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Metatherians: Diversity and Habitats

Metatherians, including marsupials like kangaroos and opossums, are found primarily in Australia and South America. They occupy a wide variety of terrestrial habitats from deserts to rainforests. One species, the Virginia opossum, lives in North America. Metatherians exhibit many adaptations including endothermy, dimorphism between males and females, and evolution into forms suited for terrestrial, arboreal, and semi-aquatic niches. Within the order Diprotodontia, they have syndactylous toes and diprotodonty jaw structure.

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118 views2 pages

Metatherians: Diversity and Habitats

Metatherians, including marsupials like kangaroos and opossums, are found primarily in Australia and South America. They occupy a wide variety of terrestrial habitats from deserts to rainforests. One species, the Virginia opossum, lives in North America. Metatherians exhibit many adaptations including endothermy, dimorphism between males and females, and evolution into forms suited for terrestrial, arboreal, and semi-aquatic niches. Within the order Diprotodontia, they have syndactylous toes and diprotodonty jaw structure.

Uploaded by

Rosselle Noyoal
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© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd

Metatherians

• mostly found in Central and SA and Australia


• radiation took place on both of these continents during the Cenozoic
• Metatheria is defined as all mammals more closely related to living marsupials (such
as kangaroos and opossums) than to living placentals (such as humans and
hedgehogs) and monotremes.

Habitat

• Metatherians occupy an enormous variety of terrestrial habitats in Austrial and South


America
• From deserts and dry scrubland or vegetations in Australia to tropical rain forests in
South America, there are at least a few, and often many, species of Metatheria present
• There’s a single species found in North America which is the Virginia opposum.
• The virginia opposum naturally inhabits moist woodlands but it is also common in
small cities and towns.
• Fun fact: Opossums may give birth to as many as twenty-one babies at one time.
However, the mother only has thirteen nipples in her pouch. The first thirteen babies
to climb into her pouch and attach to her nipples are the only ones that survive.
• Also, there is at least one species that is semi-aquatic known as the water oppusm or
yapok
• Marsupials are most diverse in Australia and New Guinea, where no placental
mammals are found
o In regions where marsupials are isolated from placental mammals, marsupials
diversified. This is the case with Australia and New Guinea, where placental
mammals are absent
o Marsupials were allowed to diversify into a variety of different forms

• Water opossums are most often found in semi-aquatic or aquatic habitats,


particularly in freshwater streams and near-shore lakes
• They have a streamline body that is covered with a water-repellant coat that enhances
buoyancy
• This allows them to swim rapidly and efficiently
• They also have broad, webbed hindfeet that they use to move through the water
• Their forefeet, on the other hand, are not webbed but consist of long, naked fingers,
for catching prey
• Metatherians have evolved to inhabit many niches.
o Many species are fully terrestrial, many are living in trees, and there’s a sing
species that is semi-aquatic
Physical Features

• Metatherians are endothermic


o They use metabolically generated heat to regulate their body temperature
o Endothermy is a synapomorphy of the Mammalia
• They also have a body symmetry such that they can be divided into 2 mirror-image
halves
• Sexual dimorphism:
o One example is the opossum. Males are generally larger when compared to
females
o Another distinguishing feature: Males have a skin gland that stains the chest
fur yellow, whereas females have a fur-lined pouch for carrying infants

Order Diprotodontia
• Syndactylous- second and third toes are enclosed in a sheath of skin; appear fused,
expect for the claws
• Duprotodonty- having a pair of procumbent lower incisors (a condition called
diprotodonty)

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