Editing Antler (section)

== Homology and evolution of tines ==
[[File:Antler phylogenetics - Samejima et al 2020.png|thumb|right|300px|Antler phylogenetics]]
Antlers originated once in the cervid lineage.<ref name=":0">{{Cite journal|last=Heckeberg|first=Nicola S.|date=February 18, 2020|title=The systematics of the Cervidae: a total evidence approach|journal=PeerJ|language=en|volume=8|pages=e8114|doi=10.7717/peerj.8114|issn=2167-8359|pmc=7034380|pmid=32110477 |doi-access=free }}</ref> The earliest fossil remains of antlers that have been found are dated to the early Miocene, about 17 million years ago. These early antlers were small and had just two forks.<ref name=":0" /> As antlers evolved, they lengthened and gained many branches, or tines, becoming more complex.<ref name=":0" /> The homology of tines has been discussed since the 1900s and has provided great insight into the evolutionary history of the Cervidae family.<ref>Garrod, A. Notes on the visceral anatomy and osteology of the ruminants, with a suggestion regarding a method of expressing the relations of species by means of formulae. Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London, 2–18 (1877).</ref><ref>Brooke, V. On the classification of the Cervidæ, with a synopsis of the existing Species. Journal of Zoology 46, 883–928 (1878).</ref><ref>Pocock, R. The Homologies between the Branches of the Antlers of the Cervidae based on the Theory of Dichotomous Growth. Journal of Zoology 103, 377–406 (1933).</ref>

Recently, a new method to describe the branching structure of antlers was developed.<ref>Samejima, Y., Matsuoka, H. A new viewpoint on antlers reveals the evolutionary history of deer (Cervidae, Mammalia). Sci Rep 10, 8910 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-020-64555-7</ref> It is by using antler grooves, which are formed on the surface of antlers by growth, projecting the branching structure on the burr circumference, and making diagrams. Comparing the positional order among species on the diagram, the tine on the same position is homologous. The study revealed that three-pointed structures of Capreolinae and Cervini are homoplasious, and their subclades gained synapomorphous tines.