UNGULATES!
What are ungulates..?
Ungulates are members of the clade Euungulata! Ungulates are most of the time hooved mammals. A outlier to this descriptor would be cetaceans who lost their hooves due to evolution. Extant ungulates are currently classified into two orders, Perissodactyla, and Artiodactyla. Perissodactyla walk on a odd amount of toes, while Artiodactyla walk on an even amount of toes. All ungulates (besides cetaceans and camelids) walk unguligrade. Meaning they walk on their hoof/nail. Pretend you're walking on the tips of your fingers! You might already know some ungulates, like cows, horses, goats, deer, giraffes, camels, or pigs!
Ungulate comes from ungulatus meaning "hoofed", and ungulatus is a diminutive form of unguis, meaning nail!
Reading
- Ultimateungulate by Brent Huffman. A huge guide to ungulates, detailing basically every single land dwelling ungulate, and their evolution.
- Bovids of the World Antelopes, Gazelles, Cattle, Goats, Sheep, and Relatives by José R. Castelló An extremely detailed book on every single known bovid.
- National Audubon Society Guide to Marine Mammals of the World Includes information on cetaceans.
- The Ecological Buffalo: On the Trail of a Keystone Species by Johane Janelle and Wes Olson Informative book on American bison and their very important role in the ecosystem.
Conservation
- AzaUngulates
- Giraffe Conservation Foundation
- Grevy's Zebra Trust
- Whale and Dolphin Conservation
- Saiga Conservation
- International Rhino Foundation
- Asian Wild Cattle Specialist Group
- African Wildlife Foundation
- American Prairie
- Yellowstone Forever
- Sahara Conservation
- Revive and Restore Przewalski's Horse
Fun stuff
These are neat places that care for ungulate species / or just fun things to look at in general.
- Skullaryd Älgparken A wildlife park in Sweden with moose, fallow deer, and red deer.
- Tromsø Arctic Reindeer A Sami herding family in Norway that hosts tours around their reindeer.
- Skakkerud Reindeer sanctuary located in Norway.
- Cairngorm Reindeer The UK's only freeroaming reindeer herd. Located in Scotland.
- Fossil Rim Wildlife Center A conservation drive through park with a vast variety of hoofstock. Located in Texas USA.
- Musk Ox Farm A nonprofit qiviut farm that works to educate people about muskoxen. Located in Alaska USA.
- Reindeer Herding Website dedicated to husbandry of reindeer.
- Zoofari Parks Four conservation parks primarily hosting a vast variety of hoof stock. Located in Virginia, Florida, Alabama, and Texas USA.
- Golden Shrike Comic Deer webcomic