|
Scutisorex
''Scutisorex'' is a genus of African shrews, mammals of the family Soricidae. Members of the genus are the only known mammal species whose vertebrae interlock, a feature which, along with the general enlargement and strengthening of the backbone and ribs, allows them to bear remarkable loads. They also have well developed muscles for flexing their spine in the sagittal plane. It is thought that these adaptations allow the shrews to wedge open spaces between the trunks of palm trees and the stems of dead leaves, as well underneath logs and rocks, allowing them to partake of a reliable source of insect larvae and earthworms that would otherwise be inaccessible. The genus contains the following species: * Hero shrew (''Scutisorex somereni'') - (Thomas, 1910) * Thor's hero shrew (''Scutisorex thori'') - Stanley, Malekani & Gambalemoke in Stanley et al., 2013 Analysis of DNA sequences of several genes (mitochondrial cytochrome b and nuclear von Willebrand factor) suggests that the tw ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hero Shrew
The hero shrew (''Scutisorex somereni''), also known as the armored shrew, is a large shrew native to the Congo Basin of Africa. Its features are typical of a white-toothed shrew − short legs, slender snout, dense fur − except for a highly unusual spinal column. It has corrugated interlocking vertebrae that are unique among mammals except for its sister species, Thor's hero shrew. This unique adaptation allows the animal to bear a huge amount of weight on its back − according to an expedition team. The hero shrew lives in both lowland and mountain forests. They live in the undergrowth, feeding primarily on invertebrates. The evolutionary benefit of its unusual spine is not known; it is hypothesized that it allows the animal to push itself under logs and between palm leaves and the tree's trunk to find food. Local tribes of people believe the hero shrew holds magical powers. It is classified as Least Concern by IUCN. Description Externally, the hero shrew resembles a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Scutisorex Somereni
''Scutisorex'' is a genus of African shrews, mammals of the family Soricidae. Members of the genus are the only known mammal species whose vertebrae interlock, a feature which, along with the general enlargement and strengthening of the backbone and ribs, allows them to bear remarkable loads. They also have well developed muscles for flexing their spine in the sagittal plane. It is thought that these adaptations allow the shrews to wedge open spaces between the trunks of palm trees and the stems of dead leaves, as well underneath logs and rocks, allowing them to partake of a reliable source of insect larvae and earthworms that would otherwise be inaccessible. The genus contains the following species: * Hero shrew (''Scutisorex somereni'') - (Thomas, 1910) * Thor's hero shrew (''Scutisorex thori'') - Stanley, Malekani & Gambalemoke in Stanley et al., 2013 Analysis of DNA sequences of several genes (mitochondrial cytochrome b and nuclear von Willebrand factor Von Willebrand f ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Scutisorex
''Scutisorex'' is a genus of African shrews, mammals of the family Soricidae. Members of the genus are the only known mammal species whose vertebrae interlock, a feature which, along with the general enlargement and strengthening of the backbone and ribs, allows them to bear remarkable loads. They also have well developed muscles for flexing their spine in the sagittal plane. It is thought that these adaptations allow the shrews to wedge open spaces between the trunks of palm trees and the stems of dead leaves, as well underneath logs and rocks, allowing them to partake of a reliable source of insect larvae and earthworms that would otherwise be inaccessible. The genus contains the following species: * Hero shrew (''Scutisorex somereni'') - (Thomas, 1910) * Thor's hero shrew (''Scutisorex thori'') - Stanley, Malekani & Gambalemoke in Stanley et al., 2013 Analysis of DNA sequences of several genes (mitochondrial cytochrome b and nuclear von Willebrand factor) suggests that the tw ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Thor's Hero Shrew
Thor's hero shrew (''Scutisorex thori'') is an extant species of shrew native to the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It and its sister species, the hero shrew (''Scutisorex somereni''), are the only mammal species known to have interlocking vertebrae. Description Thor's hero shrew has a smaller skull and fewer lower vertebrae—eight instead of ten or eleven—than its sister species. The vertebrae have fewer bony offshoots, and the animal's ribs are flatter and more robust. Like the hero shrew, it has an extremely strong back—roughly four times stronger than a human's, adjusted for size. It is less than long and weighs approximately . Hero shrews are generally less flexible than most mammals, but are able to turn around in confined spaces by sagittally flexing their spines. Discovery Thor's hero shrew was first described in ''Biology Letters'' by a team headed by vertebrate biologist William Stanley. In July 2013. It was discovered when Stanley dissected a specimen of her ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
White-toothed Shrew
The white-toothed shrews or Crocidurinae are one of three subfamilies of the shrew family Soricidae. The outer layer of these shrews' teeth is white, unlike that of the red-toothed shrews. These species are typically found in Africa and southern Europe and Asia. This subfamily includes the largest shrew, the Asian house shrew, ''Suncus murinus'', at about 15 cm in length, and the smallest, the Etruscan shrew, ''Suncus etruscus'', at about 3.5 cm in length and 2 grams in weight. The latter is possibly the world's smallest extant mammal, although some give this title to the bumblebee bat. ''Crocidura'' contains the most species of any mammal genus. When young must be moved before they are independent, mother and young form a chain or "caravan" where each animal hangs on to the rear of the one in front. This behaviour has also been observed in some ''Sorex'' species. List of species Subfamily Crocidurinae *Genus ''Crocidura'' (white-toothed shrews) ** Mysterious shrew, ' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Oldfield Thomas
