Order Proboscidia
- Elephants
- Huge size
- Upper incisors enlarged into tusks
- Molars formed of fused vertical plates that are replaced front to back
- Nose and upper lip form trunk
- Mostly hairless
- 3 species, Africa, Asia
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Asian Elephant Skull, Elephas maximus (Family Elephantidae)
San Diego Natural History Museum
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African Elephant molar, Loxodonta africana (length=205 mm)
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African (Bush) Elephants, Loxodonta africana (Family Elephantidae); Kenya
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Order Xenarthra
- Armadillos, anteaters, sloths
- No canines or incisors
- Cheek teeth small and simple or also absent
- Specialized insectivores
- 31 species; Neotropics
- Taxonomic note: formerly part of polyphyletic Order Edentata
- Taxonomic note: sometimes further split into 2 Orders: Pilosa (anteaters + sloths) and Cingulata (armadillos)
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Nine-banded Armadillo skull, Dasypus novemcinctus (Family Dasypodidae)
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Giant Anteater skull, Myrmecophaga tridactyla (Family Myrmecophagidae)
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Two-toed Sloth, Choloepus sp. (Family Megalonychidae)
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Nine-banded Armadillo, Dasypus novemcinctus (Family Dasypodidae); FL
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Giant Anteater, Myrmecophaga tridactyla (Family Myrmecophagidae)
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Order Rodentia
- Rodents
- Mostly small size
- 1 pair of continuously growing incisors
- Large diastema between incisors and cheek teeth
- Diverse diets, but majority herbivores, seed-eaters
- Includes 40% of all mammal species
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Brown Rat skull, Rattus norvegicus (Family Muridae)
See also labeled photo.
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Common Muskrat skull, Ondatra zibethicus (Family Cricetidae)
See also labeled photo.
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North American Porcupine skull, Erethizon dorsatum (Family Erethizontidae)
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Golden-mantled Ground Squirrel, Spermophilus lateralis (Family Sciuridae); CA
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Yellow-bellied Marmot, Marmota flaviventris (Family Sciuridae); CA
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Western Harvest Mouse, Reithrodontomys megalotis (Family Cricetidae); CA
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Rusty-nosed Rat, Oenomys hypoxanthus (Family Muridae); Kenya
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Naked Mole-rats, Heterocephalus glaber (Family Bathyergidae)
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Capybara, Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris (Family Hydrochoeridae), the world's largest rodent (up to 75 kg)
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Order Lagomorpha
- Rabbits and pikas
- Similar to rodents
- Tail very short
- Two pairs of upper incisors (2nd pair behind first)
- Fenestrated skull
- 91 species; worldwide
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Rabbit Skull, Lepus sp. (Family Leporidae)
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Desert Cottontail, Sylvilagus audubonii (Family Leporidae); CO
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American Pika, Ochotona princeps (Family Ochotonidae); CO
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Order Primates
- Lemurs, monkeys, apes
- Cheek teeth squarish
- Large, forward-facing eyes
- Reduced muzzle but larger brain
- Grasping hands with nails instead of claws
- 388 species, tropics (humans worldwide)
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Ruffed Lemur Skull, Varecia variegata (Family )
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Vervet Monkey Skull, Cercopithecus aethiops (Family Cercopithecidae)
See also labeled photo.
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Gorilla skull, male, Gorilla gorilla (Family Hominidae)
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Bush Baby, Galago sp. (Family Galagonidae)
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Ring-tailed Lemur, Lemur catta (Family Lemuridae)
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Common Squirrel Monkey, Saimiri sciureus (Family Cebidae)
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Cotton-top Tamarin, Saguinus oedipus (Family Callitrichidae)
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Vervet Monkey, Cercopithecus aethiops (Family Cercopithecidae); Kenya
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Olive Baboon, Papio anubis, Kenya (Family Cercopithecidae)
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Japanese Macaques, Macaca fuscata (Family Cercopithecidae)
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Male Yellow-cheeked Gibbon, Nomascus gabriellae (Family Hylobatidae)
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(Lowland) Gorilla, Gorilla gorilla (Family Hominidae)
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Order Lipotyphla
- Shrews, moles, hedgehogs.
- Generalized, ancestral characteristics
- Cusps on cheek teeth form triangular pattern
- Most are small sized
- Relatively small brains
- Pointed snouts with small eyes and ears
- Primarily insectivorous
- Formerly part of polyphyletic Order Insectivora
- 442 species
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Eastern Mole skull, Scalopus aquaticus (Family Talpidae)
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European Hedgehog, Erinaceus europaeus (Family Erinaceidae)
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Short-tailed Shrew, Blarina carolinensis? (Family Soricidae)
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Order Chiroptera
- Bats
- Forelimb modified into wing
- Forearm, fingers greatly elongated
- Diet varies, including fruit, insects, nectar
- >1100 species; worldwide
- Two suborders:
- Megachiroptera are the large, tropical fruit bats (aka flying foxes) with no echolocation
- Microchiroptera are mostly smaller; all use echolocation and are predominantly insectivorous
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Lyle's Flying Fox skull, Pteropus lylei (Family Pteropodidae); a frugivore
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Lesser Dawn Bat skull, Eonycteris spelaea (Family Pteropodidae); a nectivore
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Javan Pipistrelle skull, Pipistrellus javanicus (Family Vespertilionidae); an insectivore
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Rodriguez Fruit Bat, Pteropus rodricensis (Family Pteropodidae)
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Big Brown Bat, Eptesicus fuscus (Family Vespertilionidae); CA
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Hollow-faced Bat, Nycteris sp. (dead) (Family Nycteridae); Kenya
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Order Carnivora
- Dogs, cats, bears, weasels, seals, etc.
