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Moschidae
Moschidae is a family of pecoran even-toed ungulates, containing the musk deer (''Moschus'') and its extinct relatives. They are characterized by long "saber teeth" instead of horns, antlers or ossicones, modest size (''Moschus'' only reaches ; other taxa were even smaller) and a lack of facial glands. While various Oligocene and Miocene pecorans were previously assigned to this family, recent studies find that most should be assigned to their own clades, although further research would need to confirm these traits. As a result, '' Micromeryx'', '' Hispanomeryx'', and ''Moschus'' are the only undisputed moschid members, making them known from at least 18 Ma. The group was abundant across Eurasia and North America during the Miocene, but afterwards declined to only the extant genus ''Moschus'' by the early Pleistocene. Taxonomy and classification Until the early 21st century, it was believed that the musk deer (family Moschidae) were an adjacent, sister-group to the "true deer" ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pecora
Pecora is an Order (biology), infraorder of Artiodactyla, even-toed hoofed mammals with ruminant digestion. Most members of Pecora have cranial appendages projecting from their frontal bones; only two extant genera lack them, ''Hydropotes'' and ''Musk Deer, Moschus''. The name "Pecora" comes from the Latin word , which means "cattle".Bubenik, A. Epigenetical, Morphological, Physiological, and Behavioral Aspects of Evolution of Horns, Pronghorns, and Antlers. in ''Horns, Pronghorns, and Antlers''. G. Bubenik and A. Bubenik eds. Springer-Verlag. New York. 1990 Although most pecorans have cranial appendages, only some of these are properly called "horns", and many scientists agree that these appendages did not arise from a common ancestor, but instead evolved independently on at least two occasions.Janis, C., K. Scott. The Interrelationships of Higher Ruminant Families with Special Emphasis on the Members of the Cervoidea. ''American Museum Novitates''. 2893: 1-85. 1987. http://digit ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cervidae
A deer (: deer) or true deer is a hoofed ruminant ungulate of the family Cervidae (informally the deer family). Cervidae is divided into subfamilies Cervinae (which includes, among others, muntjac, elk (wapiti), red deer, and fallow deer) and Capreolinae (which includes, among others reindeer (caribou), white-tailed deer, roe deer, and moose). Male deer of almost all species (except the water deer), as well as female reindeer, grow and shed new antlers each year. These antlers are bony extensions of the skull and are often used for combat between males. The musk deer ( Moschidae) of Asia and chevrotains ( Tragulidae) of tropical African and Asian forests are separate families that are also in the ruminant clade Ruminantia; they are not especially closely related to Cervidae. Deer appear in art from Paleolithic cave paintings onwards, and they have played a role in mythology, religion, and literature throughout history, as well as in heraldry, such as red deer that appear ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bovidae
The Bovidae comprise the family (biology), biological family of cloven-hoofed, ruminant mammals that includes Bos, cattle, bison, Bubalina, buffalo, antelopes (including Caprinae, goat-antelopes), Ovis, sheep and Capra (genus), goats. A member of this family is called a bovid. With 143 Extant taxon, extant species and 300 known Extinction, extinct species, the family Bovidae consists of 11 (or two) major subfamilies and thirteen major tribes. The family evolved 20 million years ago, in the early Miocene. The bovids show great variation in size and Fur, pelage colouration. Except some Polled livestock, domesticated forms, all male bovids have two or more horn (anatomy), horns, and in many species, females possess horns, too. The size and shape of the horns vary greatly, but the basic structure is always one or more pairs of simple bony protrusions without branches, often having a spiral, twisted or fluted form, each covered in a permanent sheath of keratin. Most bovids bear 30 to ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Micromeryx
''Micromeryx'' is an extinct genus of musk deer that lived during the Miocene epoch (about 16-8 million years ago). Fossil remains were found in Europe and Asia. The earliest record ( MN4) of the genus comes from the Sibnica 4 paleontological site near Rekovac in Serbia. Characteristics This animal was very similar to the modern musk deer (''Moschus moschiferus'') of East Asia. However, ''Micromeryx'' (its name means "tiny ruminant") was much smaller: it perhaps reached 5 kilograms. Teeth were very similar to those of the extant ''Cephalophus'' but more primitive. Like in the present moschids, the males of these animals were equipped with long upper canines, protruding from the mouth when it was closed. The body was slender and short, while the legs were extremely elongated. Systematics ''Micromeryx'' was a primitive representative of the moschids, a group of primitive ruminants related to deer and cattle. They had a remarkable expansion during the Miocene and Pliocene and are c ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Musk Deer
Musk deer can refer to any one, or all eight, of the species that make up ''Moschus'', the only extant genus of the family (biology), family Moschidae. Despite being commonly called deer, they are not true deer belonging to the family Cervidae, but rather their family is closely related to Bovidae, the group that contains antelopes, bovines, sheep, and goats. The musk deer family differs from cervids, or true deer, by lacking antlers and preorbital glands also, possessing only a single pair of nipple, teats, a gallbladder, a caudal gland, a pair of canine tusks and—of particular economic importance to humans—a deer musk, musk gland. Musk deer live mainly in forested and alpine scrub habitats in the mountains of South Asia, notably the Himalayas. Moschids, the proper term when referring to this type (biology), type of deer rather than one/multiple species of musk deer, are entirely Asian in their present distribution, being extinct in Europe where the earliest musk deer ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hispanomeryx
