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The vertebral transverse processes of mammals are homologous to the cervical ribs of other amniotes. [citation needed] Most mammals have seven cervical vertebrae, with the only three known exceptions being the manatee with six, the two-toed sloth with five or six, and the three-toed sloth with nine. [2] [3]
With the exception of the two sloth genera (Choloepus and Bradypus) and the manatee genus, , [24] all mammals have seven cervical vertebrae. [25] In other vertebrates, the number of cervical vertebrae can range from a single vertebra in amphibians to as many as 25 in swans or 76 in the extinct plesiosaur Elasmosaurus.
The majority of mammals have seven cervical vertebrae (bones in the neck). The exceptions are the manatee and the two-toed sloth, which have six, and the three-toed sloth which has nine. [84] All mammalian brains possess a neocortex, a brain region unique to mammals. [85]
Giraffes, just like humans, have seven cervical vertebrae. Unlike humans, giraffe cervical vertebrae are attached to each other with ball and socket joints, making them able to bend their necks in ...
The transverse processes of mammals are homologous to the cervical ribs of other amniotes. In the whale, the cervical vertebrae are typically fused, an adaptation trading flexibility for stability during swimming. [28] [29] All mammals except manatees and sloths have seven cervical vertebrae, whatever the length of the neck. [30]
The cervical spine, found in all mammals, consists of seven vertebrae which, however, are reduced or fused. This fusion provides stability during swimming at the expense of mobility. The fins are carried by the thoracic vertebrae, ranging from nine to seventeen individual vertebrae.
Xenarthrans also tend to have different numbers of vertebrae than other mammals; sloths have a reduced number of lumbar vertebrae with either more or fewer cervical vertebrae than most mammals, while cingulates have neck vertebrae fused into a cervical tube, with glyptodonts fusing thoracic and lumbar vertebrae as well. [1]
Two-toed sloths are unusual among mammals in possessing as few as five cervical vertebrae, which may be due to mutations in the homeotic genes. [27] All other mammals have seven cervical vertebrae, [ 28 ] other than the three-toed sloth and the manatee .