marsupial
Let an agent explain marsupials and their reproduction, relay diversity, evolution and conservation from zoological sources, describe major groups, and distinguish marsupials from placental mammals and monotremes and the young joey from the adult.
Bundle → Layer → Finding → Questions Filled
4 bundles · 8 layers · 8 findings · 16 questions
Understand What marsupials are.
Definition
Definition and reproduction.
Definition
Definition.
- What are marsupials, how does their reproduction work, and how do they differ from placentals and monotremes? definition
- Is the question about the group, a family, a species or conservation? boundary
Groups
Groups.
Groups
Groups.
- What are the major groups, from kangaroos and rat-kangaroos to marsupial mice and opossums, and what is a joey? definition
- Which entry fits the specific group? action
Biology Biology and evolution.
Evolution
Evolution.
Evolution
Evolution.
- How did marsupials evolve and spread between the Americas and Australia via Antarctica? provenance
- Which references are standard? provenance
Adaptations
Adaptations.
Adaptations
Adaptations.
- What adaptations do marsupials show, from hopping to embryonic diapause? provenance
- Which sources are cited? provenance
Conservation Conservation.
Threats
Threats.
Threats
Threats.
- Why have so many marsupials declined, and which are threatened? provenance
- Which entry fits Australian mammal extinctions? action
Protection
Protection.
Protection
Protection.
- How are marsupials protected and recovered? provenance
- Which entry fits wildlife conservation in Australia? action
Context Culture and study.
Culture
Culture.
Culture
Culture.
- How do marsupials figure in Aboriginal cultures and national symbols? provenance
- Which entry fits kangaroo in culture? action
Study
Study.
Study
Study.
- How are marsupials studied, including as models in developmental biology? provenance
- Which entry fits mammalogy? action
Classifiers Filled
- Family
- Thing Registry
- Category
- Physical world and living systems
- Entry kind
- thing
- Plane
- PHY
- Domain
- PHY.LIV
- Other names and narrower kinds
- joey, rat kangaroo, marsupial mouse
What it is Filled
A mammal of the infraclass Marsupialia whose young are born at an early stage and complete development attached to a teat, often in a pouch, including kangaroos and their young called joeys, rat-kangaroos, koalas, wombats, possums, the small carnivorous marsupial mice or dunnarts, and the American opossums; marsupials number about 330 species, mostly in Australasia and the Americas, and diverged from placental mammals over 100 million years ago.
Why it exists Filled
Let an agent explain marsupials and their reproduction, relay diversity, evolution and conservation from zoological sources, describe major groups, and distinguish marsupials from placental mammals and monotremes and the young joey from the adult.
Distinguishing features Filled
- Pouch and teat development
- Australasian and American
- Diverse forms
- Ancient lineage
What robots and AI may and may not do Filled
Must not
- Capture, handle or keep a wild marsupial without a licence.
- Remove a joey from its mother's pouch except under a licensed carer's instruction.
- Feed wild marsupials or lure them near roads.
- Help trade protected marsupials or their parts.
Only with a human decision
- Any decision to euthanise or cull marsupials.
- Releasing a rescued marsupial back into the wild.
May
- Describe marsupial species, their biology and conservation status from scientific sources.
- Report a sick, injured or orphaned marsupial to a licensed wildlife carer.
- Monitor wild populations with methods approved by the responsible authority.
Moral aspects Filled
- Many marsupials have declined or gone extinct because of introduced predators and habitat loss.
- Animals in care feel stress and pain and their welfare comes first.
Who is affected
- The animals themselves
- Wildlife carers
- Indigenous communities
Owners Filled
Steward
Nobody: wild and protected by law in most of their range; keepers answer for animals in captivity.
Master systems
- National species and conservation status databases
Links to other meta-models Filled
parent
- Q7377 - registry parent class
related
- mammal - in registry terms
- Marsupialia - the infraclass
- placental mammal - with longer gestation
- kangaroo - the best known marsupial
What else AI and robots need to interact with it Filled
Identity and identifiers required Filled
- Vercy registry: vr.tr.marsupial
- Wikidata: Q25336 (https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q25336)
- infraclass: Marsupialia
Direct properties required Filled
- species: about 330 count
- divergence from placentals: over 100 million years ago
- largest: red kangaroo, up to 90 kg note
- smallest: long-tailed planigale, about 4 g note
Recognition required Filled
- Mammal with early-born young developing on a teat
- Kangaroos and joeys, rat-kangaroos, marsupial mice, koalas, wombats, opossums
- Placentals gestate longer; monotremes lay eggs; a joey is any marsupial young
- Mammals ranging from kangaroos to mouse-sized dunnarts, many with pouches.
Capabilities and actions required Filled
- explain reproduction and groups
- relay evolution and conservation
- describe examples
- distinguish related mammals
Hazards and failure modes required Filled
- Extinctions and declines from predators and habitat loss
- Confusing joey with a species
- Registry aliases mixing a young stage and groups
Standards and interfaces required Filled
- Australian wildlife protection laws
- IUCN Red List assessments
- CITES listings for some species
Context of use required Filled
- Not applicable; a mammal group.
- kangaroos, wallabies and rat-kangaroos
- koalas and wombats
- possums and gliders
- dasyurids including marsupial mice, quolls and the Tasmanian devil
- bandicoots and bilbies
- American opossums and shrew opossums
Sources Filled
- Wikidata item Q25336: marsupial - identity and sense of the item
- Wikipedia: Marsupial - general description of the item
Open questions
- Should kangaroo, dasyurid and opossum be separate primary entries?
- How should zoological sources be linked?
- The registry entry has merged aliases naming a young stage and two groups; should they be split off?
Machine files
Provenance
thing registry research (pass 2) · unreviewed
Built from: models/things/publications/thing-q25336/spec.json