epipubic
Adjective
Meaning
Relating to the epipubis.
Source: Webster's dictionaryExamples
Due to the presence of epipubic bones, non-placental mammals cannot expand their abdomen, being thus forced to give birth to (or lay eggs that hatch into) fetus-like larvae.
Ossified patellae are absent in most modern marsupials, though a small number of exceptions are reported and epipubic bones are present.
These epipubic bones seem to function by stiffening the muscles during locomotion, reducing the amount of space being presented, which placentals require to contain their fetus during gestation periods.
Thylacines, uniquely for marsupials, have largely cartilaginous epipubic bones with a highly reduced osseous element.