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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


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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.

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