[2] All bones of the structure derive from the cranial neural crest during fetal development.

In humans and other mammals, the endocranium forms during fetal development as a cartilaginous neurocranium, that ossifies from several centers.

[3] Several of these bones merge, and in the adult primates (including humans), the endocranium is composed of only five bony elements (from front to back):[4] The endocranium in mammals is much reduced in relative size and number of bones compared to the condition in the ancestral land vertebrates, though the occipital bone occur as one or more stout bony elements in several mammal groups.

The occipital bone is also found as several bony elements in birds and reptiles, while the skull of modern amphibians is generally reduced with a simplified endocranium.

Scientists are increasingly utilizing computerized tomography scanning technology to create digital endocasts without damaging valuable specimens.