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Mammal Characteristics

Mammal Characteristics. Biology Two 27-1. What is a mammal?. Belong to the class Mammalia Endothermic vertebrate with hair Females have mammary glands, secrete milk to feed young There are approximately 4500 species of mammals. Size of mammals. Mammals vary in size

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Mammal Characteristics

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  1. Mammal Characteristics Biology Two 27-1

  2. What is a mammal? • Belong to the class Mammalia • Endothermic vertebrate with hair • Females have mammary glands, secrete milk to feed young • There are approximately 4500 species of mammals.

  3. Size of mammals • Mammals vary in size • Smallest—pygmy shrew—must eat constantly • Largest—blue whale—weighs as much as 32 elephants • Mammals live in most types of environment. Their hair, sweat glands and fat varies depending on where they live.

  4. Movement • Slowest-two toes sloth-active only four hours a day. • Fastest-cheetah 400 m per 15 sec, humans 150 m per 15 sec • How do they run? • Long legs • Flexible hip and shoulder joints

  5. Movement… • Other forms of movement seen in mammals • Climbing—monkeys use the tail as well • Swimming—paddles/flippers • Flying--bats

  6. Response • Mammals have the most developed brain in the animal kingdom. • There are three parts to the brain: • Cerebrum--largest part -thinking and learning goes on here. • Cerebellum--controls movements. • Medulla--controls body functions such as breathing and heart rate.

  7. Response… • When in danger mammals will.. • Run quickly • Use horns and hooves to strike • Work in herds or a pack

  8. Response… • Some have good smell—dogs, cheetah, other meat eaters • Some have good hearing, high frequency sound waves—dogs and bats • Most have good eyesight, several cannot see color. Underground mammals have poor vision but good touch and smell

  9. Feeding • Endotherms require a lot of energy. • Mammals eat different types of food so they need specialized teeth. • Specialized teeth (page 649) • Incisors—gripping and cutting • Canines—piercing and tearing • Premolars and molars—grinding and crushing

  10. Feeding… • Those mammals that eat plant material will have a longer digestive tract compared to meat eaters. • They also have a rumen, which is an area to store plant material and wait to begin the digestive process (read top paragraph, page 741 elephant book)

  11. Feeding… • Some mammals have the cecum which is similar to the rumen but found by the intestines.

  12. Respiration • Mammals require a constant supply of oxygen. • Mammals have two adaptations that increase the efficiency of the lungs: the diaphragm and air sacs. • Diaphragm is a dome shaped sheet of muscle, it pulls air into the lungs by expanding the chest cavity. • Air sacs increase area for oxygen to be exchanged. • Many mammals are able to exhale air to vibrate vocal cords and produce a variety of sounds.

  13. Internal Transport • Blood flows through a double loop circulatory system and a four chambered heart. The chambers are 2 atria and 2 ventricles. • Heart to lungs-back to heart-out to body-back to heart (repeat)

  14. Excretion • Most developed kidneys of all vertebrates. • Extract waste from blood (urea) mixes with water and forms urine. • They control the composition and levels of body fluids.

  15. Reproduction • Three groups of mammals • Most are viviparous—young develop in mothers body and are born live, no eggs • Monotremes • Marsupials • Placental

  16. Monotremes • Lay eggs • Incubates egg by body heat • Embryo is nourished by nutrients inside the egg • Once born, feed from mother • Immature newborns and develop further under parental care • Example duck-billed platypus

  17. Monotremes Echinda Duck billed platypus

  18. Marsupials • Give birth small immature young, which develop inside mother’s external pouch • Embryo is nourished inside its mother by a yolk sac • The yolk sac is not large enough to nourish the embryo through its complete development • 30 days after fertilization, a kangaroo give birth to a tiny undeveloped baby, it is blind, hairless and weighs .9 grams and is 2.5 cm long • Baby crawls into mother’s pouch until it is large enough and strong enough to survive on its own.

  19. Koala Tasmanian Devil Opposum Wallaby/Kangaroo

  20. Difference between monotremes/marsupials • Marsupials are protected and kept warm in pouch. • Marsupial mothers can move around to look for food and escape from predators.

  21. Placental Mammals • Young develop inside the mother’s body and are nourished by mother’s body. • 95% of mammals are placental mammals • Get name from placenta which is a tissue that surrounds the embryo through which nutrients and gases exchange.

  22. Placental Mammals • Gestation periods vary among mammals. This is how long the embryo stays inside the mother’s body • Mice -21 days, elephants—22 months, Humans 9- months • Gestation period increases with the size of the adult and the degree to which the newborns and developed.

  23. Last Slide!

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