type of mammal found mostly in Australia. Marsupi- Within the primates are the als give birth to and suckle live young like the Eu- monkeys, the humans and other therians, although birth occurs at a very early stage apes. Other members, include of development and the young are then reared in a lemurs, bush babies, tarsiers pouch (11). If you visit the Centenary Case and lorises. Our closest living relatives are the chimpanzees, (opposite case 3) you can see the skull of a Tasma- followed by gorillas. nian (Marsupial) wolf, which became extinct in 1930. There are 27 mammalian orders. We have 18 of them on display: Monotremes are primitive mammals, laying eggs (10) from which their young hatch before develop- We hope that you have enjoyed your short tour of M a m m a l ment in the pouch. Lactation also differs in this Location Mammal orders group as they Case 14 Carnivora, Rodentia, Chiroptera (bats) Diversity Trail have no nipples, Carnivora, Artiodactyla (even-toed ungu- Case 24 lates) milk simply oozes Perissodactyla (odd-toed ungulates) out of the mam- Hyracoidea (Hyraxes) mary gland. Only Pholidonta (Pangolins) three Monotreme Soricomorpha (moles) species exist to- Pilosa (Sloths) day; the short- Monotremata, Diprotodontia (wallabies, and long-beaked Case 25 kangaroos, possoms) Dasyuromorphia (carnivorous marsupials) echidna (4, 5 see above) and the duck-billed platy- Didelpymorphia (South American marsu- pus (6, 7). pials) Case 26, Narwhal case, Case 27 Primates ceiling Cetacea (whales and dolphins) Case 27 Primates Welcome to the family! Museum floor Proboscidea (elephant) This case contains Primate Wildlife on Campus Lagomorpha (rabbits and hares) Carnivora, Erinaceomorpha (hedgehogs) skeletons, an order which Centenary Cases Carnivora, Chiroptera, Dasyuromorphia includes humans. Starting with the Chimpanzee (8) mammals in the Cole museum and will visit us again move anti-clockwise soon. around the case, taking a close look at the skele- Leaflet by Amelia Burton and Lauren Winstanley. tons. Notice the similari- For more information: www.rdg.ac.uk/colemuseum ties and differences. Look at the length of the chim- panzee’s arms compared to its legs; this allows them to walk with their upper body held high. Mammals in the Museum true orcas (picture: Orcinus orca killer whales). the small rodent-like What is a mammal? hyrax. Originally they Case 26 Cetacea were thought to be Mammals are animals with backbones that feed The porpoise (2,3 and 6) is the smallest member of related to the Peris- their young with milk and are, for the most part, the Cetacea which can vary from 1.5m (vaquita por- sodactyls (odd-toed covered with hair. They are divided into: poise) to 20 m (blue whale) in length. Cetaceans are ungulates) such as divided into the Odontoceti (toothed whales including the horse specimen placental mammals (Eutheria) the porpoise and false orca) and the Mysticeti (baleen in this case (zoologist Richard Owen mistook a marsupials (Metatheria) whales such as the minke whale). You can see a nar- primitive horse for a hyrax), but again molecular whal tusk in the case to your right which is actually a studies have altered this idea. monotremes (Prototheria). tooth that has grown through the male whale’s upper The flying fox (8) belongs to the order Chirop- This taxonomic guide to the mammal specimens in lip. Baleen is an amazing structure used to catch tiny tera which is split into two sub-orders. Zoologists the museum is to demonstrate the huge variation plankton in the water (5). It is made from the protein are still arguing about the relationships between in appearance and lifestyle that mammals adopt. keratin, which is the same substance that your hair the old world fruit bats (Megachiroptera) which and nails are made from. If you look in case 24, you don't use echolocation and the new world bats What is the first thing you see as you enter? can see a pangolin (13) that also has strange struc- (Microchiroptera) which use echolocation (sound tures made from keratin. Chances are it is the Indian elephant, the biggest waves) to detect their prey. The most widely land animal on Earth. Elephants can weigh up to 7 Case 24 Mammal Diversity supported theory is that the megabats, like this tonnes. Until recently, zoologists believed that flying fox, are more closely related to colugos there were only two species of elephants alive to- Look at the two hartebeest speci- (flying lemurs —see picture below) and primates day; the Indian and the African. Recent DNA anal- mens (5 and 6). This mammal (like you) than the microbats. See the special ysis has revealed that the small forest elephant, belongs to the order Artiodactyla exhibits case for more detail. previously thought to be a subspecies of the Afri- which are the closest relatives to can elephant, is in fact a species in itself. the Cetacea. Artiodactyla are the Bats are the world’s only true flying mammals, even-toed ungulates, which in- but there are Look up! clude hippos, sheep, cows and others that use pigs. Recent DNA studies have “falling with On the ceiling suggested that cetaceans evolved from hippo-like land style” to get above you is anoth- -living ungulates. The two mammal groups have been around, like the er giant. This is a merged to form the new superorder Cetartiodactyla. flying phalanger false killer whale, in case 25 (see an animal that be- Compare the hartebeest to the porpoise. Although overleaf). longs to the order they are closely related, each has evolved to suit their Cetacea. The false lifestyle. You can see how the study of anatomy alone killer whale is not a can be quite misleading in revealing evolutionary rela- Case 25 Monotremes & Marsupials whale, but belongs to the closely related dolphin tionships. family. It is so named because of its similarity to The flying phalanger is a marsupial, an ancient This case holds a surprising relative to the elephant: .