Purpose: To analyze and discuss the anatomy of the mink in order to compare to that of a human. Even though the mink’s anatomy will be a bit different some similarities could always be found.
Research
Physical Characteristics
The general characteristics of minks is that they are mammals just like humans, which means that we both are born with hair, mammary glands for the females and different characteristics in our anatomy to those of birds and reptiles. Their scientific name is Mustela Vison. The mink has very long trunk, short legs and very large neck. The tail is thick and the feet are slightly webbed enabling them to swim better. In all the mink measures about 12-15 inches long and weight 1 ½ to 3 pounds. The fur is very dark almost black, on the chin the fur is white with a little white fur on its throat.
On the first stage of development the litter could be of 2 to 7 minks. They are born blind and deaf with little to no fur. They grow reddish hair when they are 2 weeks old. When they are finally 5 weeks old their eyes will star to open in the mean time the mothers have to feed them and protect them from predators.
On the second stage of development the minks are 10 weeks old they learn how to hunt. By fall, the minks leave their mother and start an independent life. They will mainly hunt snakes, rabbits, frogs, birds, mice and other small animals. Minks spend most of their time in the water. These creatures live on empty logs, or in a hole near the water.
On their third stage of development minks are ready to breed when they are about 10 weeks old, this happens January all the way to April. Males and females will mate with different minks. Generally female minks are in heat for a period of 3 weeks. After they have mated...
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...d of any fat or grease residue left behind.
➢ After rinsing the mink spray preservative on the make, put extra if is before the weekend.
Works Cited
Department of Environmental Conservation. (n.d.). Mink. Retrieved April 10, 2014, from http://www.dec.ny.gov/animals/9356.html
Fur Commission USA. (n.d.). Mink Biology. Retrieved April 10, 2014, from http://www.furcommission.com/farming/mink-biology/#Anchor-HABITAT-14210
Illinois Department of Natural Resources. (n.d.). Mink – Scientific name Mustela vison. Retrieved April 10, 2014, from http://www.dnr.state.il.us/orc/wildlife/furbearers/mink.htm
Nature Works. (n.d.). American Mink –Neovison vison. Retrieved April 10, 2014, from http://www.nhptv.org/natureworks/mink.htm
Wikipedia. ( November 30, 2010). American Mink Range. Retrieved April 10, 2014, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:American_Mink_area.png
A mink is a good specimen to study the human anatomy because it is so closely related in internal features to that of a human being. Since these features are so closely related it provides a sort of “model” that can be used in order to better understand the anatomy of humans.
Students and researchers can learn a lot from observing the mink; unexpectedly I was able to find many similarities between the mink and a human. Humans and Minks are very close in class, which explains their similarities in anatomy. Indeed although these two organisms have a lot in common there are major differences amongst these similarities. The similarities are due to the fact that both humans and the mink are mammals. The differences are due to the differences in environment, habits, size etc... One example is the fact that minks and humans both have lugs of similar shape but different lobes. Each of these similarities and/or differences benefit both the human and the mink, in their own unique way, with each structure having its own function. Overall the mink is a very complex animal and so is an individual.
...sheath encloses the penis of a mink and is held along the ventral wall of the abdomen. Male humans do not have this, and have much smaller penises relative to their body size. The percent of body length of the average mink and human penises are approximately 15 percent and 8 percent.
Minks and humans share various common characteristics because of their common roots in the animal kingdom. Both Human and Mink species are classified as Animalia Chordata Mammalia until they are separated by order, Humans being primates and Minks being in the order carnivora. It is because of their common roots that they have similar muscles types with similar functions, which help them survive and function throughout their individual habitats.
Over Hunting during the Fur Trade is evident, and resulted in the near extinction of some animals popular for furs, such as Beaver, Mink, O...
The Neovison Macrodon, or also referred to as the Sea Mink, is a mustelid that once lived up till the 1860’s, but became extinct due to it being hunted to death. During that time the European fur trade was happening, and people wanted to make money from the coats they sold. In addition, to other species of animals, the sea mink was one of the targets for producing many coats. However, the Sea Mink was, on average, 90cm long, so it took 60 of them to make a single coat, resulting in mass slaughter.
