Simplified Classification For Non-specialists
The following classification is a simplified version based on current understanding suitable for non-specialists who want to understand how living genera are related to each other. The classification ignores differences in levels and thus cannot be used to estimate the respective distances between taxa. It also ignores taxa that became extinct in pre-historic times. Finally, English names are preferred whenever they exist. This makes it especially suited for non-specialists who wish to gain an easy overview. For the full picture, the non-simplified versions above should be consulted.
- Monotremes (prototheria): echidnas and platypus
- Platypus
- Echidnas (tachyglossids)
- Live-bearing mammals (theria)
- Marsupials
- Australodelphia: Australian marsupials and monito del Monte
- Monito del Monte
- Dasyuromorphs
- Dasyurids: antechinuses, quolls, dunnarts, Tasmanian devil, and allies
- Numbat
- Peramelemorphs: bilbies and bandicoots
- Bilbies (thylacomyids)
- Bandicoots (peramelids)
- Marsupial moles (notoryctids)
- Diprotodonts
- Koala
- Wombats (vombatids)
- Phalangerids: brushtail possums and cuscuses
- Pygmy possums (burramyids)
- Honey possum
- Petaurids: striped and Leadbeater's possums, and yellow-bellied, suger, mahogany and squirrel glider
- Ringtailed possums (pseudocheirids)
- Potorids: potoroos, rat kangaroos and bettongs
- Acrobatids: feathertail glider and feather-tailed possum
- Musky rat-kangaroo
- Macropodids: kangaroos, wallabies and allies
- Ameridelphia: New World marsupials except monito del Monte
- Opossums (didelphids)
- Shrew opossums (caenolestids)
- Australodelphia: Australian marsupials and monito del Monte
- Placentals
- Atlantic placentals (atlantogenatans)
- Afroplacentals (afrotherians)
- Afroinsectiphilians: elephant shrews, tenrecs, otter shrews, golden moles, and aardvark
- Elephant shrews (macroscelidids)
- Afrosoricids: tenrecs and golden moles
- Tenrecids: tenrecs and otter shrews
- Golden moles (chrysochlorids)
- Aardvark
- Paenungulates: hyraxes, elephants, dugongs and manatees
- Hyraxes or dassies (procaviids)
- Elephants (elephantids)
- Sirenians: dugong and manatees
- Dugong
- Manatees (trichechids)
- Afroinsectiphilians: elephant shrews, tenrecs, otter shrews, golden moles, and aardvark
- Xenarthrans
- Pilosans: sloths and anteaters
- Anteaters (vermilinguans)
- Silky anteater
- Myrmecophagids: giant anteater and tamanduas
- Sloths (folivorans)
- Three-toed sloths (bradypodids)
- Two-toed sloths (megalonychids)
- Anteaters (vermilinguans)
- Armadillos (dasypodids)
- Pilosans: sloths and anteaters
- Afroplacentals (afrotherians)
- Northern placentals (boreoeutherians)
- Supraprimates (euarchontoglires)
- Euarchontans: treeshrews, colugos and primates
- Treeshrews (scandentians)
- Tupaiids: all treshrews except pen-tailed
- Pen-tailed treeshrew
- Colugos or flying lemurs (cynocephalids)
- Primates
- Strepsirrhines: lemur- and loris-like primates
- Lemur-like primates (lemuriforms)
- Cheirogaleids: dwarf lemurs and mouse-lemurs
- Aye-aye
- True lemurs (lemurids)
- Sportive lemurs (lepilemurids)
- Indriids: woolly lemurs and allies
- Loris-like primates (lorisiforms)
- Lorisids: lorises, pottos and allies
- Galagos (galagids)
