Posting these taxonomic breakdowns because I have nowhere else to post them :)
I made these at work because I was very bored, and didn't particularly have a lot to do. I am currently confined to my desk until the end of February and I'm descending into madness from boredom.
Subspecies - Canis lupus familiaris – domestic dog
A eukarayote is an organism whose cells have a membrane –bound nucleus.
Animalia (An Animal) is a multicellular, eukarayotic organism. They consume organic material, breathe oxygen, have myocytes(muscle cells that contract to produce force) and are able to move, sexually reproduce, and grow from a hollow sphere of cells, the blastula (an animal embryo in early development when it is a hollow ball of cells), during embryonic development.
Chordata (A Chordate) consists of any animal with a flexible rod supporting their back side, most of which being also vertebrates. All chordates possess, at some point as a baby or adult, five distinguishable characteristics. A notochord, a hollow dorsal nerve cord, and endostyle or thyroid, pharyngeal slits, and a post-anal tail.
· A notochord is a flexible rod of cells that forms the supporting axis of the body.
· A hollow dorsal nerve cord is a tube-like structure that runs along the back of animal, and forms the central nervous system. The hollow cavity is filled with cerebrospinal fluid. Alternatively, this is called the spinal cord.
· An endostyle is a grooved organ in the pharynx (a passageway in the head and neck that is both part of the digestive and respiratory system) of some chordates that secretes mucus to trap food and aid in digestion. A filter-feeding tool consisting of parallel longitudinal folds projecting into the pharyngeal cavity.
· A thyroid is a small butterfly shaped gland that makes thyroid hormone and calcitonin. It helps to regulate growth and metabolism.
· A pharyngeal slit is an opening in the pharynx that allows water to pass in and out of the body, i.e. your mouth; gills
· A post-anal tail is a tail that extends past the anus. Humans possess this tail in early stages of development, while still in utero.
Mammalia (a Mammal) is the class of vertebrates that possess mammary glands, a broad neocortex (the portion of the brain that controls sight and hearing), fur or hair, and 3 middle ear bones. These bones are the malleus, the incus, and the stapes, also known as the hammer, the anvil, and the stirrup due to their shapes. These bones are separated from the outer ear by your eardrum. These perform important functions to help you hear. Mammals use sight and hearing as key sensory tools to navigate. Mammals often use an “up-and-down” motion with their spines for locomotion, not side to side. This is why dolphins and whales swim up and down, and fish swim side to side.
Carnivora (carnivorans) are descendants of a late Paleocene radiation of mammals whose primitive food habits were carnivorous. This does not mean that all carnivorans are strictly carnivores. While a lot of physical descriptors can vary, all members of carnivora have simple stomachs. They are considered generally intelligent with relatively large brains. Their fur can be any color, but is usually thick and multi-layered.
Canidae (canids) are dog-like carnivorans, and constitutes as a clade (a group of animals with a common ancenstor). Caniformia is a suborder within Carnivora, and defines “dog-like” as having largely non-retractile claws, having longer jaws and more teeth than feliforms, and lean towards opportunistic scavenging. In opposition, feliforms are far more specialized for a strictly carnivore diet. Caniforms have single chambered or only partially divided auditory bullae (a hollow bony structure in the skull that encloses parts of the middle and inner ear), composed of a single bone, and the bulbourethral glands (responsible for producing pre-ejaculate) and vesicular seminalis (secretes seminary fluid) are always absent.
Canis is a genus of Caniforms distinguished by their moderate to large size, large and well developed skulls, long legs, and comparatively short ears and tails. They can be solitary or pack animals. They have a dentition whose arrangement is specific to Canis. In general, all species in this genus look and act quite similar to each other, but cannot interbreed.
Canis lupus, is a wolf. This species has several subspecies, all able to interbreed. Wolves are identifiable from other members of the Canis genus mostly by their size and behavior. A wolf is the largest in size of any member of the Canis genus, and is further distinguished by having rounder muzzles and ears, shorter torsos, and longer tails than other Canids. They are specialized for cooperative game hunting, and live in social family packs. They are extremely social, expressive, and monogamous. They are active at night, and native to North America and Eurasia.
A dog is a subspecies of Canis lupus, taxonomically referred to as Canis lupus familiaris. Meaning literally “familiar wolf” in latin, they are able to successfully interbreed with Canis lupus and other subspecies of the aforementioned. They are domesticated but still possess many behavioral similarities as Canis Lupus. They are highly, highly social, extremely expressive, extremely cooperative, and intelligent. The fact that they are domesticated is what caused them to initially separate from Canus Lupus as a subspecies, forming different physical features based on selective breeding by humans. Dogs frequently have larger eyes and floppier ears, but can exist in many different sizes and shapes. All dogs can interbreed regardless of their breed. A breed is a further classification beyond subspecies, in which the animals only differ in locality and physical features, typically having a lineage of similar looking dogs with a distinctive appearance that separates them from other dogs.
Binomial name: Felis catus
A eukarayote is an organism whose cells have a membrane –bound nucleus.
Animalia (An Animal) is a multicellular, eukarayotic organism. They consume organic material, breathe oxygen, have myocytes(muscle cells that contract to produce force) and are able to move, sexually reproduce, and grow from a hollow sphere of cells, the blastula (an animal embryo in early development when it is a hollow ball of cells), during embryonic development.
Chordata (A Chordate) consists of any animal with a flexible rod supporting their back side, most of which being also vertebrates. All chordates possess, at some point as a baby or adult, five distinguishable characteristics. A notochord, a hollow dorsal nerve cord, and endostyle or thyroid, pharyngeal slits, and a post-anal tail.