''Hispanomeryx'' is an extinct genus of artiodactyl from the middle to late Miocene epoch, living from 13 to 8 million years ago. Over the years, they have been variously classified as being related to bovids or giraffes, or even belonging to their own unique family, but they are now widely regarded as moschids, relatives of the living musk deer. ''Hispanomeryx'' would have resembled modern musk deer, but was smaller, and some of the teeth in the lower jaw resembled those of bovids, possibly as an adaptation to its diet. Most fossils are known from Spain, but others are known from Turkey to China, most of which are too fragmentary to be assigned to a particular species. ''Hispanomeryx'' seems to have been an adaptable species, and to have lived in both subtropical forests and open, relatively arid, savanna. The following species are known: * ''H. andrewsi'' Sánchez ''et al''., 2011 - China * ''H. aragonensis'' Azanza, 1986 - Spain * ''H. daamsi'' Sánchez, Domingo, and Morales ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Even-toed Ungulates
Artiodactyls are placental mammals belonging to the order Artiodactyla ( , ). Typically, they are ungulates which bear weight equally on two (an even number) of their five toes (the third and fourth, often in the form of a hoof). The other three toes are either present, absent, vestigial, or pointing posteriorly. By contrast, most perissodactyls bear weight on an odd number of the five toes. Another difference between the two orders is that many artiodactyls (except for Suina) digest plant cellulose in one or more stomach chambers rather than in their intestine (as perissodactyls do). Molecular biology, along with new fossil discoveries, has found that cetaceans (whales, dolphins, and porpoises) fall within this taxonomic branch, being most closely related to hippopotamuses. Some modern taxonomists thus apply the name Cetartiodactyla () to this group, while others opt to include cetaceans within the existing name of Artiodactyla. Some researchers use "even-toed ungulates" to ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Siberian Musk Deer
The Siberian musk deer (''Moschus moschiferus'') is a musk deer found in the mountain forests of Northeast Asia. It is most common in the taiga of southern Siberia, but is also found in parts of Mongolia, Inner Mongolia, Manchuria and the Korean peninsula. Their small shape allows them to hide from predators through tiny openings in the rocky terrain and also allows them to run exceptionally fast from their predators. Although bearing fangs, Siberian musk deer are actually herbivores, with their main source of nutrients being lichens. Due to the severe amount of poaching for its musk gland, the deer population is continuing to decrease. It is expected that the population will be reduced to at least 30% over the next three generations. However, efforts from each of the cited countries are beginning to restore the musk deer's population. Taxonomy Siberia, Mongolian Plateau, North Mongolia, Russia, North China and Korea – ''M. m. moschiferus'' Russian Far East – ''M. m. turo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Clade
In biology, a clade (), also known as a Monophyly, monophyletic group or natural group, is a group of organisms that is composed of a common ancestor and all of its descendants. Clades are the fundamental unit of cladistics, a modern approach to taxonomy adopted by most biological fields. The common ancestor may be an individual, a population, or a species (extinct or Extant taxon, extant). Clades are nested, one in another, as each branch in turn splits into smaller branches. These splits reflect evolutionary history as populations diverged and evolved independently. Clades are termed ''monophyletic'' (Greek: "one clan") groups. Over the last few decades, the cladistic approach has revolutionized biological classification and revealed surprising evolutionary relationships among organisms. Increasingly, taxonomists try to avoid naming Taxon, taxa that are not clades; that is, taxa that are not Monophyly, monophyletic. Some of the relationships between organisms that the molecul ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ovis
''Ovis'' is a genus of mammals, part of the Caprinae subfamily of the ruminant family (biology), family Bovidae. Its seven highly sociable species are known as sheep or ovines. Domestic sheep are members of the genus, and are thought to be descended from the wild mouflon of central Asia, central and southwest Asia. Terminology Female sheep are called ''ewes'', males are called ''rams'' or less frequently ''bucks'' or ''tups'', neutered males are called ''wethers'', and young sheep are called ''lambs''. The adjective applying to sheep is ''ovine'', and the collective term for sheep is ''flock'' or ''mob''. The term ''herd'' is also occasionally used in this sense, generally for large flocks. Many Glossary of sheep husbandry, specialist terms relating to domestic sheep are used. Characteristics Sheep are fairly small compared to other ungulates; in most species, adults weigh less than .Nowak, R. M. and J. L. Paradiso. 1983. ''Walker's Mammals of the World''. Baltimore, Maryland ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Capra (genus)
''Capra'' is a genus of mammals, the goats, comprising ten species, including the markhor and several species known as ibexes. The Goat, domestic goat (''Capra hircus'') is a domesticated species derived from the bezoar ibex (''Capra aegagrus aegagrus''). It is one of the oldest domesticated species of animal—according to archaeological evidence its earliest domestication occurred in Iran at 10,000 Radiocarbon calibration, calibrated calendar years ago. Wild goats are animals of mountain habitats. They are very agile and hardy, able to climb on bare rock and survive on sparse vegetation. They can be distinguished from the genus ''Ovis'', which includes sheep, by the presence of scent glands close to the feet, in the groin, and in front of the eyes, and the absence of other facial glands, and by the presence of a beard in some specimens, and of hairless calluses on the knees of the forelegs. Taxonomy All members of the genus ''Capra'' are bovids (members of the family Bovidae), ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