- Lemur-like primates (lemuriforms)
- Haplorhines: tarsiers, monkeys and apes
- Tarsiers (tarsiids)
- Anthropoid primates
- New World monkeys (platyrrhines)
- Callitrichids: marmosets and tamarins
- Cebids: capuchins and squirrel monkeys
- Aotids: night or owl monkeys
- Pitheciids: titis, sakis and uakaris
- Atelids: howler, spider, woolly spider, and woolly monkeys
- Catarrhines
- Old World monkeys (cercopithecids)
- Hominoid primates
- Gibbons (hylobatids)
- Great apes (hominids): incl. Humans
- New World monkeys (platyrrhines)
- Strepsirrhines: lemur- and loris-like primates
- Treeshrews (scandentians)
- Glires: pikas, rabbits, hares, and rodents
- Lagomorphs: pikas, rabits and hares
- Leporids: rabbits and hares
- Pikas (ochotonids)
- Rodents
- Anomalure-like rodents (anomaluromorphs): Scaly-tailed squirrels and springhares
- Scaly-tailed squirrels or anomalures (anomalurids)
- Springhares (pedetids)
- Beaver-like rodents (castorimorphs)
- Beavers (castorids)
- Gopher-like rodents (geomyoid rodents)
- Pocket or true gophers (geomyids)
- Heteromyids: kangaroo rats and kangaroo mice
- Porcupine-like rodents (hystricomorphs)
- Laotian rock rat
- Gundis (ctenodactylids)
- Hystricognaths
- African mole rats (bathyergids)
- Old World porcupines (hystricids)
- Dassie rat
- Cane rats (thryonomyids)
- Cavy-like rodents (caviomorphs)
- Chinchilla rats (abrocomids)
- Hutias (capromyids)
- Cavies (caviids): incl. Guinea pigs and capybara
- Chinchillids: chinchillas and viscachas
- Tuco-tucos (ctenomyids)
- Agoutis (dasyproctids)
- Pacas (cuniculids)
- Pacarana
- Spiny rats (echymyids)
- New World porcupines (erethizontids)
- Myocastorids: nutria and coypu
- Octodonts (octodontids): Andean rock-rats, degus and viscacha-rats
- Mouse-like rodents (myomorphs)
- Dipodids: jerboas and jumping mice
- Muroid rodents
- Mouse-like hamsters (calomyscids)
- Cricetids: hamsters, New World rats and mice, voles
- Murids: true mice and rats, gerbils, spiny mice, crested rat
- Nesomyids: climbing mice, rock mice, white-tailed rat, Malagasy rats and mice
- Spiny doormice (platacanthomyids)
- Spalacids: mole rats, bamboo rats, and zokors
- Squirrel-like rodents (sciuromorphs)
- Mountain beaver
- Doormice (glirids)
- Squirrels (sciurids): incl. chipmunks, prairie dogs, and marmots
- Anomalure-like rodents (anomaluromorphs): Scaly-tailed squirrels and springhares
- Lagomorphs: pikas, rabits and hares
- Euarchontans: treeshrews, colugos and primates
- Laurasian placentals (laurasiatherians)
- Hedgehogs (erinaceids)
- Soricomorphs: moles, shrews, solenodons
- Shrews (soricids)
- Moles (talpids)
- Solenodons (solenodontids)
- Ferungulates: ungulates, cetaceans, bats, pangolins and carnivorans
- Cetartiodactyls: camels, swine, cetaceans, hippos, and ruminants
- Camelids: camels and llamas
- Swine (suinans): pigs and peccaries
- Pigs (suids)
- Peccaries (tayassuids)
- Cetruminantians: cetaceans hippos and ruminants
- Cetancodonts: Cetaceans and hippos
- Cetaceans: Whales, dolphins and porpoises
- Baleen whales (mysticetes)
- Balaenids: right whales and bowhead whale
- Rorquals (balaenopterids)
- Gray whale
- Pygmy right whale
- Toothed whales (odontocetes)
- Dolphins (delphinids)
- Monodontids: beluga and narwhal
- Beluga
- Narwhal
