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mammals

Mammals are an important group of vertebrates characterized by the presence of mothers feeding their offspring. Notable characteristics of mammals include lactation, body hair, endothermy (warm-blooded animals), and a four-chambered heart. There are many species of mammals, living in almost all ecosystems on Earth, from the deep sea to the mountains, from tropical rainforests to the cold polar regions.

  • scientific name:Mammalia

  • Features

    • suckle:Females have mammary glands that secrete milk to feed their young.

    • Body hair:Most mammals are covered with hair.

    • Endothermic:Maintaining a constant body temperature through metabolism.

    • Four-chambered heart:Mammals have four-chambered hearts to ensure efficient oxygen delivery.

    • viviparous:Most mammals reproduce by giving birth to live young, but some species, such as monotremes (e.g. the platypus), lay eggs.

  • Habitat:Almost all habitats on Earth, including land, ocean, fresh water, polar regions, etc.

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Mammal classification table

Mammals are numerous and can be subdivided based on different biological characteristics. Mammals are roughly divided into three subclasses:

  1. Monotremata: Oviparous mammals.

  2. Marsupialia: Kangaroos, koalas, etc., whose young continue to develop in a pouch outside the mother's body.

  3. Eutheria: Viviparous mammals, the most abundant species, including humans, lions, whales, etc.

The following is a detailed classification table of mammals, including all orders, families, genera and typical animals:

sortOrderFamilyGenusExamples
MonotremataMonotremataOrnithorhynchidaeOrnithorhynchusPlatypus, Echidna


TachyglossidaeEchidnaEchidna
MarsupialiaMarsupialiaMacropodidaeMacropusKangaroos, wombats, possums


PhascolarctidaePhascolarctoskoala


DasyuridaeDasyurusBandicoot, Tasmanian devil
EutheriaCarnivoraCanidaeCanisWolf, dog, fox


FelidaeFelisHouse cat, lion, tiger


UrsidaeUrsusBlack bear, brown bear, polar bear

PerissodactylaEquidaeEquusHorse, donkey, zebra


RhinocerotidaeRhinocerosWhite rhino, black rhino


TapiridaeTapirusTapirus

ArtiodactylaBovidaeBosCattle, antelopes, sheep


CervidaeCervusDeer, reindeer, sika deer


SuidaeSusWild boar, domestic pig

CetaceaBalaenidaeMegapteraHumpback whale, blue whale


DelphinidaeDelphinusDolphins, killer whales

PrimatesCercopithecidaePongoOrangutans, gibbons, monkeys


HominidaeHomoHumans, chimpanzees, orangutans

RodentiaSciuridaeSciurusSquirrels, Ground Squirrels


CastoridaeCastorbeaver


MuridaeMusHouse mouse, vole

ChiropteraVespertilionidaeMyotisSmall bat, big bat

LagomorphaLeporidaeOryctolagusRabbit, hare

Characteristics and Adaptations of Mammals

Mammals are one of the most diverse groups in the biological world. Here are the main characteristics of mammals and how they adapt:


1. Breastfeeding

A notable feature of mammals is that mothers secrete milk through their mammary glands to feed their offspring. This allows mammal cubs to receive adequate nutritional support after birth, increasing their survival rate.


2. Body hair

Almost all mammals have body hair, which not only helps to keep warm, but also plays a camouflage or display function in some species. For example, the white hair of polar bears helps them camouflage in the snow and reduce the risk of being discovered by prey.


3. Homeothermy

Mammals maintain a stable body temperature through metabolism, which allows mammals to maintain a suitable temperature regardless of changes in the outside temperature. This feature allows mammals to survive in a variety of environments, including extreme environments such as polar regions and deserts.


4. Viviparity

Most mammals reproduce by giving birth to live young, which allows the embryo to receive more stable nutritional support in the mother's body and be more viable after birth. Some species, such as kangaroos and koalas, adopt marsupial parenting.


5. Diet

Mammals have a variety of diets, from herbivorous to carnivorous and omnivorous. Some species (such as bats) have even evolved to suck blood. Different diets allow mammals to find living space in a variety of ecological environments.


Summary: Mammals are the most advanced animals with the most perfect physiological functions. There are more than 4,000 existing mammals. Almost all mammals are warm-blooded. Feeding their offspring with breast milk is one of their most notable characteristics. Mammals include nearly 30 orders, including Monotremes, Carnivores, Primates, Perissodactyla, and Artiodactyla.

Carnivora Primates Rodents Chiroptera Eulipotyphla Ungulata Cetacea Lagoiformes Pholidota Proboscidea Monotremata
Tibetan Spaniel

Tibetan Spaniel

palace dog, sleeve dog

Features:They are intelligent, cheerful, lively, active, and always in a good mood. They are highly alert to any sound, love their owner's family and are full of affection, but are very cold to visiting strangers.

