Morphology Exam Study Guide

 

ÿ      Know Aristotle’s contribution to Mammalogy.

ÿ      Know the following major explorers/scientists and a general idea of what each did for the field of mammalogy: Catesby, Buffon, Linnaeus, Jefferson, Lewis and Clark, Pike, Charles Darwin, Mendel

ÿ      Know the traits that are characteristic of mammals.

 

ÿ      Why are teeth an important aspect to study?

ÿ      Terminology: know the following terms and be able to ID them on an image: crown, roots, enamel, dentin, pulp cavity, cementum, alveolus

ÿ      Know the difference between open and closed-rooted teeth.

ÿ      Know the following dental terms and be able to use them when looking at an image or actual skull: edentate, homodont, heterodont, brachyodont, hypsodont, bunodont, lophodont, selenodont, carnassials teeth, diastema

ÿ      Know how to read and write a dental formula and how to determine the formula when given a skull.

ÿ      Know the 2 major types of dental anomalies we discussed.

 

ÿ      Know the function of each of the layers of the epidermis and be able to ID them on a picture (study handout).

ÿ      Know what is present in the hypodermis.

ÿ      Know the 3 layers of a hair shaft.

ÿ      Know the difference between the following terms: angora, definitive growth, vibrissae, spines, bristles, awns, wool, fur, and velli.

ÿ      Know the meaning of the following terms: agouti, albinism, melanism, pheomelanin, eumelanin

ÿ      Know the 3 primary types of coloration patterns.

ÿ      Know the 3 different types of molting patterns.

ÿ      Know the difference between eccrine, apocrine, mammary, sebaceous, and scent glands.

ÿ      Know the difference between claws, nails, and hooves.

ÿ      Know the differences between horns and antlers.

ÿ      Know how sexual dimorphism for the trait differs in animals with horns versus those with antlers.

ÿ      Know the difference between giraffe, rhino, and pronghorn horns from Bovid horns.

 

ÿ      Know the basic parts of the digestive system and be able to identify them on a sketch.

ÿ      Know how dentition tends to differ between insectivores, carnivores, and omnivores.

ÿ      Know how digestive tracts tend to differ between insectivores, carnivores, and omnivores.

ÿ      Know the following terms: procumbent, myrmecophagous, Eimer’s organs, sanguinivorous, piscivorous, granivorous, folivorous, frugivorous, nectivorous, gummivorous, mycophagous, and coprophagy

ÿ      Be able to describe the two different strategies that have evolved in herbivores to increase space for housing microbes for digestion of vegetative matter.  (hindgut vs foregut fermentation)

 

ÿ      Make sure you can identify all structures listed on page 106 on figure 6.12 (exception=parts of scapula=manubrium, acromion, metacromion, supraspinous fossa, and intraspinous fossa)

ÿ      Know what and where everything specified on your notes is on a skeleton/skull

ÿ      Know the difference between the following terms: cursorial, digitigrades, unguligrade, ambulatory, plantigrade, saltatorial, ricocheting, arborial clinging/leaping, volant, brachiation, fossorial

ÿ      Know the differences between amphibious, aquatic, and marine mammals and be able to give examples for each.

ÿ      Know what a patagium is and what types of mammals have one.

 

ÿ      Know the following terms, what each does, and where they are in the brain: cerebellum, pons, medulla oblongata, midbrain, cerebral hemispheres, limbic system (hypothalamus, hippocampus, amygdala), thalamus, corpus callosum

ÿ      Know how mammalian brains differ from those of other vertebrates.

ÿ      Know the major parts of the endocrine system and examples of hormones they produce (pituitary gland, hypothalamus, pancreas, adrenal glands, gonads).

ÿ      Know what pheromones are and why their presence is thought to influence mating and aggressive behavior in different ways than other scents do.

ÿ      Know the 4 lines of defense in the mammalian immune system.

 

ÿ      Know the difference between homeothermic and heterothermic.

ÿ      Know why the internal maintenance of body temperature is energetically costly and one way mammals overcome these costs.

ÿ      What behavioral methods used by animals to avoid hot and/or cold temperatures?

ÿ      Be able to explain Bergmann’s, Allen’s rule, and Gloger’s Rule.

ÿ      Know how the body is cooled by evaporation and the different methods of evaporation (sweating, panting, saliva spreading).

ÿ      Be able to provide examples of adaptations possessed by mammals that dwell in arid environments.

ÿ      Know the difference between NST and shivering.

ÿ      Know three important adaptations that enable mammals to live in marine environments.

 

ÿ      Know the parts of the male reproductive system in the lecture notes and where they are located on a diagram (Fig 10.2 on page 194).

ÿ      Know the difference between Sertoli and Leydig cells.

ÿ      Know what a copulation plug is.

ÿ      Know the parts of the female reproductive system in the lecture notes and where they are located on a diagram (Fig. 10.4 on page 195).

ÿ      Be able to describe/give the function of the following: ovaries, uterus, vagina, and mammary glands. Know how these vary among monotremes, marsupials, and eutherian mammals.

ÿ      Know the terminology associated with estrous cycles.

ÿ      Know the 4 primary functions of the placenta.

ÿ      Know the difference between nondeciduous and deciduous placentas.

ÿ      Know the terms: gestation, placental scar, parturition, altricial, precocial, lactation, colostrum.

ÿ      Know the reproductive variations as discussed in class.