Transition Year

Biology

Further Mammal Study

Order Carnivora
H. Jones, St. Columba’s College
 Introduction to Carnivores
 Members of the order Carnivora are distinguished
by their prominent canine teeth.
 These are the long, curved, teeth beside the incisors
that are particularly effective for stabbing.
 Most carnivores are predatory meat-eaters with
small but sharp incisors, good for nipping, but other
larger carnivores have long teeth for killing, such as
the big cats.
 Many cats have a rasp-rough tongue that can
literally lick the meat off of bones.
 Carnivore Facts
 270 Species of Carnivore

 11 Different Families

 The smallest carnivore is the

Least Weasel.

 The largest land carnivore is

the Polar Bear.

 The largest aquatic carnivore

is the Elephant Seal.
 Carnivore Facts - 2
 The carnivores have strong jaws, powerful muscles,
and heavy skulls to put their teeth into action.
 Among the strongest jaws are the Jaguar of South
America, that can bite through a turtle's shell.
 The hyena of Africa, that can bite through bones to
get to the bone marrow inside.
 Carnivores generally eat meat, although some can
plant material too i.e. they are omnivores.
 The Carnivores have become widely diversified;
some species are nocturnal in habit, while others
are active during the day (diurnal), and many are
active both day and night.
 Evolution of the Carnivores
 Carnivores are an ancient order, having
evolved from the early Palaeocene period (40
to 60 million years ago.
 They have spread successfully to all parts of
the world, including the Arctic and Antarctic.
 But are not native as land dwellers to
Australia, New Zealand, or many oceanic
islands.
 (The dingo is a domestic dog introduced into
Australia by aboriginal man, and the fox was
introduced by later inhabitants of Australia.)
 Classification of Carnivores
 Carnivores can be divided into
groups called Fissiped (separate toes)
or Pinniped (fin footed).
 There are 239 terrestrial and
semiaquatic species of so-called
fissiped carnivores.
 The pinniped carnivores are all
aquatic.
 There are 34 species of pinniped
carnivores divided into three
families.
 The Canids
 The most familiar family of fissipeds is the
Canida - dogs, jackals, wolves, and foxes -
found in a variety of habitats from the Arctic
to the tropics.
 They are highly predatory and often hunt
over great distances, have either great speed,
as in the coyote, or endurance, as in wolves.
 Some canids hunt in packs; many eat
carrion, fruit and other plant material, or
almost any edible matter available
 Ursidae – The Bears
 Closely related to the dog family are bears, or
Ursidae, which are the largest living terrestrial
carnivores.
 Although there are tropical species, for the most part
bears inhabit cold northern regions.
 In temperate climates they may take refuge in caves
but do not actually hibernate.
 Bears have become omnivorous and lost the shearing
capacity of their carnassials (Very large teeth), but
the polar bear is still a meat-eater.
 The giant panda, included in the bear family, has a
unique diet of bamboo and is therefore not literally a
Carnivore, yet is still classified as such.
 The Mustelids
 Mustelids are small animals with short legs
and long bodies, and have well-developed
scent glands.
 This family includes weasels, badgers,
skunks, and otters and has a wide
distribution in all climates, in both the Old
and New Worlds.
 They seek out and prey upon various
vertebrate animals smaller than themselves,
such as rodents, and are known to eat insects
as well
 The Felids - Cats
 The well-known felids, or cat family, range
worldwide except in Australia, Antarctica, and
certain islands.
 There are 40 species of felid alive today.
 They are the elite of predators, with strong limbs
and sharp, curved, retractile claws, able to stalk, run
down, and kill prey of their own size or very much
larger.
 They possess large eyes with excellent night vision.
 The cheetah's claws are only semi-retractile.
 Felids include the Cheetah, Lion, Tiger, Leopard
and the house cat.
 The Pinnipeds
 The seals, sea lions, and walrus, known as the
pinnipeds, are highly aquatic carnivores.
 They are found along nearly all coastal regions of
the world, including the Arctic and Antarctic.
 Their bodies are streamlined and their limbs are
modified for swimming, but unlike cetaceans
(whales and dolphins) they have kept their hind
limbs.
 They breed and give birth on land. In fact, some
species spend considerable time ashore.
 All are carnivorous, the diets varying from fish to
marine invertebrates, birds, or even other seals.