Tibetan Hound is commonly called "Sleeve Dog". It is native to Tibet in the Himalayas. It is one of the ancient dog breeds in China and also a fine dog breed with a mysterious color.The Tibetan Hound originated in ancient Tibet, China. It was once used as a monk or companion, but is now on...

American Cocker Spaniel

American Cocker Spaniel

Cocker Spaniel, Cockaby, Beagle

Features:The American Cocker Spaniel is gentle, emotional, cautious, cheerful, lively, energetic, warm and friendly, alert and agile, easy to obey, loyal to the owner. It is a very good family dog ​​and easy to train.

The American Cocker Spaniel originated from the American Cocker Spaniel in the 19th century. It is a breed bred in the United States in the last century. It was brought from Spain to Britain in the early 10th century and became a British breed. It was then brought to the United States for large-sc...

Boston Terrier

Boston Terrier

Features:The Boston Terrier is one of the few dog breeds bred in the United States. It is an active, highly intelligent dog with a smooth coat, a short head, a compact structure, a short tail, and a very well-proportioned dog.

The Boston Terrier is one of the few dog breeds bred in the United States.In the 19th century, the Boston Terrier breed was born in the bullfighting activities centered on Boston. In the early days, the Boston Terrier was a modified breed of bulldogs and bull terriers. Later, a lot of improvements w...

Apso

Apso

Lhasa Apso, Tibetan Spaniel, Lhasa Goat Dog

Features:APSO means "big beard" in Tibetan, so Lhasa Apso means "Lhasa big bearded dog" and the derivative meaning is "Lhasa long-haired dog". However, some people speculate that the word "apso" is the Tibetan word "rapso", which means "goat-like", because of its obvious appearance feature that the whole body is covered with thick, long, and seemingly endless long hair.

There are two interpretations of the original Tibetan name of the Lhasa Apso (Chinese transliteration: Apso or Yabusu or Afuzao; English transliteration: Apso): one is "a guard dog that is good at barking"; the other is "goat", because the long hair on its chin resembles a goat&#...

Puli

Puli

Hungarian Puli, Hungarian Shepherd Dog

Features:The Puli is a compact, square-proportioned, well-proportioned medium-sized dog. Its most distinctive features are its shaggy, dense coat and its quick, brisk gait. Its thick, matted coat acts like an umbrella over its head.

The Puli (Hungarian Shepherd Dog), also known as the Hu Dog, is a compact, square-proportioned, well-proportioned medium-sized dog. Its English name is Hungarian Puli or Puli. It belongs to the shepherd dog category. Its mop-like appearance makes it impossible to confuse it with other breeds. Its th...

Portuguese Water Dog

Portuguese Water Dog

Coad Agua

Features:The Portuguese Water Dog can not only retrieve prey, but also help fishermen work, guard fishing boats, and shuttle between different fishing boats, acting as a liaison.

The Portuguese Water Dog is native to the coastal areas of Portugal and has sailed with fishermen to the vicinity of Iceland. The Portuguese Water Dog is an excellent swimmer and diver, with special talents and perseverance, helping his owner to find lost fishing gear in the sea, drive fish, and pas...

Wire fox terrier

Wire fox terrier

Features:The prototype of the snow dog in The Adventures of Tintin

The Wire Fox Terrier originated in the 19th century. It is a breed of dog developed for fox hunting. Its ancestors include the rough-haired black and white terrier and many terrier bloodlines. Later, it was exported to all parts of the world.A more famous one is a wire fox named "Dremadeko"...

Pointer

Pointer

Pointing Dog

Features:It has a keen sense of smell, runs fast, has a quick pace, has endurance and graceful posture. It is one of the favorite dog breeds among hunters.

Pointer is a transliteration of the English word Pointer. Another more intuitive translation of the Pointer Hound is "pointing dog". The hometown of the Pointer Hound is indeed the United Kingdom.The Pointer Hound originated in the 17th century. The earliest reliable record of pointing hou...

American Eskimo

American Eskimo

Arctic Husky, Husky

Features:American Eskimo Dogs are cheerful and lively and require a lot of exercise, so owners need to take their dogs for exercise regularly.

The American Eskimo Dog is a member of the Pomeranian Silky Dog family, and many dog lovers prefer to classify it as a Nordic breed. Nicknamed "Eski", the American Eskimo Dog was a popular circus dog in the early 20th century.In the early 19th century, the American Eskimo Dog was very popu...

Havanese

Havanese

Havanese Bichon

Features:The Havanese is elegant and sensitive, a natural companion dog. It is particularly attached to its owner and very friendly to children.

The Havanese is the national dog of Cuba and the only native breed there.The Havana is an ancient breed in the Bichon family. There are two theories about its ancestor. Some people believe that at the end of the 18th century, farmers from a village called Emilia in Italy took several "Bologna&q...

Jack Russell Terrier

Jack Russell Terrier

Features:Personality: Playful, gentle, cute

The Jack Russell Terrier is a lively, energetic, and group-loving working dog breed. In 1819, a pastor named Jack Russell bred the ancestor of this breed. So it was named Jack Russell Terrier. At that time, the fur color was only black and white. And the limbs were also lon...

