Unusual Mammals: Marsupials & Monotremes

Unusual Mammals: Marsupials & Monotremes

Unusual Mammals: Marsupials & Monotremes
Reading Level

	edHelper's suggested reading level:	grades 4 to 9
	Flesch-Kincaid grade level:	9.91

Vocabulary

	challenging words:		echidna, haired, hairless, koala, lengthy, outright, prior, newborn, encounter, hence, species, fully, marsupial, offspring, unique, well-known
	content words:		Down Under

Print Unusual Mammals: Marsupials & Monotremes
edHelper.com subscriber options:

	Print Unusual Mammals: Marsupials & Monotremes (font options, pick words for additional puzzles, and more)
	Quickly print reading comprehension
	Print a proofreading activity

Feedback on Unusual Mammals: Marsupials & Monotremes

Leave your feedback on Unusual Mammals: Marsupials & Monotremes (use this link if you found an error in the story)

Unusual Mammals: Marsupials & Monotremes

¹     Mammals, by definition, are haired, warm-blooded vertebrate animals that feed their young with milk. While most mammals (such as lions and rodents) give birth to live young in their nests, others are wired to rear their offspring differently. Scientists divide these other mammals into two groups: marsupials and monotremes. Oddly, Australia is like a magnet to mammals that strive to be unique. Evidence? Most marsupials reside in Australia, and all monotremes establish their homes on this giant continent that we nickname the Down Under.

²     So, what animals are marsupials, and what animals are monotremes? Furthermore, what make marsupials and monotremes exceptional?

³     Of nearly 300 marsupial species, kangaroos and koalas are not only the most famous marsupials, but also symbols of Australia. Aside from these two well-known animals, opossums, wombats, bandicoots, and Tasmanian devils - to name just a few - are also marsupials. Although marsupials give birth to live young, they do so at a very early stage of the embryo's development. Hence, baby marsupials are not yet fully formed when they are born.

Paragraphs 4 to 8:
For the complete story with questions: click here for printable

Copyright © 2008 edHelper