Eutherians + Afrotheria Flashcards
What is the most successful group of mammals and when did they arise?
How do they compare with Monotremes and Metatherians with regards to number of species?
How did their global spread affect Metatherians?
In what ways did they reach South America?
Compare/contrast Metatherians and Eutherians
braincase
auditory bullae
vacuities
jugal/squamosal/dentary/articulation
angular process
dental formula
epipubic bones
reproductive organ config
marsupium
scrotum/baculum
What are Juramaia sinensis and Eoamaia scansorial and when did they occur?
What makes up most of the fossil record of Eutherians, and why is it not very robust?
What forms/lifestyles did most early Eutherians take?
What and when were 2 major diversity “pulses” that diversified into the modern groups of Eutherians?
What 2 Magnorders exist in the Eutherian phylogeny?
What Superorders are contained within each of these Magnorders?
Describe their distribution on Pangea.
What superorder is known as the “African Beasts” and what 2 related clades are within it?
Which 3 families are in the order Afrosoricida, and what is the common name of each family?
What family contains the tenrecs?
What 2 groups did they convergently evolve their body patterns with?
What is their habitat? Diet? Lifestyle?
How many species are there and where are they endemic to?
How big are they? Describe 2 diagnostic skull features and also their cheek teeth pattern.
Body opening, eyes, pinna, snout, spines, estrus, stridulating quills, body temp, torpor
What family contains the otter shrews?
Appearance?
Lifestyle?
Skull characteristics? Cheek teeth?
How many species, and where are they?
Size? Diet? Hindfoot adaptation?
Body form? Tail function/description? Sense organs?
Where do they den?
What family contains the golden moles?
How many species and where are they?
Diet? Pelage description? Habitats?
Sense organs? Nose adaptation?
Head shape? Description of front/back feet?
Hearing adaptations?
Adaptation for water absorption? Body openings?
What Order and Family contain the sengis? What else are sengis called?
Habitats and range?
Size, speed, leg/digit description?
Diet?
Uniquie escape behavior?
Pair bonding? Unusual female reproductive trait?
Neonate foods?
What Order and Family contain the aardvark? What else are aardvarks called?
How many species and what is the range?
Size?
Forelimb adaptations, and for what?
Skull description?
Teeth (# sets, types, rooted/rootless, enamel)
Diet?
Nose adaptations (brain connection, special external sensors, protection, turbinates)
Lifestyle
Ears
Digestion/stomach
Ecosystem importance
Order: Macroscelidea
