Marsupial Mammals What is a Marsupial? Marsupials are a group of mammals that have an external pouch located on their mother's abdomen in which they carry their young. Most marsupials live in Australia, where they have evolved into some unique and unusual animals. Marsupials range in size from the 1.8 meter tall red kangaroo which weighs 90kgs to the tiny, shrew-like long-tailed planigale which is just 6 cm in length and weighs only 4 gms.
Whale ribs loosely articulate with their thoracic vertebrae at the proximal end, but they do not form a rigid rib cage. This adaptation allows the chest to compress during deep dives as opposed to resisting the force of water pressure.
The skin of an adult whale shark can be as thick as 4 inches (10 cm) and has the consistency of strong rubber, which limits possible predators to killer whales, great white sharks, tiger sharks and humans. Color. Whale shark has a two-toned pattern of light spots on its dark gray back with a white underside. Each whale shark has its own individual spot pattern; like human fingerprints, no two are exactly alike. Teeth. Teeth of the whale shark are tiny and pointed backward; they are thought to have no function in feeding.