Ciekawostka: Elephants are the only mammals that cannot jump

Evidence: 67 • authority: 92

Comparative study of the body proportions in Elephantidae and other large herbivorous mammals.. In this study, we aimed to achieve three objectives: (1) to precisely characterize the body plans of Elephantidae and other large herbivorous mammals; (2) based on this analysis, to determine whether the body plans of the extinct woolly mammoth (Mammuthus primigenius) and steppe mammoth (M. trogontherii) differ from those of modern-day Elephantidae: the Asian elephant (Elephas maximus), the African bush (Loxodonta africana), and forest (L. cyclotis) elephants; (3) to analyze how the body plans have changed in extant perissodactyls and proboscideans compared with their Paleogene ancestors. To acco…

Evidence: 51 • authority: 72

Pinnipeds (pronounced ), commonly known as seals, are widely distributed and diverse carnivorous, fin-footed, semiaquatic, mostly marine mammals, belonging to the clade Pinnipedia. They comprise the extant families Odobenidae (whose only living member is the walrus), Otariidae (the eared seals: sea lions and fur seals), and Phocidae (the earless seals, or true seals), with 34 extant species and more than 50 extinct species described from fossils. While seals were historically thought to have descended from two ancestral lines, molecular evidence supports them as a monophyletic group (descended from one ancestor). Pinnipeds belong to the suborder Caniformia of the order Carnivora; their clos…

Evidence: 51 • authority: 72

Placentalia () is one of the three extant subdivisions of the class Mammalia, the other two being Monotremata and Marsupialia. Placentalia contains the vast majority of extant mammals, which are partly distinguished from monotremes and marsupials in that the fetus is carried in the uterus of its mother to a relatively late stage of development. The name is something of a misnomer, considering that marsupials also nourish their fetuses via a placenta, though for a relatively briefer period, giving birth to less-developed young, which are then nurtured for a period inside the mother's pouch. Placentalia represents the only living group within Eutheria, which contains all mammals that are more…

Evidence: 51 • authority: 72

Elephants are the largest living land animals. Three living species are currently recognised: the African bush elephant (Loxodonta africana), the African forest elephant (L. cyclotis), and the Asian elephant (Elephas maximus). They are the only surviving members of the family Elephantidae and the order Proboscidea; extinct relatives include mammoths and mastodons. Distinctive features of elephants include a long proboscis called a trunk, tusks, large ear flaps, pillar-like legs, and tough but sensitive grey skin. The trunk is prehensile, bringing food and water to the mouth and grasping objects. Tusks, which are derived from the incisor teeth, serve both as weapons and as tools for moving o…

Evidence: — • authority: 35