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edit   The mammals portal Mammals (class Mammalia) are vertebrate animals characterized by the presence of sweat glands, including milk producing sweat glands, and by the presence of: hair, three middle ear bones used in hearing, and a neocortex region in the brain. Mammals, other than the monotremes, give birth to live young instead of laying eggs. They also possess specialized teeth and use a placenta in the ontogeny. The mammalian brain regulates endothermic and circulatory systems, including a four-chambered heart. Mammals encompass approximately 5,400 species, ranging in size from the Bumblebee Bat, (30-40mm), to the Blue Whale, (33,000mm), distributed in about 1,200 genera, 153 families, and 29 orders, though this varies by classification scheme. Most mammals belong to the placental group. The four largest orders within the placental mammals are Rodentia (mice, rats, and other small, gnawing mammals), Chiroptera (bats), Carnivora (dogs, cats, bears, and other mammals that primarily eat meat), and Cetartiodactyla (including numerous herbivore species, such as deer, sheep, goats, and buffalos, plus whales). Phylogenetically, Mammalia is defined as all descendants of the most recent common ancestor of monotremes (e.g., echidnas and platypuses) and therian mammals (marsupials and placentals). This means that some extinct groups of "mammals" are not members of the crown group Mammalia, even though most of them have all the characteristics that traditionally would have classified them as mammals. These "mammals" are now usually placed in the unranked clade Mammaliaformes. The mammalian line of descent diverged from the sauropsid line at the end of the Carboniferous period. The sauropsids would evolve into modern-day reptiles and birds, while the synapsid branch led to mammals. The first true mammals appeared in the Jurassic period. Modern mammalian orders appeared in the Palaeocene and Eocene epochs of the Palaeogene period. edit   Selected article The Arabian horse is a breed of horse with a reputation for intelligence, spirit, and stamina. With a distinctive head shape and high tail carriage, the Arabian is one of the most easily recognizable horse breeds in the world. It is one of the oldest horse breeds, with archaeological evidence of horses that resemble modern Arabians dating back 4,500 years. Throughout history, Arabian horses from the Middle East spread around the world by both war and trade, used to improve other breeds by adding speed, refinement, endurance, and good bone. Today, Arabian bloodlines are found in almost every modern breed of riding horse. The Arabian developed in a desert climate and was prized by the nomadic Bedouin people, often being brought inside the family tent for shelter and protection. This close relationship with humans has created a horse breed that is good-natured, quick to learn, and willing to please. But the Arabian also developed the high spirit and alertness needed in a horse used for raiding and war. This combination of willingness and sensitivity requires modern Arabian horse owners to handle their horses with competence and respect. "The Versatile Arabian" is a slogan of the breed. Arabians dominate the discipline of endurance riding, and compete today in many other fields of equestrian activity. They are one of the top ten most popular horse breeds in the world. Arabian horses are now found worldwide, including the United States and Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, continental Europe, South America (especially Brazil), and its land of origin, the Middle East. edit   Did you know? ...that a polydactyl cat (pictured) is a cat that has more than the usual number of toes on one or all of its paws? ...that Unsinkable Sam was a ship's cat of both the Kriegsmarine and Royal Navy during the Second World War who survived the sinking of all three ships on which he served? ...that Able Seaman Just Nuisance is the only dog to have been officially enlisted in the Royal Navy? ...that the Moscow Water Dog, developed as a water rescue dog, preferred to bite drowning people instead of saving them? ...from its discovery by John Edward Gray in 1850 until a re-assessment in 1981, the Clymene Dolphin was regarded as sub-species of the Spinner Dolphin. ...the Australian Snubfin Dolphin (Orcaella heinsohni) is a recently recognised species of dolphin first described in 2005. edit   Selected picture The Otter (Lontra canadensis) is a North American member of the Mustelidae or weasel family. It is also known as the North American River Otter. It is a common animal in North American waterways. Its numbers have significantly dropped since Europeans came to colonize the Americas edit   Scientific classification Kingdom→ Animalia   Phylum→ Chordata   Subphylum→ Vertebrata   Superclass→ Tetrapoda   (unranked)→ Amniota   Class→ Mammalia Subclasses and Infraclasses Subclass †Allotheria* Subclass Prototheria Subclass Theria Infraclass †Trituberculata Infraclass Metatheria Infraclass Eutheria * Member of a haplogroup and not any of its subclades. † Taxon is extinct. edit   Topics Monotremata Didelphimorphia Paucituberculata Microbiotheria Notoryctemorphia Dasyuromorphia Peramelemorphia Diprotodontia Afrosoricida Macroscelidea Tubulidentata Hyracoidea Proboscidea Sirenia Cingulata Pilosa Scandentia Dermoptera Primates Rodentia Lagomorpha Erinaceomorpha Soricomorpha Chiroptera Pholidota Carnivora Perissodactyla Artiodactyla Cetacea edit   Quality content Featured articles Ambondro mahabo Baleen whale Beagle Bharattherium Blue whale Bluebuck Bobcat Columbian mammoth Cougar Cryptoprocta spelea Dermotherium Elephant Elk European hare Evolution of lemurs Ferugliotheriidae Ferugliotherium Fin whale Flocke Fossa (animal) Giant anteater Giant eland Giant otter Giraffe Camas pocket gopher Guinea pig Hartebeest Hippopotamus Humpback whale Impala Jaguar Javan rhinoceros Killer whale Knut (polar bear) Koala Lavanify Lion Marcus Ward Lyon Jr. Meerkat Manor Meerkat Manor: The Story Begins Miniopterus aelleni Miniopterus griveaudi Myotis alcathoe Myotis escalerai Paraceratherium Pennatomys Pinniped Pipistrellus raceyi Platypus Plesiorycteropus Primate Pygmy hippopotamus Quagga Raccoon Right whale Rodent Salanoia durrelli Sea otter Sei whale Sheep Short-beaked echidna Smilodon Springbok Sumatran rhinoceros Tammar wallaby Tasmanian devil Thylacine Transandinomys Triaenops menamena Woolly mammoth Featured lists List of cetacean species List of mammals of Florida Featured pictures File:Cheetahs on the Edge (Director's Cut).ogv File:Koala climbing tree.jpg File:Macropus rufogriseus rufogriseus Bruny.jpg File:Vombatus ursinus -Maria Island National Park.jpg Good articles Addax Alpine ibex Argentodites Bare-tailed woolly opossum Kitti's hog-nosed bat Bay duiker Billy (pygmy hippo) Binky (polar bear) Black-tailed jackrabbit Black wildebeest Blackbuck Blue duiker Blue wildebeest Bohor reedbuck Boreray sheep Bottlenose dolphin Bovidae California sea lion Campbell's dwarf hamster Canidae Capybara Cat Cheetah Common eland Common vampire bat Coyote Dibatag Dimetrodon Dire wolf Djungarian hamster Dromedary Dugong Dusky dolphin Eastern mole Equus (genus) European polecat Evolution of cetaceans Ferret-legging Fisher (animal) Four-horned antelope Golden jackal Herdwick Hipposideros besaoka History of the domestic sheep Jacob sheep Japanese serow Jungle cat Klipspringer LACM 149371 Large Black pig Least weasel Lesser kudu Malagasy hippopotamus Mammal Marine mammal Marsh shrew Mesozoic mammals of Madagascar Microgale macpheei Miniopterus brachytragos Miniopterus mahafaliensis Miniopterus manavi Miniopterus tao Miniopterus zapfei Monk seal Mountain nyala Muskrat Narwhal Neoromicia malagasyensis Nilgai North American river otter North Ronaldsay sheep Nyala Ocepeia Okapi Oribi Paratheria (mammals) Pilot whale Polar bear Porpoise Pudú Pygmy three-toed sloth Quoll Ralphie the Buffalo Red fox Red panda River dolphin Royal antelope Scimitar oryx Serval Shetland sheep Sitatunga Six-banded armadillo Sperm whale Spotted hyena Steller's sea cow Swift fox TNM 02067 Tamaraw Tiger Trapalcotherium Triaenops goodmani Tupaia miocenica UA 8699 Veratalpa Walrus Waterbuck Whale Wildebeest William Windsor (goat) Gray wolf edit   WikiProjects Biology Tree of Life Prokaryotes and Protists Plants Arthropods Cephalopods Gastropods Fishes Amphibians and Reptiles Birds Mammals WikiProject Dogs WikiProject Dog breeds WikiProject Rodents WikiProject Cats WikiProject Equine WikiProject Horse breeds WikiProject Cetaceans WikiProject Primates WikiProject Monotremes and Marsupials Viruses A complete list of scientific WikiProjects can be found here. See also Wikispecies, a Wikimedia project dedicated to classification of biological species. edit   Things to do Articles needing attention Biology pages needing attention (cleanup, expansion, wikification, expert needed, etc.) Help Wikipedia by uploading required images Help Wikipedia by creating pages or redirects Help Wikipedia by expanding mammal-related stub articles. edit   Categories Mammals Mammals by location • Lists of mammals • Mammal anatomy • Extinct mammals • Mammal hybrids • Mammalogy • Mammal stubs edit   Related portals Biology • Agriculture and Agronomy • Animals  • Arthropods • Amphibians and Reptiles • Biotechnology • Birds • Cats • Cetaceans • Dinosaurs • Dogs • Extinct and Endangered Species • Evolutionary biology • Fish • Marine life • Medicine • Metabolism • Mind and Brain • Molecular and Cellular Biology • Neuroscience • Plants • Primates • Sharks • Turtles edit   Wikimedia What are portals? List of portals Featured portals