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OP
OP
What are the two carnivores best known for their burrow- building abilities?
I was surprised by the answers. I would have never guessed either to be a master builder.
up out of the turf from a ground squirrel tunnel at base of a big splitleaf maple,
that had a very large cavity in which snakes had laid eggs for many years, which
was shown to me when the tree had to be cut down before it fell on the garage.
The man who cut the tree down was a moonllighting biologist, who showed
me some unhatched eggs, and some newly hatched snakes about the size of a
bllpoint pen, which he said were "field moccasins" capable of injecting enough venom
even that young to be dangerous. So the snake was foe of the fodient groundsquirrels.
OP
The other one--and quite a surprise to me--is the skunk. Whudda thunk?
about plan to "cull" 4000 badgers, because they carry bovine tuberculosis, and there
has been recrudescence of bovine TB in; British dairy cattle, which makes it harder for
British dairymen to sell the cows overseas?
OP
Didn't you find it surprising that the skunk is such a great burrower, malodorous fodient skunk?
well equipped. Skunks only spray as a last resort. I had an amusing experience with one.
I had made a house visit just down the street away one night. On my return home, I saw
what I thought in the dim light was a balled up page of newspaper blowing across the
lawn. As I got closer, I saw it was a skunk. It was standing on its front paws, with its tail
hanging down its back, out of the way of the perfume projector. It was peeking around its
front legs, and dancing on its forepaws, calibrating its aim, should I get within firing range.
Fortunately the wind was from me to the skunk, so the skunk knew it could not hit me with
spray unless I got very close. It was so close to the door that I had to wait until it dropped
its tail back, went down on all fours and departed, in only very moderate haste.
The skunk perf;ume is a mercaptan, a sulfur compound series, or which asparagus contains
the least noxious precursor, readily noted when urinating a few hours after eating asparagus.
Which reminds me of a lecturer in biochemistry telling us Roman ladies used to drink small
amounts of turpentine, because it gave their urine the odor of lavender. I asked him "For whose
benefit?" For which he had no answer.
Why aren't prairie dogs carnivores, Dr Bill?
OP
Excuse me for stepping in before Dr. Bill, but I can reply that prairie dogs are not included the the order of carnivorous mammals. What's interesting about this order is some types of bears that have mostly a vegetarian diet are still considered to be carnivores, and the Rodentia order, of which the prairie dog is a member, includes mostly vegetarian members, although members of the order do eat beyond vegetation.
Here's a little from the Smithsonian that may be of some interest to you:
The family Sciuridae belongs to the largest and most diverse order of mammals, Rodentia, containing about 1,620 species. There are about 250 species of Sciurids currently recognized around the world. Eleven of these species can be found in North Dakota.
There are three basic groups of squirrels. These are the flying squirrels which are active mostly at night, the tree squirrels which are active during daylight hours, and the ground squirrels. The first two groups spend most of their time in trees and build their nest above ground; the third group are ground dwelling, as the name implies, and nest in underground burrows. Because flying and tree squirrels are dependent upon mature trees, their distribution is limited to rivers, streams, woody draws, and urban areas where trees are plentiful. Ground squirrels are more widespread and often abundant in grassland habitats. Members of this family that can be found in North Dakota include the northern flying squirrel, gray squirrel, red squirrel, fox squirrel, eastern chipmunk, least chipmunk, woodchuck, Richardson's ground squirrel, thirteen-lined ground squirrel, Franklin's ground squirrel, and black-tailed prairie dog.
OP , although some of us are carnivorous at times. Anyway, here are the 18 orders of mammals gleaned from the Net:
"Order Artiodactyla (even-toed hoofed animals)
Hoofed animals with an even number of toes include those that ruminate, or digest their food in four-chamber stomachs and chew cuds, and those that do not ruminate. Those that ruminate are the families Girrafidae (giraffes). Cervidae (deer, moose, reindeer, elk). Antilocapridae (pronghorn antelope), and Bovidae (cattle, bison, yaks, waterbucks, wildebeest, gazelles, springboks, sheep, musk oxen, goats). Nonruminators include the families Suidae (pigs), Tayassuidae (peccaries), Hippopotamidae (hippopotamuses), and Camelidae (camels, llamas).
Order Carnivora (meat-eaters)
There are two suborders of these toe-footed creatures. They include the Canidae (wolves, dogs, jackals, foxes), Ursidae (bears, giant pandas), Procyonidae (coatis, raccoons, lesser pandas), and Mustelidae (martens, weasels, skunks, otters), all part of one superfamily that is characterized by long snouts and unretractable claws; and Felidae (cats, lions, cheetahs, leopards) Hyaenidae (hyenas), and Viverridae (mongooses, civets), all of which have retractable claws.
