Questions and Answers
What is the primary reason scientists group, or classify, animals?
What is common to all vertebrates?
What is NOT a characteristic of vertebrates?
How many main groups do vertebrates get divided into?
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What is the smallest vertebrate mentioned in the passage?
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What is a characteristic that mammals have in common?
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Why are reptiles considered cold-blooded?
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What do amphibians use to breathe oxygen?
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What is a characteristic that birds and mammals share?
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Why do scientists create smaller groups within the five main groups of vertebrates?
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Study Notes
Grouping by Similarities
- Scientists group animals into categories to study them more easily, just like students are divided into different classrooms.
- The first division is between vertebrates (with a backbone) and invertebrates (without a backbone).
Characteristics of All Vertebrates
- Vertebrates have a backbone or spinal column.
- Vertebrates have an endoskeleton, which includes bones that give shape to the body.
- Vertebrates have various systems, including muscles, heart and blood, skin, waste removal, immunity, and a nervous system that controls the body.
Five Kinds of Vertebrates
- Vertebrates can be divided into five main groups: mammals, birds, fish, amphibians, and reptiles.
- Each group is determined by shared characteristics.
- There are at least 59,000 kinds of vertebrates on Earth.
Characteristics of Each Vertebrate Group
Mammals
- Warm-blooded, meaning they regulate their own body temperature.
- Have hair or fur.
- Have lungs for breathing air.
- Feed milk to their babies.
- Most give birth to live young, rather than laying eggs.
Birds
- Have feathers.
- Have two wings, although not all can fly.
- Are warm-blooded.
- Lay eggs.
Fish
- Have fins or scales.
- Live in water.
- Have gills for breathing oxygen.
Amphibians
- Have smooth, moist skin.
- Lay eggs in water.
- Most breathe through lungs and skin.
Reptiles
- Have scales.
- Are cold-blooded, meaning their body temperature changes with the environment.
- Breathe air.
- Most lay hard-shelled eggs on land.
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Description
Learn how scientists group animals into categories, including vertebrates and invertebrates, to make them easier to study and understand.
