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Mammals

  • Page ID
    184582
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    Mammals are vertebrates that possess hair and mammary glands, have a middle ear with three bones to hear higher-pitched sounds, and a chewing jaw in order to break up food more quickly. 

    The Tasmanian devil is one of several marsupials native to Australia. (credit: Wayne McLean)

    Modern mammals are divided into three main groups:

    • Monotremes - egg laying mammals (Duck-billed platypus and Echidna)
    • Marsupials - give birth to live young that mature inside a pouch (opossum, kangaroo, wombat, and koala)
    • Eutherians - give birth to live young that have completed fetal development (familiar mammals, and humans)

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