Search results
Results from the WOW.Com Content Network
The dugong (/ ˈ d (j) uː ɡ ɒ ŋ /; Dugong dugon) is a marine mammal.It is one of four living species of the order Sirenia, which also includes three species of manatees.It is the only living representative of the once-diverse family Dugongidae; its closest modern relative, Steller's sea cow (Hydrodamalis gigas), was hunted to extinction in the 18th century.
A manatee skull (left) vs. a dugong skull (right) Much like elephants, manatees are polyphyodonts , continuously replacing their teeth from the back of the jaw. Adults lack incisors, canines, and premolars, and instead have eight to ten cheek teeth .
The manatee's tail is paddle-shaped, and is the clearest visible difference between manatees and dugongs; a dugong tail is fluked, similar in shape to that of a whale. The manatee is unusual among mammals in having just six cervical vertebrae, [11] a number that may be due to mutations in the homeotic genes. [12]
Manatees are believed to share common ancestry with elephants. Sirenia is the order of placental mammals which comprises modern "sea cows" ( manatees and the Dugong ) and their extinct relatives. They are the only extant herbivorous marine mammals and the only group of herbivorous mammals to have become completely aquatic.
FILE - Serena, a dugong, swims at the Toba Aquarium in Toba, Japan on Sept. 5, 2012. Populations of the vulnerable species of marine mammal, numerous species of abalone and a type of Caribbean ...
In contrast, other marine mammals—such as whales, dolphins, porpoises, manatees, dugongs, and walruses—have lost long fur in favor of a thick, dense epidermis and a thickened fat layer (blubber) to prevent drag. Wading and bottom-feeding animals (such as manatees) need to be heavier than water in order to keep contact with the floor or to ...
A fossil reveals how a now-extinct species of dugong was swimming in the sea about 15 million years ago when it was preyed upon by a crocodile and a tiger shark.
The West Indian manatee is the largest living member of the sirenians (order Sirenia), a group of large aquatic mammals that includes the dugong, other manatees, and the extinct Steller's sea cow. Manatees are herbivores , have developed vocal communication abilities, and are covered in highly sensitive whiskers (called vibrissae ) that are ...