Risks and General Health of Order

Currently 160 species of the Order Artiodactyla are endangered. So far 13 species of this order have been extinct. In the upcoming years it is estimated that 66 more species could become endangered animals. The main reason why animals from this order are going extinct is due to illegal poaching, habitat loss from deforestation, and comepetition with each other.

Family/Genus Adaptations and Behaviors

The animal you see above has fur to keep itself warm during winter. It is currently shaved off due to the heat of summer. These animals are domestic and will go on a rampage when hugged if not trained.

Pigs have really strong noses that are adatped to dig for food.
Girafess have long necks so they can eat from trees.

Girafess have the largest eye of any land mammal so they can see a predator coming.

Alpacas have paddes feet so they can roam around their environment comfortably.

Hippos have buoyancy which allow this animal to move easily throug the water.

These animals above have antleres to scare predators and impress potentially mates.

The animals above have horns to impress mates.

The animals above have hair everywhere so they will not get cold in the winter.

The following groups of Artiodactyla have adaptions that help them in their envionrment. For example Camels have long eyelashes to keep sand out of their eyes. They also have nostrils that close so they do not get sand up their noses. Camels ears are covered with ears inside and outside to protect sand from going inside their ears.

Habitat of Each family and Genus

 There are currently 11 families/Genus in the Artiodactyla group

Camelidae : Habitat of this family are found in Somali, Sahel, Maghreb, Middle East, and Indian Subcontinent where there is little availability of water. 

Suidae : Habitat of this family are found mainly in North America, but can thrive anywhere where there is woodland and forests. Animals of this family are mainly kept captive.

Tayassuidae : Habitat of this family are found in Southwest North America, Central America, and South America. Animals of this family can survive in a number of habitats including deserts, and tropical rain forests.

Cetacea : Habitat of this family are found in the ocean and are Marine Mammals. Animals of this family thrive in all sorts of lakes, seas, and oceans. These animals best prefer cooler and deep waters such as the Polar Regions located in Antarctica.

Hippopotamidae : Habitat of this family are found in Eastern Central and Southern Africa. Animals of this family survive in lakes and rivers.

Tragulidae :Habitat of this family are found in Central and West Africa. Animals of this group survive in overgrown forests and bush areas.

Moschidae :: Habitat of this family are found in central and Northeast Asia. Animals of this group survive in steep slopes.

Cervidae : Habitat of this family are found in Southern Canada and most of the United States. Animals of this group thrive in areas that are well covered and around wooden areas.

Bovidae : Habitat of this family are found in Asia, North America, and Africa. Animals of this group thrive in areas that are prairies, mountainous regions, and open woodlands.

Antilocapridae : Habitat of this family are found in North America. Animals of this group survive in short- grass prairies where shrubs are available.

Giraffidae : Habitat of this family are found throughout Central and South America. Animals of this group survive in areas with abundance of food and lots of open space.

Basic Characteristics of All members of the Order

    *  Stand on an even number of toes

    * weight is borne by the third and fourth toes

    * highly-developed stomachs

    * browsing and grazing animals

    * shape of the astragalus has double-pulley structure

    * foot extremely flexible

    * larger stomachs and longer intestines than other animals 

    * found on every continent except Antarctica

    *  more economic and cultural benefit

    * do not inhabitant oceanic islands

    * hoofed mammals

    * coats have two layers

    * glands used for communication

    * needs abundant vegetation to survive

    * social and live in groups

    * equipped with horns or antlers

Facts on Ancestors and Facts of Earliest Ancestors

Artiodactyla had many ancestors and some of the earliest ancestors has characteristics similar to modern day animals. The first ancestors appeared about 54 million years ago. They were small, short-legged creatures that were herbivores. 8 million years later after they were once introduced about three suborders has already been developed. These suborders where the Suina, Tylopoda, and the Ruminantia. Around the time the suborders started developing, its believed that Artiodactylas started forming their complex digestive systems which allow them to survive on lower - grade food. About 20 million years ago Artiodactyla seemed to adapt their low - nutrition diet. Artiodactyla ungulates are found on every continent except Antarctica. 

