b) thoracic vertebrae (12)
--have facets for heads & tubercles of ribs
on the transverse process and body of vertebrae
--spinous processes are long
c) lumbar vertebrae (5)
--very thick;
bearing much more of the body's weight than the cervical vertebrae did
--because
spinal nerves leave the vertebral column at every body segment, the diameter
of the vertebral foramina (and the spinal cord within) decreases from
the cervical to lumbar segments
d) sacrum: 5 fused
vertebrae (the distinctions are still visible in the positions of the
sacral foramina);
these vertebrae fuse
before birth
--protects delicate
organs, room for muscle attachment
e) coccyx: 3-5 fused vertebrae; our tailbone
