🔬 Mammal
Also known as: mammals
The class of animals that feed their young with milk.
Mammals are a class of animals that feed their young with milk. The milk is made by the female's special mammary glands. That is where the class gets its scientific name, Mammalia, from the Latin word mamma, “breast”. It was given by the Swedish scientist Carl Linnaeus in 1758.
Besides mammary glands, mammals have fur or hair and three tiny hearing bones in the middle ear. Today scientists have described about 6,600 living species of mammals. They include the cow, goat, cat, whale, bat and human.
Almost all mammals give birth to live young. The exception is the five species of monotremes, such as the platypus and the echidna. They lay eggs but still feed their young with milk afterwards. All mammals have milk, but people milk only a few of them: the cow, goat, sheep, water buffalo, camel, mare, yak, reindeer and a few other species. Milk differs between species: it has different amounts of fat, protein and sugar. Each kind suits its own young.
What it includes
How it connects to milk
Links
- What it produces
- 🥛 Milk
- Members
- 🐄 Cow, 🐐 Goat, 🐑 Sheep, 🐃 Water buffalo, 🐂 Zebu, 🐃 Yak, 🐪 She-camel, 🐎 Mare, 🐴 Jenny, 🦌 Reindeer, 🦌 Moose cow, 🐈 Cat, 🐕 Dog, 🐋 Whale, 🦭 Seal, 🦔 Hedgehog, 🧑 Human, 🐫 Bactrian camel, 🐃 Mithun, 🦙 Llama, 🦙 Alpaca, 🐂 Musk ox, 🐖 Pig, 🐘 Elephant cow, 🐻❄️ Polar bear, 🦘 Kangaroo
Frequently asked questions
Why are mammals called mammals?
Because the females feed their young with milk. The scientific name Mammalia comes from the Latin mamma, “breast”.
Which mammals lay eggs?
The monotremes: the platypus and echidnas. They still feed their young with milk.
How many species of mammals are there?
Scientists have described about 6,600 living species.