The Anatomy of the Bonobo

3D Model

This is an anatomical écorché of the bonobo (pygmy chimpanzee) head and neck.

The face, ear and skull were exported from a CT scan off Morphosource. The bust, neck, nose and rest of the head were then modelled from scratch due to the bonobo being in an odd position in the CT data.

The muscles were modelled from scratch, and care was taken to ensure complete anatomical accuracy. The modelling and positioning of the muscles were based off the “Photographic and Descriptive Musculoskeletal Atlas of Bonobos” by Diogo R et al (2017). There are two interesting aspects of the bonobo musculature in comparison to humans. The first is the lack of the risorius in bonobos (also missing in common chimpanzees). The second is the zygomaticus minor, which originates from the temporalis fascia in bonobos (compared to the zygomatic bone in humans and common chimpanzees).

This 3D model was made as part of my MSc Medical Art dissertation. This model is part of a comparison with the anatomy of the human.