In terrestrial vertebrates, digitigrade (/ ˈdɪdʒɪtɪˌɡreɪd / DIJ-ih-tih-grayd; [1] from Latin digitus 'finger' and gradior 'walk') describes locomotion walking or running on the toes.

Apr 29, 2025 · Digitigrade is a common characteristic of mammals and birds, but it does not encompass all species of either class of animals. Humans, baboons, and bears are notable exceptions to the …

Jan 30, 2025 · To put it simply, mammals that walk digitigrade are those that walk on their toes instead of touching the ground using their heels. It’s why a dog’s leg has that distinctive hook shape.

The meaning of DIGITIGRADE is walking on the digits with the posterior of the foot more or less raised. How to use digitigrade in a sentence.

Jun 19, 2025 · Digitigrade mammals are mostly hunters or scavengers, who need to be quick, quiet, and agile to capture prey (or steal someone else’s!). For this reason, they have evolved a flexible spine to...

…of cursorial species may be digitigrade (the complete digits contacting the ground, as in dogs) or unguligrade (only tips of digits contacting the ground, as in horses).

Digitigrade and plantigrade are two different types of locomotion found in animals. Digitigrade animals walk on their toes, with their heels raised off the ground, such as dogs and cats. Plantigrade animals …

Mammals have three stances based upon how the bones in their feet touch the ground. These stances are plantigrade, digitigrade, and unguligrade. They are represented here by the squirrel, the cyote, …

The metacarpus/metatarsus is elevated and contributes to limb length. The unguligrade equine makes ground contact with its hoof. The bones of the pes are elevated and elongated to greatly increase …

Digitigrade locomotion is a form of terrestrial movement in which an animal supports its body weight primarily on the digits (toes) of its feet, with the heel (calcaneus) and wrist (carpus) elevated off the …