AnimalsThatConqueredPlanetLEC35 Flashcards
class Mammalia
- have more than 5,000 living species
- only animals with memory glands
Monotremes
small group of egg-laying mammals including the spiny anteater & platypus
marsupial
ex. opossums, kangaroos, koalas, sugar glider, & tasmanian devil
- live in australia
- born very early in its development
- completes embryonic development nursing in marsupium (pouch)
Eutherians
ex. zebra & humans
- placental mammals
- most successful animals
T or F, Many large mammals have recently disappeared
True, like giant rhinos with no horns
order Primates
lemurs, tarsiers, monkeys, & apes
*humans are members of the ape group
Derived Characters of Primates
–opposable thumb
–large brain & short jaws
–forward-looking eyes
–well-developed parental care & complex social behavior
lemurs live in…
Madagascar
Carnivorous tarsiers live in…
Southeast Asia
what does the group anthropoid contains?
Monkeys, our closet relatives
how old is Homo sapiens? how long has life existed on earth?
- 130,000 years old
- 3.5 billion years
Derived Characters of Humans
–Upright posture & bipedal locomotion
–Shortened jaw
–Larger brains
–Complex tools
how many fossils of extinct apes was discovered that are closely related to humans? what do we call them?
- 20 species
- hominins
where did Hominins originated?
in Africa 7 mya
*Early hominins had a small brain, but probably walked upright
Australopithecines
a group of hominins that lived between 4-2mya