Whippet

Whippet

Snap dog

Features:Whippets compete in dog sports such as lure chasing, agility jumping, dock diving, and flyball.The name originates from an early 17th century word, now obsolete, meaning "to move lightly".

The Whippet originated in northeast England. Its name comes from the word "whip", which means rapid movement. It is often used in short-distance races and can run at speeds of up to 60 kilometers per hour.In the Victorian era, the dogfighting and dog racing craze was at its peak, and miner...

Miniature Pinscher

Miniature Pinscher

Deerhounds

Features:The Miniature Pinscher is alert, intelligent and loyal. Despite its small size, it is very brave and makes an excellent family dog. It is also an expert mouse catcher and has a lively attitude.

The Miniature Pinscher is a native German breed, also known as the Deer Dog because of its deer-like appearance. It has been featured in many modern famous paintings and is now popular in Europe and the United States. It has existed for several centuries and is not the miniature Doberman as everyone...

Dogue de Bordeaux

Dogue de Bordeaux

French Mastiff

Features:The Dogue de Bordeaux has a huge, heavy head, a broad forehead, a wrinkled face, a prominent, very powerful jaw, and an upper lip that hangs down on both sides to wrap around the jaw.

The Dogue de Bordeaux is one of the oldest dog breeds in ancient France, and may be a descendant of the Allan. In the 14th century, Gaston Phebus, Count of Focuse, mentioned one of his Allan in his Livre de Chasse: "Its bite is more fierce than three sighthounds.The word "dogue" first...

Bloodhound

Bloodhound

Canis lupus familiaris,St. Hubert's Hound

Features:Bloodhounds were originally bred for hunting deer and wild boars, and have been used since the Middle Ages as police dogs to track criminals or search for missing persons. Most are now used exclusively for tracking. The Bloodhound is a descendant of the hounds bred by St. Hubert in Belgium.

The Bloodhound, also known as Canis lupus familiaris, is one of the oldest, purest, and largest scent hounds in the world. Its origin can be traced back to 1000 AD. In the 8th century, monks in Belgian monasteries raised a dog called St Huberts, the predecessor of the Bloodhound. The monks only perf...

Leonberger

Leonberger

Canis lupus familiaris

Features:This dog is tall, muscular, strong and powerful, with a majestic demeanor. It is intelligent, affectionate, kind, likes children and is highly obedient.

Leonberger, originally from Germany, was a breed that was created in the first half of the 19th century by mating St. Bernards with Newfoundlands and Great Pyrenees to imitate the lion on the emblem of the German city of Leonberger. It was selected and bred several times.In 1840, Heinrich Issag, the...

Shih Tzu

Shih Tzu

Chinese Lion Dog, Lion Dog, etc.

Features:Considered the most difficult dog to train

Shih Tzu is an ancient dog breed originated in Tibet, China. As early as the Sui and Tang Dynasties, the image of Shih Tzu has entered paintings and literary works. Its ancestor is believed to be a hybrid of Lhasa Apso and Pekingese, because it is said that in the mid-17th century, the Lhasa Apso pr...

Afghan Hound

Afghan Hound

Kabul Hound

Features:It is a hound and one of the oldest dog breeds. The Afghan Hound has a thick appearance, a slender face and body, fine and smooth hair, and its tail is curled at the end.

The Afghan Hound is an ancient dog breed. There were images of the Afghan Hound 4,000 years ago. This dog originated in the Middle East and was used to hunt gazelles, wolves, snow leopards and other fast-running animals.The Afghan Hound first landed in Britain in 1886 and became the British royal ho...

Great Dane

Great Dane

Deutsche Dogge

Features:It is regarded as the Apollo of the world's dogs and was once included in the Guinness World Records for its huge size.

Historically, the Great Dane has been used as a hunting dog, guard dog, fighting dog, working dog, etc. Because of its gentle character and beautiful appearance, its current development direction is mainly family dogs.The Great Dane, which grew up in the Mediterranean sub-southern region, arrived in...

Bulldog

Bulldog

Tiger dog, English bulldog

Features:The breed is characterized by well-developed muscles, a stable body, wrinkled face, and a distinctive flat nose.

The English Bulldog originated in the United Kingdom. Some people also call it the Tiger Dog. It originated in the British Isles. Its ancestors are said to be the combination of the Mastiff and the Bulldog. Although the English Bulldog looks scary, it is actually a kind, friendly, loyal breed. It al...

Chow Chow

Chow Chow

Bear Chow, Woof Dog

Features:A cat-like dog breed with an extremely arrogant and strong personality

The Chow Chow is a very fashionable pet and guard dog. It originated in China and was once called the Chow Chow in ancient times. It has a history of more than 2,000 years and is one of the oldest dog breeds in the world. It is said that it was the most favored by the emperor during the Tang Dynasty...