Mammals 2.3 - 2.4

The largest group of mammals are ____.

• egg-layers

• rodents

• marsupials

The smallest rodents are (a)   , and the largest rodents are (b)   .

• mice

• capybaras

• gerbils

• prairie dogs

Answer explanation

The smallest rodents, mice, are 2-1/2 to 3-1/2 inches long.

The largest rodents, capybaras, live in South America and can grow to be 4 feet long and weigh up to 150 pounds.

All rodents are (a)   , or plant eaters. Their diet includes nuts, berries, leaves, and grasses.

• herbivores

• carnivores

• omnivores

Another name for front teeth is ____.

• incisors
• molars
• canines

Answer explanation

Rodents are the gnawing mammals. Their incisors are constantly being worn down, but they continuously grow throughout the rodent's life so the animal can keep on gnawing.

What disease carried by rats killed 60 million people throughout Europe during the 1300s-1600s?

• Flu

• Pneumonia

• Bubonic Plague

Answer explanation

Fleas that were on rats that carried bacteria transmitted the plaque to the people they bit.

Identify each squirrel described.

• Red Squirrel

• Also known as the chickaree

• Flying Squirrel

• A true hibernator

• Chipmunk

• Nocturnal Squirrel

• Gray Squirrel

• The most familiar squirrel in the eastern U.S.

• Chipmuck and Woodchuck

• A ground squirrel

Answer explanation

Tags

NGSS.MS-LS4-2

A ____ animal is one that has been tamed and raised for man's use for many generations.

• domestic

• wild
• feral

Answer explanation

White rats, mice, guinea pigs, hamsters, and gerbils are all popular rodents that are raised as pets.

Which animal is often mistaken for a rodent?

• Porcupine

• Rabbit
• Squirrel
• Chinchilla

Answer explanation

Rabbits have upper and lower incisors they use to gnaw foot like rodents. However, they also have 2 smaller incisors just behind their upper incisors that rodents do NOT have.

The most numerous group of rodents are the rats and mice, who look very similar except for their size. The smallest (a)   is larger than the smallest (b)   .

• rat

• mouse

Flying squirrels are completely ____, meaning only active at night.

• marsupial

• domestic

• nocturnal