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    18 views4 pages

    Order Insectivora Biology Presentation

    Uploaded by

    Alexandra

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Flag for inappropriate content
    of 4

    ORDER

    INSECTIVORA
    Order Insectivoria
    ■ mammals feeding on worms, insects and other
    invertebrates
    ■ the most primitive of all placental mammals
    ■ 7 living families: shrews (Soricidae), moles (Talpidae),
    hedgehogs (Erinaceidae), tenrecs (Tenrecidae), golden
    moles (Chrysochloridae), solenodons (Solenodontidae)
    and otter shrews (Potamogalidae)
    ■ family of West Indian shrews (Nesophontidae) is
    considered extinct
    ■ approximately 350 living species
    ■ Africa, Eurasia, Northern America and South America
    ■ over one third of all species - International Union for the
    Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List - 21% of those
    listed as critically endangered and 26.5% as endangered
    ■ terrestrial, fossorial (living primarily underground), or
    semiaquatic and are almost completely nocturnal
    ■ fossorial species effectively aerate the soil
    ■ generally small - size from 2 g (Etruscan shrew, Suncus
    etruscus - the world's smallest mammal) to about 1.5 kg
    (moon rat, Echinosorex gymnurus)
    Body features
    ■ long, narrow snouts - to grub for insects & worms
    ■ claws on each limb - shrews use them to sweep
    invertebrates into their mouths, moles have short limbs
    to dig tunnels
    ■ eyes and ears are generally small/reduced, poor or
    no eyesight, moles have no external ears

    ■ the tail may be long or greatly reduced, the tails of


    moles are able to detect ground vibrations

    ■ primitive skull with a low brain case and a small cranial


    cavity

    ■ brain with smooth cerebral hemispheres

    ■ the teeth are adapted for crushing or cutting

    ■ very keen sense of smell

    ■ many species have a cloaca

    ■ Eimer's organ - mechanoreceptors that allow detection


    of very small surface textures and features

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