Let's start off with antlers. As defined by the Google dictionary thing, an antler is "One of the branched horns on the head of an adult (usually male) deer, which are made of bone and are grown and cast off annually." Something that I would like to add is that antlers are unique to the family Cervidae, which includes:
- Deer
- Elk
- Moose
- Caribou (Reindeer)
The family Cervidae is one of the many families in the order Artiodactyla, frequently referred to as the "Even-Toed Ungulates" (so called because they either stand on two or four toes). There are around 220 extant (still living, as opposed to extinct) species of artiodactyl, and included within this order are many familiar groups. These groups, broken down by family, include:
- Camelidae (Camels and llamas)
- Suidae (Pigs)
- Tayassuidae (Peccaries, a close relative of pigs)
- Hippopotamidae (Hippopotamus)
- Tragulidae (Chevrotains, a type of small deer)
- Antilocapridae (Pronghorn)
- Giraffidae (Giraffe and okapi)
- Moschidae (Musk deer)
- Cervidae (Deer)
- Bovidae (Cattle, sheep, goats, antelope)
Also included within the order Artiodactyla is the extinct family Entelodontidae. Later today, we will finally be getting around to what was supposed to be the monthly "What Is It?" challenge, but has turned into more of a quarterly or tri-monthly event! Anyways, we will be announcing the winners of THE LAST CHALLENGE later this evening, after we look at horns!
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