown or black in color, appear as such due to melanocytes that are active in the epidermis. When melanin is absent, albino individuals result. Snakes do not possess blue or green pigments. these arise from guanophores, which are also called iridocytes. These reside in the dermis. Iridocytes are also responsible for the iridescent appearance of many dark colored snakes. Males and females may show varied coloration, as might hatchlings and adults of the same species.

Function:

Snakeskin, or integument, is more than just patterns and scales. Scales and patterning are hugely important to snakes, and they are derived from a soft and complex integument. Reptiles, including snakes, possess extensive keratinization of the epidermis in the form of epidermal scales. A snake's epidermis is comprised of multiple layers. They have four epidermal layers in total. The outer layer of a snake's skin is shed periodically, and is therefore a temporary layer, and is highly keratinized. Beneath the outer layer is the corneal layer (stratum corneum), which is thickened and flexible. Under the corneal layer is intermediary zone (stratum granulosum) and the basal layer (stratum basale), respectively. The dermis of a snake resides beneath the epidermis. The dermis of snakes is generally fibrous in nature, and not very prominent.The dermis houses pigment cells, nerves, and collagen fibers. Nerve fibers extend into the snake epidermis and anchor near scales, generally at the rostral end of the snake. Specifically, nerves anchor to sensory spines and pits, which are touch and thermal detection organs, respectively. The hypodermis is below the dermis. This layer mainly stores fat. Molting is common, and results in the entire outer layer of epidermis being lost. For more about molting, see the Snake page. For more about the epidermal scales of the snake, see the Snake scale page.

The skin of a snake is a physically protective layer. It helps prevent injury, prevents drying out, and helps snakes to minimize friction. Because snakes lack limbs, their bodies are in contact with some surface at all times, which produces a huge amount of friction. As a result, they have to both minimize friction in order to move forward, and generate their own friction in order to generate enough propulsion to move. Scale and skin orientation helps to accomplish this, and it has been demonstrated that nanostructures on their scales may play a role in this process. Some snakes polish their scales. They secrete an oily substance from their nasal passage, and then rub the secretion all over the scales. This is done at varying intervals depending on the species of snake, sometimes frequently, other times only after shedding or molting. It is thought that scale polishing is used as a method of waterproofing, and it may also play a role in chemical messaging or friction reduction.

Skin permeability may change seasonally in snakes to help with the problem of drying out. It is known that desert snakes have generally impermeable skins, and that aquatic snakes have a more permeable skin that can sometimes trap water to prevent drying out. Some snakes may change their environment throughout the year, and may subsequently change their skin's permeability as a result. For instance, aquatic snakes may latch on to more water if they are in an environment that is drying out by attracting a layer of water under their scales.

Not many glands are present in snake skin. Most snake glands are holocrine glands, meaning that the gland's cells are secreted along with the substance the gland makes. These holocrine glands in snakes do not have their own blood supply, and thus lie closely with vascularized connective tissue. Snakes also possess glands that aid in attracting mates, and some marine snake species possess a salt gland that helps remove excess salt that they have consumed. Most glands in reptiles are poorly understood due to their scarcity.

The skin that lies beneath snake's scales is also responsible for snakes' flexibility. The regions between snake scales is made of soft integument that allows for movement.

Phylogeny:

Snakes belong to a group of reptiles called the Lepidosauria, which are reptiles with overlapping scales. They further are grouped down into the Squamata, which includes all snakes and lizards, and all but two species of Lepidosauria that belong to the Rynchocephalia (the tuatara). The species belonging to both of these subgroups likewise share similar skin features with snakes, with unique adaptations and features, respectively.

Duvernoy's Gland:

Draft for addition to the function section of the article Duvernoy's gland:

Mackessey et. al. suggest Duvernoy’s gland does secrete venom and is homologous to the venom gland found in front-fanged snakes. The evolutionary path of these separate glands may come from “venom proteins” whose genes are widely expressed in tissues of both venomous and non-venomous snakes. These genes are over-expressed in the venom glands (including Duvernoy’s gland), indicating the secretions from these glands evolved separately, rather than sequentially.

I am considering splitting this into two parts and adding some of it, as well as other parts of the already existing page, into a new subsection on the article Duvernoy's gland that includes the evolution of this structure.

I will also be adding photo's of Duvernoy's gland to the article, once I can get the ones I took from my dissection.

In addition to this, I will be using information from the Handbook of Venoms and Toxins of Reptiles in order to further look at the anatomy and functions of Duvernoy's gland.

• There is no direct muscle attachment for pressurizing the Duvernoy's gland, leading to most of the secretions to be delivered through a duct autonomically and with low pressure after a bite.
• It is likely Duvernoy's secretions are not meant to immediately kill prey, but rather immobilize/incapacitate gradually to make feeding easier. It is also specualted that the Duvernoy's gland secretions help aid digestion by creating early openings in the outer skin of prey, allowing for digestive enzymes to enter more vulnerable areas faster.

Vomeronasal Organ:

I will start dissecting the vomeronasal organ and taking some photos next week. After that, I will incorporate the pictures into the Wiki page of the vomeronasal organ as well as garter snake. I will only talk a little bit about how the association between the snake's tongue and the vomeronasal organ. On the wiki page of the garter snake, I will add this information under the "Behavior" section since this section talks about pheromones and mating which will connect to the vomeronasal organ.

Draft 2:

In addition to the main olfactory system, garter snakes also have the vomeronasal system which consists of the vomeronasal organ. The vomeronasal organ plays an important role in some vertebrates with its sensitivity toward chemicals that are related to mating or sensing prey. For example, the snakes use the organ to detect the presence of prey or predator by gathering the chemical cues in the environment through the flicking behavior of the forked tongue. Particularly, there should be a distinction made between the odors and vomodors. Odors are chemicals detected by the sensory cells in the nasal epithelium through the process of olfaction. Vomodors are chemicals detected by the sensory cells from the vomeronasal organ through the process of vomerolfaction. Upon entering the lumen of the organ, the chemical molecules will come into contact with the sensory cells which are attached to the neurosensory epithelium of the vomeronasal organ. More importantly, a new research has demonstrated that the vomeronasal organ is necessary in order for garter snake to response to airborne prey odors, but fail to respond to airborne nonprey odors.