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Erinaceidae / ˌ ɛr ɪ n ə ˈ s iː ɪ d iː / is a family in the order Eulipotyphla, consisting of the hedgehogs and moonrats.Until recently, it was assigned to the order Erinaceomorpha, which has been subsumed with the paraphyletic Soricomorpha into Eulipotyphla.
The Southern African hedgehog is said to be a slow mover; however, when threatened, it can move surprisingly fast at 6 to 7 km/h (3.7 to 4.3 mph). [3] During the day, they typically stay where they live, which is an area that is covered with vegetation or in a hole in the ground.
Hedgehogs all have spines on their backs, while gymnures have fur. No erinaceids have population estimates, but the Hainan gymnure and Dinagat gymnure are categorized as endangered species . The twenty-four extant species of Erinaceidae are divided into two subfamilies: Erinaceinae , containing sixteen hedgehog species in five genera , and ...
Hedgehogs sleep for a large portion of the day under bushes, grasses, rocks, or most commonly in dens dug underground. All wild hedgehogs can hibernate, though the duration depends on temperature, species, and abundance of food. Hedgehogs are fairly vocal, with a variety of grunts, snuffles and/or squeals.
Echidnas are possibly named after Echidna, a creature from Greek mythology who was half-woman, half-snake, as the animal was perceived to have qualities of both mammals and reptiles. [citation needed] An alternative explanation is a confusion with Ancient Greek: ἐχῖνος, romanized: ekhînos, lit. 'hedgehog, sea urchin'. [5]
Eulipotyphla (/ ˌ j uː l ɪ p oʊ ˈ t ɪ f l ə /, from eu-+ Lipotyphla, meaning truly lacking blind gut [1]; sometimes called true insectivores [2]) is an order of mammals comprising the Erinaceidae (hedgehogs and gymnures); Solenodontidae (solenodons); Talpidae (moles, shrew-like moles and desmans); and Soricidae (true shrews) families.
Several mammal groups have independently evolved prickly protrusions of the skin – echidnas , the insectivorous hedgehogs, some tenrecs (a diverse group of shrew-like Malagasy mammals), Old World porcupines and New World porcupines (another biological family of rodents).
Environmental gradients can be related to factors such as altitude, depth, temperature, soil humidity and precipitation. Often times, a multitude of biotic (living) factors are closely related to these gradients; as a result of a change in an environmental gradient, factors such as species abundance , population density, morphology , primary ...