Résumé
Many mammals, especially rodents, show behavioural, morphological and physiological adap- tations to fossorial life, mainly to gain access to food resources and escape predators and extreme climatic fluctuations. Adaptations to fossorial life are found in more than ten families of ex- tant and extinct rodents on most continents. The constraints imposed by burrowing and living underground have led to strong behavioural and morphological convergences, notably involving the functioning of the rodent masticatory apparatus. While most mammals use their claws for digging, rodents are unique in that some species use their ever-growing incisors for this purpose, and most subterranean species have become chisel-tooth diggers. Here, we review examples of convergence found in the main morphological and functional components of the rodent digging apparatus in relation to burrowing activity. Several morphological specializations of the skull have been described according to 3D geometric morphometrics. Specializations of the incisor shape and of the main jaw adductor muscles are also highlighted. Our focus on families showing extreme specializations, such as Bathyergidae (African mole-rats) and Spalacidae (blind mole- rat, root-rats, Asian zokors and bamboo rats) underscores the fact that multiple modifications of the different components of the masticatory apparatus have led to similar overall morphologies and functions, overcoming phylogenetic inheritance. Interestingly, the morphological disparity recorded in each family is consistent with the putative number of independent occurrences of fossorial lifestyle during their evolutionary history, which is likely to be confirmed by further analyses of their masticatory muscles.