Michael Rogers Oldfield Thomas (21 February 1858 – 16 June 1929) was a British zoologist. Career Thomas worked at the Natural History Museum on mammals, describing about 2,000 new species and subspecies for the first time. He was appointed to the museum secretary's office in 1876, transferring to the zoological department in 1878. In 1891, Thomas married Mary Kane, daughter of Sir Andrew Clark, heiress to a small fortune, which gave him the finances to hire mammal collectors and present their specimens to the museum. He also did field work himself in Western Europe and South America. His wife shared his interest in natural history, and accompanied him on collecting trips. In 1896, when William Henry Flower took control of the department, he hired Richard Lydekker Richard Lydekker (; 25 July 1849 – 16 April 1915) was an English naturalist, geologist and writer of numerous books on natural history. Biography Richard Lydekker was born at Tavistock Square in London. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mammal Genera
There are currently 1,258 genera, 156 families, 27 orders, and around 5,937 recognized living species of mammal. Mammalian taxonomy is in constant flux as many new species are described and recategorized within their respective genera and families. The taxonomy represented here is a compilation of the most logical and up-to-date information on mammalian taxonomy from many sources, the main ones being ''Handbook of the Mammals of the World'' series and ''Mammal Species of the World''. Afrosoricida Suborder Tenrecomorpha *Family Tenrecidae – tenrecs and otter shrews **Subfamily Geogalinae ***Genus ''Geogale'' – long-eared tenrec **Subfamily Oryzorictinae ***Genus ''Microgale'' – shrew tenrecs ***Genus '' Nesogale'' – shrew tenrecs ***Genus '' Oryzorictes'' – rice tenrecs **Subfamily Tenrecinae ***Genus ''Echinops'' – lesser hedgehog tenrec ***Genus '' Hemicentetes'' – streaked tenrec ***Genus ''Setifer'' – greater hedgehog tenrec ***Genus ''Tenrec'' – common tenre ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Shrew
Shrews (family Soricidae) are small mole-like mammals classified in the order Eulipotyphla. True shrews are not to be confused with treeshrews, otter shrews, elephant shrews, West Indies shrews, or marsupial shrews, which belong to different families or orders. Although its external appearance is generally that of a long-nosed mouse, a shrew is not a rodent, as mice are. It is, in fact, a much closer relative of hedgehogs and moles; shrews are related to rodents only in that both belong to the Boreoeutheria magnorder. Shrews have sharp, spike-like teeth, whereas rodents have gnawing front incisor teeth. Shrews are distributed almost worldwide; among the major tropical and temperate land masses, only New Guinea, Australia, and New Zealand have no native shrews; in South America shrews appeared only relatively recently, as a result of the Great American Interchange, and are present only in the northern Andes. The shrew family has 385 known species, making it the fourth-most spec ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Vertebrae
The spinal column, a defining synapomorphy shared by nearly all vertebrates,Hagfish are believed to have secondarily lost their spinal column is a moderately flexible series of vertebrae (singular vertebra), each constituting a characteristic irregular bone whose complex structure is composed primarily of bone, and secondarily of hyaline cartilage. They show variation in the proportion contributed by these two tissue types; such variations correlate on one hand with the cerebral/caudal rank (i.e., location within the vertebral column, backbone), and on the other with phylogenetic differences among the vertebrate taxon, taxa. The basic configuration of a vertebra varies, but the bone is its ''body'', with the central part of the body constituting the ''centrum''. The upper (closer to) and lower (further from), respectively, the cranium and its central nervous system surfaces of the vertebra body support attachment to the intervertebral discs. The posterior part of a vertebra fo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
University Of Zurich
The University of Zürich (UZH, german: Universität Zürich) is a public research university located in the city of Zürich, Switzerland. It is the largest university in Switzerland, with its 28,000 enrolled students. It was founded in 1833 from the existing colleges of theology, law, medicine which go back to 1525, and a new faculty of philosophy. Currently, the university has seven faculties: Philosophy, Human Medicine, Economic Sciences, Law, Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Theology and Veterinary Medicine. The university offers the widest range of subjects and courses of any Swiss higher education institution. History The University of Zurich was founded on April 29, 1833, when the existing colleges of theology, the ''Carolinum'' founded by Huldrych Zwingli in 1525, law and medicine were merged with a new faculty of Philosophy. It was the first university in Europe to be founded by the state rather than a monarch or church. In the university's early years, the 183 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Species
In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. Other ways of defining species include their karyotype, DNA sequence, morphology, behaviour or ecological niche. In addition, paleontologists use the concept of the chronospecies since fossil reproduction cannot be examined. The most recent rigorous estimate for the total number of species of eukaryotes is between 8 and 8.7 million. However, only about 14% of these had been described by 2011. All species (except viruses) are given a two-part name, a "binomial". The first part of a binomial is the genus to which the species belongs. The second part is called the specific name or the specific epithet (in botanical nomenclature, also sometimes i ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