- Porpoises (phocoenids)
- Sperm whale
- Kogiids: pygmy and dwarf sperm whale
- River dolphins (platanistoid whales)
- Iniids: Amazon and Bolivian river dolphin
- La Plata dolphin
- Platanistids: Ganges and Indus river dolphins
- Beaked whales (ziphids)
- Baleen whales (mysticetes)
- Hippos (hippopotamids)
- Cetaceans: Whales, dolphins and porpoises
- Ruminantiamorphs: chevrotains, pronghorn, giraffes, musk deer, deer, and bovids
- Chevrotains (tragulids)
- Pecorans
- Pronghorn
- Giraffids: giraffe and okapi
- Musk deer (moschids)
- Deer (cervids)
- Bovids: cattle, goats, sheep and antelope
- Cetancodonts: Cetaceans and hippos
- Pegasoferans: bats, odd-toed ungulates, pangolins and carnivorans
- Bats (chiropterans)
- Megabats (pteropodids)
- Microbats (microchiropterans)
- Sac-winged or sheath-tailed bats (emballonurids)
- Rhinopomatoid bats
- Mouse-tailed bats (rhinopomatids)
- Bumblebee bat or Kitti's hog-nosed bat
- Rhinolophoid bats
- Horseshoe bats (rhinolophids)
- Hollow-faced or slit-faced bats (nycterids)
- False vampires (megadermatids)
- Vesper bats or evening bats (vespertilionids)
- Molossoid bats
- Free-tailed bats (molossids)
- Pallid bats (antrozoids)
- Nataloid bats
- Funnel-eared bats (natalids)
- Sucker-footed bats (myzopodids)
- Disc-winged bats (thyropterids)
- Smoky bats (furipterids)
- Noctilionoid bats
- Bulldog or fisherman bats (noctilionids)
- New Zealand short-tailed bats (mystacinids)
- Ghost-faced or moustached bats (mormoopids)
- Leaf-nosed bats (phyllostomids)
- Zooamatans: odd-toed ungulates, pangolins and carnivorans
- Odd-toed ungulates (perissodactyls)
- Horses (equids)
- Ceratomorphs
- Tapirs (tapirids)
- Rhinoceroses (rhinocerotids)
- Ferans
- Pangolins or scaly anteaters (manids)
- Carnivorans
- Cat-like carnivorans (feliforms)
- African palm civet
- Feloid carnivorans
- Asiatic linsangs (prionodontids)
- Cats (felids)
- Viverroid carnivorans
- Viverrids: civets and allies
- Herpestoid carnivorans
- Hyaenids: hyenas and aardwolf
- Malagasy carnivorans (euplerids)
- Herpestids: mongooses and allies
- Dog-like carnivorans (caniforms)
- Canids: dogs and allies
- Arctoid carnivorans
- Bears (ursids)
- Musteloid carnivorans
- Red panda
- Mephitids: skunks and stink badgers
- Mustelids: weasels, martens, badgers, wolverines, minks, ferrets and otters
- Procyonids: raccoons and allies
- Pinnipeds
- Walrus
- Otariids: sea lions, eared seals, fur seals
- True seals (phocids)
- Cat-like carnivorans (feliforms)
- Odd-toed ungulates (perissodactyls)
- Bats (chiropterans)
- Cetartiodactyls: camels, swine, cetaceans, hippos, and ruminants
- Supraprimates (euarchontoglires)
- Atlantic placentals (atlantogenatans)
- Marsupials
Read more about this topic: Mammal Classification
Famous quotes containing the word simplified:
“I have simplified my politics into an utter detestation of all existing governments; and, as it is the shortest and most agreeable and summary feeling imaginable, the first moment of an universal republic would convert me into an advocate for single and uncontradicted despotism. The fact is, riches are power, and poverty is slavery all over the earth, and one sort of establishment is no better, nor worse, for a people than another.”
—George Gordon Noel Byron (1788–1824)