The female's gestation period is between 20 and 30 days. Female voles have two to four litters of two to seven young per year in a nest lined with vegetation in an underground burrow or in a depression on the ground. Litter size varies depending on food availability and the age of the female. Baby voles open their eyes at about eight days after birth, and become capable of feeding themselves at about two weeks.
...e during the year. Researchers have found that female coquerel dwarf lemurs mostly starting matting during the month of October. Their development and pregnancy last about 90 days. Like all mammals, lemurs feed off their mothers for milk. And they can live up until the ages between 20 and 25 (Garbutt 52).
The Stripped Skunks identifiable pattern comprises of black with a white spot upon its head and two white broad lines down the spine. They weigh two to ten lbs The skunks roam from Canada to Mexico, and inhabit forests, field edges, woods, streams, swamplands, and suburban areas. Skunks normally are nocturnal, and will retreat in the long winter months. Skunks will appear from their dens in the winter months especially during reproduction time of year. Skunk mating season occurs between Feb and Mar with their offspring being delivered about 62 to 66 days later. Skunks will spray during the mating time of year; this is why in the middle February skunk aroma exists in the air. The standard litter comprises four to six, and at six weeks of age, young skunks start out making brief trips out with their mother while she ventures out to feed. Skunks are real omnivores they will devour nearly anything they can go into their mouth, from refuse to deceased animals, rodents to grubs.
Meerkats have a sexual reproduction which means it takes a male and a female to make an offspring. A meerkat is in its mother’s womb for 11weeks and gives birth to 3-4 pups, baby meerkats. There isn’t a specific seasonwhen meerkats have pups, so they can have their babies any time of the year. Mother meekats carry their young by the napes necks and the father is usually in charge of guarding the pup.Meerkats act as a pact and the meerkats that don’t have any pups will watch the pups while the parents go hunting.
For the Kit foxes being so small in size they have some rather large characteristics and features about themselves counting from their large, but rather close ears, which helps them out with the heat in the specific environment that they put themselves into. The Kit fox has a slender body which includes a busy tail that is straight and tipped back in the end and irregularly large legs. One interesting feature of the Fox is that its color varies with the season, which ranges from tan to buff gray in the summer, and then to silver gray in the winter. For traction on the sandy soil of their natural habitat the Kit Foxes use the dense hair that is found in-between their footpads. But the dense hair that is found in between their footpads is not only used for traction it also helps them out from the heat from that the sand has to offer. When the female fox gets pregnant their pregnancy can last as long as 48 to 52 days. Upon pregnancy the female foxes can have as many as 3 o 5 pups born at a time. The Kit foxes are able to make several dens to house their pups within their dens. Once the female foxes have given birth it is up to the male foxes to go out and provide for the both of them, due to the female fox staying back and nursing the pups. It is shortly after one month that the pups are weaned are on their own leaving the den and go start their own new life
The specifics of the skinks mating behavior and habitats during breeding season is unknown. They have a low fecundity, with one to five skinks born in a litter, with one litter born per year. The skinks are born in December (December, January, and February being the Australian summer months) and because they are ovoviviparous they give birth to live young rather than eggs that would hatch outside the body.
The first step was to obtain the White Rat and to tie it in the supine position, anterior surface facing up in side the dissection pan. To tie the animal, we used butcher’s twine and secured the front and hinds legs using a “lasso” technique, careful not touch the sharp claws. To make the first insicion I had to locate the Xifoid Process of the rat (distal aspect of the sternum). Once I had located the Xifoid Process, I had to use forceps to pull the skin of the animal’s abdomen up and use the scissors to cut. The first incision is made from stem to sternum, cutting through the errectos abdomen muscle down to the groin. The second incision ion is perpendicular to the first below the diaphragm. Because of this technique we were able to open the abdominal cavity first. The third and forth incisions were made bilaterally above the legs. The last two incisions were made in upside down “V” shape on the collarbone, to expose the thoracic cavity. This dissection was both sharp, because of the use of the scissors and scapel and blunt because of the use of the probe and forceps to move organs and skin to expose other organs not yet identified.
Sikes, Roberts. and William L. Gannon. "Guidelines of the American Society of Mammalogists for the Use of Wild Mammals in Research." Journal of Mammalogy 92.1 (Feb. 2011): 235-253. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Web. 5 Oct. 2011.