MAMMALS
OF THE WORLD:
THE
ODD-TOED UNGULATES
All photos taken
in the wild
"Ungulates" are the large grazers and browsers of the world. They are divided
taxonomically into two orders: the Perissodactyla or Odd-toed Ungulates,
and the Artiodactyla, or Even-toed Ungulates. There are many even-toed
ungulates in the world; indeed, there are nine families that include deer,
bison, giraffe, pigs, camels and hippos. A number of species have been
very successful, and others (cows, sheep, goats) have been widely domesticated.
In contrast, there are only three families of Odd-toed Ungulates and only
one -- the horses -- has been domesticated. Wild perissodactyls are in
decline throughout the world and many species are threatened or endangered;
some are extinct. Only the Common Zebra Equus burchelli of east
and south Africa exists in fair abundance.
Although many odd-toed ungulates are now a challenge
to find in the wild, they were once much more abundant. They first appeared
58 million years ago in North America in the late Paleocene although true
equines (genus Equus) did not appear until the Pleistocene, two
million years ago in the Old World. Rhinos once roamed North America as
did the rhino-like brontotheres, a now long-extinct family. Two other perissodactyl
families are extinct in the Old World: tapir-like paleotheres and chalicotheres,
largish horse-like animals with claws instead of hooves. Today, only 16
species in six genera exist (and some of them only in zoos.)
Three families of Odd-toed Ungulates in the world today
Click on the photos or titles to link to a page on each family. The
taxonomy here follows Macdonald, D., ed. (1984) The Encyclopedia of
Mammals, 1st ed. Facts on File Publ., New York. Other than personal
experiences, the facts herein are also summarized from that text.
PHOTOS: All photos on this page are © 2001 Don Roberson;
all rights reserved.
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Page created 25 Jan 2002
