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The first vertebrate insectivores were amphibians. When they evolved 400 million years ago, the first amphibians were piscivores, with numerous sharp conical teeth, much like a modern crocodile. The same tooth arrangement is however also suited for eating animals with exoskeletons, thus the ability to eat insects is an extension of piscivory. [3]
The order Insectivora (from Latin insectum "insect" and vorare "to eat") is a now-abandoned biological grouping within the class of mammals. Some species have now been moved out, leaving the remaining ones in the order Eulipotyphla within the larger clade Laurasiatheria , which makes up one of the basal clades of placental mammals .
Eulipotyphla (/ ˌ j uː l ɪ p oʊ ˈ t ɪ f l ə /, from eu-+ Lipotyphla; sometimes called true insectivores [1]) is an order of mammals comprising the Erinaceidae (hedgehogs and gymnures); Solenodonstidae (solenodons); Talpidae (moles, shrew-like moles and desmans); and Soricidae (true shrews) families.
Moles were traditionally classified in the order Insectivora, but that order has since been abandoned because it has been shown to not be monophyletic. Moles are now classified with shrews and hedgehogs, in the more narrowly defined order Eulipotyphla. [16] Subfamily Scalopinae: New World moles Tribe Condylurini: Star-nosed mole (North America)
Laurasiatheria (/ l ɔː r ˌ eɪ ʒ ə ˈ θ ɪər i ə,-θ ɛr i ə /; "Laurasian beasts") is a superorder of placental mammals that groups together true insectivores (eulipotyphlans), bats (chiropterans), carnivorans, pangolins (), even-toed ungulates (artiodactyls), odd-toed ungulates (perissodactyls), and all their extinct relatives.
Although traditionally classified in the abandoned order Insectivora, hedgehogs are omnivorous. They feed on insects, snails, frogs and toads, snakes, bird eggs, carrion, mushrooms, grass roots, berries, and melons. [6] Afghan hedgehogs devour berries in early spring after hibernation.
Generally middle-sized insectivores, with frugivory also very important; near-global distribution centered on Old World tropics. One family is endemic to the Americas, two are almost cosmopolitan, but half the families are absent or nearly so from the Americas (and Australia). Many have strong legs and are capable of running on the ground quickly.
Lipotyphla is a formerly used order of mammals, including the members of the order Eulipotyphla (i.e. the solenodons, family Solenodontidae; hedgehogs and gymnures, family Erinaceidae; desmans, moles, and shrew-like moles, family Talpidae; and true shrews, family Soricidae) as well as three other families of the former order Insectivora, Chrysochloridae (golden moles), Tenrecidae (tenrecs ...