Tree shrew

From Freepedia

? Tree shrews
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Mammalia Order: Scandentia Wagner, 1855 Family: Tupaiidae Gray, 1825
Genera
Tupaia Anathana Urogale Dendrogale Lyonogale Ptilocercus

The tree shrews are small, squirrel-like mammals native to the tropical forests of Southeast Asia. They make up the family Tupaiidae and the entire order Scandentia. There are 18 species in 6 genera. Tree shrews have the highest brain to body mass ratio, even higher than human.

Although called tree shrews, they are not shrews (although they were previously classified in the Insectivora), and are not all arboreal. Among other things, they eat Rafflesia fruit.

Classification

Tree shrews were moved from Insectivora to the Primates order, because of certain internal similarities to the latter, and classified as a primitive prosimian. Recent molecular phylogenetic studies have demonstrated that tree shrews belong to the clade Euarchonta along with the flying lemurs (order Dermoptera) and the primates. The Euarchonta are sister to the Glires (lagomorphs and rodents), and the two groups are combined into the clade Euarchontoglires.

Euarchontoglires
    |--Glires
    |    |--rodents (Rodentia)
    |    \--rabbits, hares, pikas (Lagomorpha)
    |
    \--Euarchonta
         |--tree shrews (Scandentia)
         \--N.N.
              |--flying lemurs (Dermoptera)
              \--primates (Primates)

• ORDER SCANDENTIA
  • Family Tupaiidae
    • Subfamily Tupaiinae
      • Genus Tupaia
      • Genus Anathana
      • Genus Urogale
      • Genus Dendrogale
      • Genus Lyonogale
    • Subfamily Ptilocercinae
      • Genus Ptilocercus

External links

• http://mbgnet.mobot.org/sets/rforest/animals/shrew.htm

• http://nationalzoo.si.edu/Animals/SmallMammals/fact-lessertreeshrew.cfm

• http://www.hoglezoo.org/animals/view.php?id=183

Mammals
Monotremata
Placentalia: Xenarthra | Dermoptera | Desmostylia | Scandentia | Primates | Rodentia | Lagomorpha | Insectivora | Chiroptera | Pholidota | Carnivora | Perissodactyla | Artiodactyla | Cetacea | Afrosoricida | Macroscelidea | Tubulidentata | Hyracoidea | Proboscidea | Sirenia
Marsupialia: Didelphimorphia | Paucituberculata | Microbiotheria | Dasyuromorphia | Peramelemorphia | Notoryctemorphia | Diprotodontia