Phylum Chordata: Class Mammalia
MAMMALS ~ Shawna Callahan
What is phylum chordata: class mammalia?
Well mammals are a class of vertebrates characterised by many different things including warm blooded and sweat glands.
Charateristics of a mammal
- They are warm blooded
- They have hairy bodies
- They have a four chambered heart
- They have a single jaw bone
- They have sweat glands
- They also have vertebrates
- The mothers are able to produce milk for their youth
Special Adaptations
- Mammals that live in colder climates have thickier layer of fur and fat that help regulate the body temperature to keep it constant.
- Some mammals that live in the dessert have special adaptations in their kidney and sweat glands, as well as a way to advoid the extreme heat.
- Other special adaptations include hibernation. They hibernate because it helps them conserve their energy when food becomes scarce.
The mammal in the picture is named Ursus maritimus.
Processes within the mammal
- Feeding and Digestion- The mammal eats what it likes or what it can eat and it goes throughout the stomach and out of the organism. Consisting of the alimentary canal and various accessory glands, secret digestive juices into the canal through ducts. The food is moved along the tract of smooth muscles in the wall of the canal.
- Circulation- Blood flow is directed into two circuits. One circuit goes through the lungs and back to the heart. The other circuit goes throughout the rest of the body and its organs including the brain.
- Excretion- The waste products exit the body by urination and breathing out respectively. If these waste products don't get out of the body it could lead to death of the organism.
- Movement- Mammals limbs have the same bones in the same order, but in different proportions. They are put into different uses for different species. The legs and/or arms help the mammal move around. In some cases it would be the tail of the organism.
- Nervous- They consist of two main divisons. One being the central nervous system, consisting of the brain and spinal chord. The other main divison is peripheral nervous system.
- Reproduction- They reproduce sexually. The sperm from the male fertilizes the female's egg. Some males fight other males to get the female, others just try to look their healthiest and strongest for the female. The female carries the baby for the amount of time that it needs to stay in there and then the mother has the babies.
The mammal in the picture is named Phascolarctos cinereus.
Fun Facts of Mammals
- Bats are the only mammals that can fly.
- Most mammals are born live, not from eggs.
- Mammals body temperature stay the same their whole life.
- All mammals have fur, even dolphins and whales that live in the ocean.
- Mammals are helpless when they are first born. Their parents take care of them until they are old enough to take care of themselves.
- There are more than 4,200 species of mammals.
- Polar bears look white, but they really aren't. Their skin is black.
- Hippopotamuses give birth under water even though all of their predators live under water.
- Hooded seals go from infancy to adulthood in just four days, the shortest childhood for any other mammal.
- All other animals give birth to their youth besides the Duck-Billed Platypus and the Echidna. They both hatch their youth.
The mammal in the picture is named Chiroptera.
The mammal in the picture is named Cetacea.
Works Cited
"Mammals." html, 2017, http://science.jrank.org/pages/4106/Mammals.html. Accessed May 4, 2017.
"Facts about Mammals" html, 2010-2017, http://sciencewithkids.com/science-facts/facts-about-mammals.html. Accessed May 4, 2017.
"Fun Facts About Mammals" html, 2017, https://www.sciencenaturally.com/node/26. Accessed May 4, 2017.
"Mammalia- Mammals" 2005, http://www.coolgalapagos.com/animals/mammalia_mammals.php. Accessed May 8, 2017.