Monotremes and Marsupials

Question 1

Monotremes belong to subclass

Answer 1

prototheria

Question 2

Which species are in order monotremata

Answer 2

platypus and echidna

Question 3

Platypus family

Answer 3

Ornithorhynchidae

Question 4

Echidna family

Answer 4

Tachyglossidae

Question 5

Monotremata skull characteristics

Answer 5

adults are edentate, lack auditory bullae

Question 6

echidna diet

Answer 6

myrmecophage

Question 7

platypus diet

Answer 7

aquatic insectivore

Question 8

monotremata characteristics

Answer 8

cloaca, males have ankle spurs, epipubic bones, extra bones in pectoral girdle, lay rubbery eggs

Question 9

Metatheria distribution

Answer 9

Nearctic (1 sp), Neotropical, Australasian

Question 10

Metatheria skull characteristics

Answer 10

angular process of dentary inflected lingually, palatine vacuities, auditory bullae not always present

Question 11

Metatheria body characterstics

Answer 11

pouches, epipubic bones, bifurcate vagina and uterus, bifurcate penis, highly altricial newborns

Question 12

Order of opossums

Answer 12

Didelphimorphia

Question 13

Kangaroos, koalas and wombats belong to which order?

Answer 13

Diprotodontia

Question 14

Diprotodontia skull characteristics

Answer 14

• Diprotodont lower jaw: single pair of procumbent lower incisors
• Usually 3 pair upper incisors
• Lack lower canines (usually lack upper canines also)

Question 15

Diprotodontia body characteristics

Answer 15

syndactyly: digits 2 and 3 fused except for claws

Question 16

Order for marsupial carnivores

Answer 16

Dasyuromorphia

Question 17

Dasyuromorphia skull characteristics

Answer 17

• DF: 4/3, 1/1, 2-3/2-3, 4/4 = 42-46
• canines usually large with sharp edge
• upper molars with 3 sharp cusps

Question 18

Dasyuromorphia body characteristics

Answer 18

• hallux, when present, is clawless
• marsupium poorly developed or absent
• tail long but never prehensile
  -diversity of body shapes, analogous to shrews, rats, civet, etc. Thylacine was convergent with wolf.

Question 19

Didelphimorphia distribution

Answer 19

1 spp. in Nearctic, Neotropics

Question 20

Didelphimorphia skull characteristics

Answer 20

• DF: 5/4, 1/1, 3/3, 4/4 = 50
• long rostrum
• narrow braincase with prominent sagittal crest
• upper molars tritubercular; lower molars have trigonid (shearing) and talonid (crushing) structures

Question 21

Didelphimorphia body characteristics

Answer 21

rat-shaped body, long tail that’s usually prehensile, opposable clawless hallux, scansorial claspers

Question 22

Didelphimorphia species in SLO

Answer 22

Didelphis virginiana

Question 23

Playing dead is called

Answer 23

thanatosis

Question 24

Monotremata distribution

Answer 24

Australasian

Question 25

Diprotodontia distribution

Answer 25

Australasian