New Marsupial and Carnivore

What animals are examples of insectivorous carnivores?

Shrews, moles, tenrecs, hedgehogs, marsupial opossums.

What are the main dental features of insectivores?

Small, sharp, poorly differentiated teeth.

What unique ability do shrews and tenrecs have?

Echolocation to navigate their environment.

How do hedgehogs and tenrecs defend themselves?

They have spines and can roll into a ball.

What special adaptation do some shrews have for hunting?

Toxic saliva to paralyze prey.

What is the difference between Carnivory and Carnivora?

Carnivory = eating meat; Carnivora = the mammalian order (not all are strict carnivores).

What are the three diet groups within Carnivora?

Hypercarnivores (cats), Mesocarnivores (foxes, raccoons), Hypocarnivores (bears, kinkajous).

What ecological role do carnivores play?

They control prey populations and create a "landscape of fear."

What unique bone is found in most carnivores?

The baculum (penis bone).

What are the two suborders of Carnivora?

Feliformia (cat-like) and Caniformia (dog-like).

What is the defining dental feature of carnivores?

Carnassial teeth (specialized shearing teeth).

What diet group has blunt carnassials and molars?

Omnivores like bears.

What type of carnivore has enlarged molars for bone-crushing?

Dogs and hyenas.

What are scent glands used for in carnivores?

Marking territory, social recognition, and defense.

Which carnivores have retractable claws?

Felids (cats, civets, genets).

Why do cheetahs have semi-retractable claws?

For traction during high-speed chases.

What senses are especially advanced in carnivores?

Smell, hearing, and binocular vision.

What unique feature allows cats to see in the dark?

Tapetum lucidum (reflective eye layer).

Which carnivores are matriarchal and highly social?

Hyenas.

Which carnivore is famous for snake-killing ability?

Mongooses.

What is the only strictly carnivorous bear?

The polar bear.

Is the red panda a true panda?

No, it is unrelated to the giant panda.

When did marsupials diverge from placentals?

Around 90 million years ago.

Where did marsupials originate?

North America.

How did marsupials reach Australia?

Migrated from South America via Antarctica.

What caused the extinction of many South American marsupials?

Competition with placental mammals.

What survival strategy does the Virginia opossum use?

Playing dead (thanatosis).

What marsupial is uniquely aquatic?

The water opossum (Yapok).

What South American marsupial is considered a "living fossil"?

Monito del Monte.

What is convergent evolution?

When unrelated groups evolve similar traits due to similar environments.

Which ecological niche is not filled by marsupials in Australia?

The bat niche.

Which marsupial carnivore has the strongest bite relative to body size?

The Tasmanian devil.

What extinct marsupial filled the wolf niche?

The thylacine (Tasmanian tiger).

What marsupial produces cube-shaped poop?

The wombat.

What marsupial has delayed implantation reproduction?

Kangaroos and wallabies.

Which marsupial is often mistaken for a bear?

The koala.

Which tiny marsupial feeds on nectar and pollen?

The honey possum.