Mammals

About Mammals

Mammals are warm-blooded vertebrates (animals with backbones) with hair. Mammals can be found everywhere on earth. They are very adaptable and live in all sorts of environments.

Most mammals are placental mammals. They give birth to live young instead of laying eggs like reptiles and birds. Some mammals are marsupials. They carry their young in a pouch. There are also a few egg-laying animals which are called monotremes. These include the platypus and echidnas.

The largest group of mammals is the rodentia. With about 1500 living rodents, they make up almost 40% of all mammals. They are categorized by a single pair of continously growing teeth in the upper and lower jaw. They include mice, rats, hamsters, beavers and a lot more.

Mammals that eat meat are called carnivores. Those that only eat plants are called herbivores. And mammals that eat both meat and plants are omnivores.