Animals - The structure of animals
Growing up on a farm we have been surrounded with animals our whole childhood. You give attention to them but never truly pay attention to their structure.
Animals are classified into two groups:
- Animals with a backbone (Spine) - Vertebrates
Image Source - Animals without a backbone - Invertebrates
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The basic structure of animals
Animals have a basic structure:
1. Head
Most animals head consist out of a brain or brain-like structure, no matter how small it is. The head also has sensory organs like the eyes and ears as well as the feeding structures like the mouth and the jaws.
2. Tail
All or most of the animals have tails at the back end of their bodies. The tail is often pointed but in some animals it takes on another shape.
Functions of tails
The tails of animals have different functions from providing locomotion for fish and other marine life, brushing away flies for some, balancing themselves and swinging from trees and bushes. The tails is also used as a form of social signalling that helps to warn other when there is imminent danger. Then you also get the tails of lizards that detaches to safe them from predators.
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3. Body
Animals cover their bodies in different coverings and most of them cannot change it when the weather changes. But their is one main reason why animals have coverings for their bodies and it is to protect their organs, bones and muscles from the environment, the harsh sun, conditions that can cause infection etc. They have been created in such a wonderful way that they can blend into their environment.
4. Limbs
Most animals have four limbs, but there are some like the octopus that has more. They use their limbs to move, to walk, run, climb or swim. There are some animals like chimps and squirrels that can use their front or upper limbs to handle objects.
5. Sense organs
We all know what our basic senses are touch, taste, smell, hear and see, but the senses of animals are much better developed than those of humans.
- Sniffer dogs use their sense of smell to find people, drugs, bombs etc.
- Eagles can use their sense of sight to see little rodents from very far away.
- Dogs and cats use their sense of hearing to hear sound that humans cannot hear.
- Butterflies, bees and earthworms use their sense of taste, also called chemo-receptors, to taste through their skin or feet.
- There is a lot of animals that uses their senses to function in nature.
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Project
Choose any animal and do some research on the different ways in which that animal uses his senses.
Being A SteemStem Member
Beautiful video and amazing information
Thank you!