Description of the animals in the order

In the Artiodactyla  group there are a number of animals in the order. The animals in the order are the pigs, peccaries, hippopotamuses, camels, chevrotains , deer, giraffes, pronghorn, antelopes, sheep, goats, and cattle.

Pigs : This animals belongs to the Suidae family. All animals belonging to the Suidae family are from Asia, Europe, or Africa. These animals have four toes on each foot and when fully grown are about 58 to 66 cm in length and 6 - 9 kg in weight. Pigs are omnivores meaning that they eat plants and animals. 


Peccaries : These animals belong to the Suidae  family. Peccaries are located in southwestern area of North America and are also found throughout Central and South America.  Peccaries are about 90 -130 cm long and weight about 44 - 88 lb. Peccaries are medium sized animals who look very similar to pigs. Just like pigs, Peccaries are also omnivores.

Hippopotamuses :  These animals belong to the  Hippopotamidae family. The hippopotamus is the largest land mammal after the elephant. These animals are semi-aquatic meaning they  inhabit land as well as the water. Hippos can run at an average of 19 mph. Hippos animals weigh 1 - 3 tonnes. 


Camels : These animals belong to the family Camelidae .The average life age for a camel is between 40 - 50 yrs. A full grown camel is 6 ft and 1 inches and can run 40 mph.Camels are known for their ability to withstand intense heat and live without water for long periods of time.


Chevrotains : These animals are also known as mice deers are from the family Tragulidae. These animals are found in Southeast Asia. These animals weight about 1.5 and 18 lb. 

Deers : These animals belong to the family Cervidae. Deers weight 70 - 600 lb. Deers are great runners and swimmers. 

Giraffes :These animals belong to the family Giraffidae are the tallest of all extant land-living animal species. The Average mass for an adult male girafee is about 2,600 lb and for a female is 1,800 lb. Giraffes are approximately 17 ft tall but some can grow up to 20 ft. 

Pronghorns : These animals closely resemble an antelope. These animals belong to the family Antilocapridae. Pronghorns weight about 41-50 kg. 

Antelopes : These animals belong the the family Antilocapridae . Antelopes are found mainly in Asia, African, and most of North America. Many species of this animal are going extinct.

Sheep's : Sheep's belong to the family  Bovidae. Sheep's have a variety of color and it depends on their breed and environment.  Sheep's are strictly herbivorous mammals. 

Goats : These animals belong to the family Bovidae. Goats are from Southwest Asia and Eastern Europe. Goats are very closely related to the sheep. Most goats have two horns, and 4 legs. Goats life for about 15 - 18 yrs. Goats produce 2 % of the world's milk supply.

Cattle's : These animals belong to the family Bovidae. Cattles have one stomach with four compartments. Cattle are very closely related to cows.                

       



    

Researching Your Animal Order

Resource one :

Website/Book Title : Even - toed ungulate

URL/ Author : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Artiodactyla   

Brief Summary : The website explains briefly the classifications, suborder, anatomy, physiology, morphology, behavior, diet, habitat distribution, and relationships with humans. The website explains in great detail the characteristics of the Artiodactyla's and the origin of the name.

Resource two : 

Website/Book Title : Even- toed Ungulates – Order Artiodactyla 

URL/ Author :http://animals.about.com/od/hoofedmammals/p/eventoedungulat.html

Brief Summary :   This website basically explains the members of the family and briefly describes some characteristics of Artiodactyls.


Resource three : 

Website/Book Title :  Mammals of the worlds : The even – toed ungulates 

URL/ Author :   http://creagrus.home.montereybay.com/etungulates.html 

Brief Summary : This website shows a bunch of animals that are part of the family and briefly explains about them.  



Resource four : 

Website/Book Title :  Even touged ungulates 

URL/ Author :   http://www.bbc.co.uk/nature/life/Even-toed_ungulate    

Brief Summary :   This website describes characteristics of the family and shpws a good map of where there all located.    


Resource five : 

Website/Book Title :  Even – toed ungulate  

URL/ Author :       http://even-toed-ungulate.co.tv/    

Brief Summary :  This website is a very food resource because it shoes the meaning of the names of the animals of the family. It also has a wide variety of resources about the animals such as classification.