Fig. 1

Surgical approaches to middle ear ossicles. a Schematic diagram of the skull of an adult Chinchilla lanigera. The malleus was accessed using a combination of a superior and inferior approach through the superior tympanic bulla (white arrow) and inferior tympanic bulla (gray arrow)*. b Initial view once the middle ear has been accessed via the inferior approach to the superior bulla with the malleus seen intact (c) with intervention using the tip of the ultrasonic bone removal device. d Small amount of bone removed from the malleus. Note *Diagram adapted for Wolter el. al [13]