MAMMALS OF THE UPPER

TEXAS COAST

SO WHAT IS A MAMMAL?

Have BackbonesWarm BloodedBreath AirNurse YoungHave Hair

Mammal FactsFirst Mammals arose 200 million years ago

About 4500 different species worldwide

Range from a shrew of 2inches to a whale of more then 120 feet in length

Orders of Texas MammalsOrder Didelphimorphia (opossum) Order Insectivora (shrews and moles) Order Chiroptera (bats) Order Xenarthra (armadillos) Order Lagomorpha (hares and rabbits) Order Rodentia (rodents) Order Carnivora (carnivores)Order Pinnipedia (seals)Order Artiodactyla (even-toed ungulates)Order Sirenia (manatee)Order Cetacea (whales, porpoises, and dolphins)

Virginia Opossum

Least and Short-Tailed (v) Shrew

Eastern Mole

Bats – 7species ?

Eastern PipistrelleBig Brown BatEastern Red BatHoary BatSouthern Yellow BatEvening BatBrazilian Free-tailed Bat

6%

Nine-banded ArmadilloHansen’s1 in 6

Nine-banded Armadillo1914

Swamp Rabbit

Eastern Cottontail Rabbit

Black-tailed JackrabbitPrecocial vs.altricial

Eastern Fox Squirrel

Eastern Gray Squirrel

Eastern Gray Squirrel

Thirteen Lined Ground Squirrel

Southern Flying Squirrel

Southern Flying Squirrel

4:1

American Beaver

Other Rodents

Coyote

Grey Fox

Red Fox

Red Fox

Elephant

Raccoon

Raccoon

Stripped Skunk

Spotted Skunk

River Otter

Mink

Bobcat

White-tailed Deer

3.6 M TX

Marine Mammals

Caribbean Monk SealWest Indian Manatee9 species of Dolphin17 species of Whale

Many based on one documented sighting

Introduced Mammals

Nutria 1940

Feral Hogs

2.6 M

Feral Cats

Outdoor and feral cats kill between 1.3 billion and 4.0 billion birds in a year in U.S. - Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute

Humans27M TX, 2x 35 yrs

Extirpated Mammals

Cougar

Jaguar

Ocelot

Ringtail

Red Wolf

Red Wolf

Bison

Black Bear

Muskrat

Questions?