omotransversarius muscle

The omotransversarius is a straplike muscle, which advances and adducts the forelimb, as well as flexes the neck laterally. It covers the transverse processes of the cervical vertebrae, lying to their side. The omotransversarius lies ventral to the trapezius, cranial to the deltoid muscle and is covered cranially by the cleidocervicalis. It extends from the atlas to the spine of the scapula, with its origin on the transverse process of the atlas and its insertion in the distal end of the spine of the scapula. Its name can be split into omo, which is Greek for shoulder, and tranversarius which relates to its attachment to the transverse process of the atlas. This muscle is innervated by the accessory nerve.