Order Cetacea (whales and purpoises)
Two suborders of Order Cetacea are the toothed whales, which have regular conical teeth, and the baleen, or whalebone, whales, which have irregular whalebone surfaces instead of teeth. Toothed whales include the families Physeteridae (sperm whales), Monodontidae (narwhals, belugas), Phocoenidae (porpoises), and Delphinidae (dolphins, killer whales). Baleens are in the family Eschrichtiidae (gray whales), Balaenidae (right whales), or Balaenoptridae (fin-backed whales, hump-backed whales).
Order Chiroptera (bats)
There are two suborders of bats, the only mammals that can fly. Suborder Megachiroptera contains one family, the Pteropodidae (flying foxes, Old Worm fruit bats). Suborder Microchiroptera contains 17 families, including: Rhinopomatidae (mouse-tailed bats), Emballonuridae (sheath tailed bats), Craseonycteridae (hog-nosed or butterfly bats), Noctilionidae (bulldog or fisherman bats), Nycteridae (slit-faced bats), Megadermatidae (false vampire bats), and Rhinolophidae (horseshoe bats).
Order Dermoptera (colugos or flying lemurs)
These gliding tree mammals from Asia do not fly and are not lemurs, but they are known as flying lemurs, or Family Cynocephalidae .
Order Edentata (toothless mammals)
Three families of mammals get by without teeth: Dasypodidae (armadillos), Bradypodidae (sloths), and Myrmecophagidae (hairy anteaters).
Order Hyracoidae (hyraxes, dassies)
Order Hyracoidae is one of three orders that has only one modern family remaining. Procavia capensis (the African rock hyrax) is one of nine living species in the Family Procaviidae .
Order Insectivora (insect-eaters)
The three members are the families Talpidae (moles), Soricidae (shrews), and Erinaceidae (hedgehogs).
Order Lagomorpha (pikas, hares, and rabbits)
Two families make up this order: Ochotonidae (pikas) and Leporidae (hares and rabbits of all sorts).
Order Marsupialia (pouched animals)
Included among these are the families Caenolestidae (rat opossums), Diddeelphidae (true opossums), Dasyuridae (native cats, native mice), Notoryctidae (marsupial moles), Myrmecobiidae (numbats), Peramelidae (bandicoots), Phalangeridae (koalas), Vombatidae (wombats), and Macropodidae (kangaroos and wallabies).
Order Monotremata (egg-laying mammals)
These more primitive mammals make up the families Tachyglossidae (echidnas, also called spiny anteaters) and Ornithorhynchidae (platypuses).
Order Perissodactyla (odd-toed hoofed animals)
The two suborders, Hippomorpha and Ceratomorpha, include creatures that have an odd number of toes. Families in this order are the Equidae (horses, donkeys, zebras), the Tapiridae (tapirs), and the Rhinocerotidae (rhinoceroses).
Order Pholidata
Family Manidae (pangolins) is the sole family in this order.
Order Pinnipedia (seals and walruses)
In the fin-footed order there are Otariidae (eared seals, sea lions), Odobenidae (walruses), and Phocidae (earless seals).
Order Primates (primates)
The order to which people belong is divided into two suborders: The Prosimii , who have longer snouts than their relatives, and the Anthropoidae . The first group includes the families Tupalidae (tree shrew), Lemuridae (lemurs), Daubentonlidae (aye-ayes), Lorisidae (lorises, pottos), and Tarsiidae (tarsiers). The anthropoids include the families Callitrichidae (marmosets), Cebidae (New World monkeys), Cercopithecidae (baboons, Old World monkeys), Hylobatidae (gibbons), Pongidae (gorillas, chimpanzees, orangutans), and Hominidae (human beings).
Order Proboscidea (elephants)
Large enough to have an order all to itself is Family Elephantidae .
Order Rodentia (gnawing mammals)
The most prolific mammals, Order Rodentia includes three suborders. It takes in the families Aplodontidae (mountain beavers), Sciuridae (chipmunks, squirrels, marmots), Cricetidae (field mice, lemmings, muskrats, hamsters, gerbils), Muridae (Old World mice, rats), Heteromyidae (New World mice), Geomyidae (gophers), and Dipodidae (jerboas).
Order Sirenia (dugongs and manatees)
The families Trichechidae (manatees) and Dugongidae (dugongs and other sea cows) make up the Order Sirenia .
Order Tubulidentata (aardvarks)
Another mammal in an order by itself is Family Orycteropodidae."
http://www.cftech.com/BrainBank/OTHERREFERENCE/ANIMALWORLD/OrderMammals.html
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