ClassX Video Lessons Mammals for Kids | Learn all about the unique characteristics of mammals and what mammals are!
In the world, there are two main types of living things: plants and animals. Animals can be divided into two groups: those without backbones, called invertebrates, and those with backbones, called vertebrates. Humans, like you and me, are vertebrates because we have a spine running down our back.
Scientists like to organize animals into smaller groups based on their traits, which is called “classification.” This helps them study and understand animals better. Vertebrates are divided into five groups: mammals, birds, fish, reptiles, and amphibians. Each group has its own special traits. For example, both birds and mammals are warm-blooded, but they are not in the same group because they have other differences. Reptiles and fish lay eggs, but mammals do not.
Let’s learn more about mammals! Mammals are one of the largest groups of animals on Earth. All mammals have backbones. Humans are mammals, and so are dogs, rabbits, and even whales!
Mammals are warm-blooded, which means their bodies try to keep a steady temperature inside, no matter how hot or cold it is outside. Your body temperature is usually around 98.6 degrees Fahrenheit. Other mammals have body temperatures between 97 and 103 degrees. Cold-blooded animals, like fish and reptiles, have body temperatures that change with the weather.
Mammals eat food to create energy and keep warm. Some eat only plants, some eat only meat, and some, like humans, eat both. They need to eat more than cold-blooded animals to stay warm.
Have you ever felt cold after jumping into a chilly pool? Your body shivers to warm you up. When you’re hot, you sweat to cool down. Other mammals have different ways to cool off. Dogs pant, and pigs roll in mud. The mud keeps pigs cool by protecting their skin from the sun and helping them stay moist.
All mammals have hair or fur. This helps keep them warm, especially those that hibernate, like bears and squirrels. Most mammals give birth to live babies, unlike birds and fish that lay eggs. Only the platypus and echidna lay eggs among mammals. Mammal mothers feed their babies with milk from their bodies. Baby mammals need their parents to care for them after they’re born.
Mammals breathe using lungs. That’s why whales and dolphins are mammals, not fish. They don’t have gills and aren’t cold-blooded. Land mammals usually have four limbs, like kangaroos and monkeys with two arms and two legs, or horses and rabbits with four legs.
There are about 6,500 species of mammals. Rodents, like mice and squirrels, make up almost half of them. The largest mammal is the blue whale, which can be 150 feet long and weigh as much as five Statues of Liberty! The elephant is the largest land mammal, and the giraffe is the tallest. The smallest mammal is the hog-nosed bat, which is about the size of a bee. Bats are the only mammals that can fly. The slowest mammal is the two-toed sloth.
Mammals are just one group of the many animals in the world. Even though they share many traits, each mammal is unique, from the tiniest bat to the biggest whale.
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**All About Mammals**
The two main categories of living things in the world are plants and animals. Animals are divided into two main types: those without backbones, called invertebrates, and those with backbones, called vertebrates. Humans are vertebrates. Your vertebrae, or spine, runs down the center of your back.
Animals in both groups are divided into smaller groups based on their traits or characteristics. Scientists call this “classification.” Classification helps make it easier to identify and study animals throughout the world. Scientists have classified all vertebrates into five different groups: mammals, birds, fish, reptiles, and amphibians. Each group of animals has its own unique traits and characteristics, but some groups share one or more of the same traits. For example, birds and mammals are both warm-blooded, while reptiles and mammals are both vertebrates. However, they are not in the same group because they also have some differences. For instance, reptiles and fish lay eggs, but mammals do not.
There is a lot to learn about each of the five groups of animals. In this video, we’re going to focus on mammals. Mammals are one of the largest animal groups on Earth. All mammals have backbones or spines. A human is a mammal, and you are in the same animal group as dogs, rabbits, whales, and many others.
Mammals are warm-blooded, meaning their bodies will always try to keep a constant temperature on the inside, regardless of the temperature around them. Your body temperature averages 98.6 degrees unless you’re sick and have a fever. Other mammals’ body temperatures average between 97 and 103 degrees. Cold-blooded animals, like fish, reptiles, and amphibians, have body temperatures that fluctuate depending on the temperature around them. Some mammals only eat meat or plants, while others eat both, like humans do. Mammals generate their body heat through the food they eat, which is converted into energy. They must eat more food than cold-blooded animals to maintain a constant body temperature.
Have you ever jumped into a freezing cold ocean or lake and found yourself shivering? Your body is trying to warm you up, and shivering generates little bursts of heat. Your body also cools down by sweating. Some mammals have other ways of cooling themselves. For example, a dog pants, and a pig rolls in the mud. The mud protects the pig’s skin from the sun, and when the water droplets in the mud evaporate, it leaves the pig’s skin moist, which helps cool it down.
All mammals have hair or fur that covers their bodies. For mammals that hibernate, like bears, lemurs, squirrels, and skunks, fur helps keep them warm during the winter. Another characteristic of mammals is that almost all of them give birth to live babies. This is different from fish and birds, which lay eggs that eventually hatch. There are only two mammals that lay eggs: the platypus and the echidna, which resembles a mix between an anteater and a porcupine. Mammal mothers nurse their young with milk produced by their bodies. A newborn mammal, like a human, puppy, or kitten, needs a parent to take care of them after they’re born. In some other groups, the animals are left on their own and have no one to look after them.
All mammals use lungs to breathe. That’s why whales and dolphins are considered mammals and not fish. They do not have gills like fish, and they are not cold-blooded, so they are classified as mammals. Mammals that live on land typically have four limbs, which means they have two arms and two legs, like kangaroos and monkeys, or just four legs, like horses, cows, and rabbits. There are about 6,500 species of mammals. Rodents, such as beavers, mice, and squirrels, make up almost half of the mammals on Earth.
The largest mammal in the world is the blue whale, which can be 150 feet long and weigh 150 tons or 300,000 pounds! That’s about the same weight as five Statues of Liberty put together. The elephant is the largest mammal on land, and the giraffe is the tallest. The smallest mammal is called the hog-nosed bat or bumblebee bat. It’s about the same size as a bee and weighs about as much as a feather. The bat is also the only mammal that can fly. The slowest mammal in the world is the two-toed sloth.
Mammals make up just one group of the many types of animals in the world. Even though mammals share many characteristics, each is also unique, from the tiniest bat to the biggest whale.
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