· A notochord is a flexible rod of cells that forms the supporting axis of the body.
· A hollow dorsal nerve cord is a tube-like structure that runs along the back of animal, and forms the central nervous system. The hollow cavity is filled with cerebrospinal fluid. Alternatively, this is called the spinal cord.
· An endostyle is a grooved organ in the pharynx (a passageway in the head and neck that is both part of the digestive and respiratory system) of some chordates that secretes mucus to trap food and aid in digestion. A filter-feeding tool consisting of parallel longitudinal folds projecting into the pharyngeal cavity.
· A thyroid is a small butterfly shaped gland that makes thyroid hormone and calcitonin. It helps to regulate growth and metabolism.
· A pharyngeal slit is an opening in the pharynx that allows water to pass in and out of the body, i.e. your mouth; gills
· A post-anal tail is a tail that extends past the anus. Humans possess this tail in early stages of development, while still in utero.
Mammalia (a Mammal) is the class of vertebrates that possess mammary glands, a broad neocortex (the portion of the brain that controls sight and hearing), fur or hair, and 3 middle ear bones. These bones are the malleus, the incus, and the stapes, also known as the hammer, the anvil, and the stirrup due to their shapes. These bones are separated from the outer ear by your eardrum. These perform important functions to help you hear. Mammals use sight and hearing as key sensory tools to navigate. Mammals often use an “up-and-down” motion with their spines for locomotion, not side to side. This is why dolphins and whales swim up and down, and fish swim side to side.
Carnivora (carnivorans) are descendants of a late Paleocene radiation of mammals whose primitive food habits were carnivorous. This does not mean that all carnivorans are strictly carnivores. While a lot of physical descriptors can vary, all members of carnivora have simple stomachs. They are considered generally intelligent with relatively large brains. Their fur can be any color, but is usually thick and multi-layered.
A Felid, of the family Felidae, are cat-like carnivorans. Cat-like, meaning they have retractile claws that are attached to the terminal toe bone, slender muscular bodies, and strong flexible forelimbs. They are digitigrade, meaning they stand or walk with their toes on the ground, and the rest of the foot is lifted. Their skull is shorter than a canid’s, with a round profile and larger orbits. Their tongues are covered in papillae, fine, cone shaped projections made of keratin. They are solitary predators and obligate carnivores, meaning their diet consists only of nutrients found in the flesh of other animals. Some scientists argue that they adapted towards an obligate carnivore diet because they cannot detect sweet flavors. Cat eyes are large and adapted to seeing in low-lighting, using a reflective layer of tissue in the eye called a tapetum lucidum. The tapetum lucidum reflects light back onto the retina to provide more light to photoreceptors in the eye. The eyes of felids are also particularly adapted for distinguishing movement in low light, with a high proportion of rod cells. They have 6x better vision in low light than humans. All cats share a broad range of vocalizations, including purring (which they can breathe through through both phases of respiration), hissing, growling, and sometimes roaring (though not all cats can roar). Cats also possess a Jacobson’s organ, or a Vomeronasal organ. It is located on the roof of the mouth, and is also present and functional in all snakes, lizards, cattle, pigs, dogs, and some primates.
Felinae is a subfamily of Felidae of small cats with a bony hyoid. The hyoid bone is a horseshoe-shaped bone between the chin and thyroid. It is often called a lingual bone, or a tongue bone. The presence of this bone is what prevents some cats from having the ability to roar. The other subfamily of Felidae is Pantherinae, which includes cats that can roar like lions, jaguars, leopards, and tigers.
Felis is the genus of small and medium sized cats native to most of Africa, Europe, Asia, and Indochina. The word Felis means “cat, ferret” in Latin. Reginald Pocock has divided up the genus, compromising only the following cats, due to a genetic divergence that separates them from other felinae lineages. The European Wildcat (F. silvestris), Jungle Cat (F. chaus), African Wildcat (F. lybica), Black-footed Cat (F. nigripes), Sand Cat (F. margarita), Chinese Mountain Cat (F. bieti), and the Domestic Cat (F. cactus). Felis catus is a small domestic cat commonly kept as a pet, or free-ranging as a feral. The species is social but hunts alone. They specialize in killing small animals such as song birds, reptiles, and rodents, the latter being what led to their domestication by humans. Today, they are most closely related to a European Wildcat (F. silvestris), though some of the earliest documented tame cats were African Wildcats (F. lybica). Despite genetic selection by humans, many cats still possess all the same traits as their wild counterparts, including a Jacobson’s organ, large, pointed ears, the ability to see in low light, and its fast reflexes and hunting capabilities. However, domestic cats have a smaller skull and shorter bones than European Wildcats. Their fur color may vary wildly, from solid white, black, and tan, to spots, stripes, and occasionally both, inclusive of other colors like orange, buff, brown-gray, or nearly any naturally-occuring fur color possible. The social behavior of domestic cats ranges widely as well, from friendly individuals to feral cat colonies based on groups of co-operating females. Cats territory size and range can be anywhere from just near their homes or miles away from a central point. Despite this difference in behavior, all male cats mark their territory by scent rubbing and spraying urine. Differing from dogs, cats traded an evolution of physical neonatal traits to behavioral neonatal traits, and treat adulthood with humans as an extended kittenhood, including meowing loudly, mimicking human cries, and displaying great affection towards their humans as surrogate mothers.