- Carnassial dentition: last upper premolar & 1st lower molar form specialized cutting teeth
- Well developed canines
- Most are predators
- Pinnipeds are aquatic, with limbs modified into flippers
- 282 species, now worldwide
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Bobcat skull, Lynx rufus (Family Felidae)
See also labeled photo.
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Side-striped Jackal skull, Canis adustus (Family Canidae)
See also labeled photo.
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Black Bear skull, Ursus americanus (Family Ursidae)
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Mink skull, Mustela vison (Family Mustellidae)
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Small Indian Mongoose skull, Herpestes javanicus (Family Herpestidae)
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California Sea Lion skull, Zalophus californianus (Family Otariidae)
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African Lions, Panthera leo (Family Felidae); Kenya
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Red Fox, Vulpes vulpes (Family Canidae); CA
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Sun Bear, Helarctos malayanus (Family Ursidae)
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Northern Raccoons, Procyon lotor (Family Procyonidae); CA
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Meerkats, Suricata suricatta (Family Herpestidae)
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Striped Skunk, Mephitis mephitis (Family Mephitidae)
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Spotted Hyaenas, Crocuta crocuta (Family Hyaenidae); Kenya
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Northern Elephant Seals, Mirounga anguistirostris (Family Phocidae); CA
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California Sea Lions, Zalophus californianus (Family Otariidae); CA
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Order Perissodactyla
- Odd-toed Ungulates
- 1 or 3 toes per foot
- Large size
- Elongated rostrum
- Herbivorous; hind-gut fermenters
- Unlike Artiodactyls, rhino horns are entirely keratinous and lack a bone core
- 16 species
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Domestic Horse skull, Equus caballus (Family Equidae)
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Burchell's Zebras, Equus burchelli (Family Equidae); Kenya
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Malayan Tapirs, Tapirus indicus (Family Tapiridae)
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Sumatran Rhinoceros skull, Dicerorhinus sumatrensis (Family Rhinocerotidae)
International Wildlife Museum
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Indian Rhinoceros, Rhinoceros unicornis (Family Rhinocerotidae)
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Black Rhinoceros, Diceros bicornis (Family Rhinocerotidae)
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Order Artiodactyla
- Even-toed Ungulates
- 2 or 4 toes per foot
- Diverse in size, shape
- Omnivorous or herbivorous; many are foregut fermenters
- Many have horns or antlers
- 239 species, worldwide
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White-tailed Deer skull, Odocoileus virginanus (Family Cervidae), ♂ with antlers
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Impala skull, Aepyceros melampus (Family Bovidae), ♂ with horns
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Collared Peccary skull, Pecari (Tayassu) tajacu (Family Tayassuidae)
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♂ White-tailed Deer, Odocoileus virginianus (Family Cervidae); TX
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♂ Impala, Aepyceros melampus (Family Bovidae); Kenya
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Collared Peccary, Pecari (Tayassu) tajacu (Family Tayassuidae)
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Hippopotamuses, Hippopotamus amphibians (Family Hippopotamidae); Kenya
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Common Warthog, Phacochoerus africanus (Family Suidae); Kenya
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Dromedary, Camelus dromedarius (Family Camelidae)
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African Buffalo, Syncerus caffer (Family Bovidae); Kenya
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Giraffe, Giraffa camelopardalis (Family Giraffidae); Kenya
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Pronghorn, Antilocapra americana (Family Antilocapridae); WY
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Order Cetacea
- Whales & Dolphins
- Fully aquatic
- Very large size with streamlined shape
- Front flippers; no hind limbs
- Broad crescent-shaped tail fluke
- Nostril on top of head (blowhole)
- Skulls often asymmetric
- 88 species; oceans and some rivers
- Two extant suborders:
- Odontoceti (toothed whales, dolphins) have simple homodont teeth
- Mysticeti (baleen whales) lack teeth but have baleen: keratin sheets used to strain food
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Gray Whale skull, Eschrichtius robustus (Family Eschrichtiidae)
San Diego Natural History Museum
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Pacific White-sided Dolphin skull, Lagenorhynchus obliquidens (Family Delphinidae)
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Bottle-nosed Dolphin, Tursiops truncatus (Family Delphinidae)
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Bowhead Whale baleen, Balaena mysticetus (Family Balaenidae)
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Beluga Whale, Delphinapterus leucas (Family Monodontidae)
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Other Mammal Orders
- In addition to those above, 12 other orders (4 Metatherian, 8 Eutherian) are usually recognized.
- Most of these contain fewer than 20 species
- You do not need to know these orders
- Of the five orders shown, all but the Scandentia are members of the clade Afrotheria (which also includes elephants)
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Rock Hyrax skull, Procavia capensis; Order Hyracoidea
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Yellow-spotted Hyrax, Heterohyrax brucei; Order Hyracoidea; Kenya
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Lesser Tenrec, Echinops telfairi; Order Tenrecoidea
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Short-eared Elephant Shrew, Macroscelides proboscideus; Order Macroscelidea
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West Indian Manatee, Trichechus manatus; Order Sirenia: FL
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Terrestrial Tree Shrew, Tupaia tana; Order Scandentia
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