The 21 Basic Mammal Groups
Colugos (Order Dermoptera)
The semi-marine mammals known as pinnipeds (including seals, sea lions, and walruses) are lumped in the order Carnivora (see slide #5), but not dugongs and manatees, which belong to their own order, Sirenia. The name of this order derives from the mythical siren. Apparently, starving Greek sailors sometimes mistook dugongs for mermaids! Sirenians are characterized by their paddle-like tails, near-vestigial hind limbs, and muscular front limbs used to steer through the water. Modern dugongs and manatees are modestly sized, but a recently extinct sirenian, Steller's sea cow, may have weighed as much as 10 tons.
The 21 Basic Mammal Group caches were placed for HNY21.