ALL MAMMALS
There are several characteristics that all of mammals have in common: We nurse our young from mammary glands, hence the name "mammals;" We have hair or fur. Mammals are warm blooded and have lungs to breathe air.
feed milk to their babies
Almost all mammal babies suckle milk from their mother's teats, though some babies nurse on hairs near the mammary glands. Young mammals mature more slowly than most other animals, and most usually "graduate" from milk to other food later in their development.
have hair or fur on their bodies
Fur or hair not only keeps mammals warm but also helps keep their body temperature constant. There can be a great variety in some mammals' fur: from a few stray hairs on the chin of a whale to the dense fur coat of a chinchilla to the modified guard hairs known as "quills" on a porcupine.
are warm blooded
Mammals are warm blooded. The mammals metabolism controls heat production, and the sweat glands help cool the body. These allow the mammal to maintain a constant body temperature, regardless of the environmental temperature.
have lungs to breathe air
The lungs of mammals have a spongy texture and are honeycombed with epithelium (a thin layer of tightly packed cells), a structure that maximizes the surface area for gas exchange.
Mammal Species at Peoria Zoo
| African crested porcupine | Hystrix africaeaustralis |
| African lion | Panthera leo krugeri |
| Amur tiger | Panthera tigris altaica |
| Binturong | Arctictis binturong |
| Black-and-white ruffed lemur | Varecia variegata variegata |
| Black-handed spider monkey | Ateles geoffroyi |
| California sealion | Zalophus californianus californianus |
| Capybara | Hydrochaeris hydrochaeris |
| Chinchilla | Chinchilla lanigera |
| Cotton-top tamarin | Saguinus oedipus |
| Domestic rabbit | Oryctolagus cuniculus domestic |
| Domestic zebu | Bos taurus indicus |
| Donkey | Equus asinus asinus |
| Dromedary camel | Camelus dromedarius |
| Eastern black-and-white colobus | Colobus guereza |
| Fennec fox | Vulpes zerda |
| Ferret | Mustela putorius furo |
| Giant Zambian Mole-rat | Cryptomys mechowi |
| Greater spear-nosed bat | Phyllostomus hastatus |
| Grevy's zebra | Equus grevyi |
| Hoffmann's two-toed sloth | Choloepus hoffmanni |
| Horse | Equus caballus |
| Indian flying fox | Pteropus giganteus |
| Llama | Lama glama |
| Mandrill | Mandrillus sphinx |
| Mongoose lemur | Eulemur mongoz |
| Nigerian goat | Capra hircus hircus nigerian |
| Northern tree shrew | Tupia belangeri |
| Norway rat | Rattus norvegicus |
| Parma wallaby | Macropus parma |
| Red river hog | Potamochoerus porcus |
| Reticulated giraffe | Giraffa camelopardalis reticulata |
| Ring-tailed lemur | Lemur catta |
| Sheep | Ovis aries |
| Sichuan takin | Budorcas taxicolor tibetana |
| Slender-tailed meerkat | Suricata suricatta |
| Southern gerenuk | Litocranius walleri walleri |
| Southern three-banded armadillo | Tolypeutes matacus |
| Southern white rhinoceros | Ceratotherium simum simum |
| Sugar glider | Petaurus breviceps |
| Thomson's gazelle | Gazella thomsonii |