Global diversity of mammals (Mammalia) in freshwater

Species that are dependant on, or adapted to, freshwater environments are found in almost all mammalian orders, and two orders, the Cetacea and the Sirenia, are strictly aquatic and include some freshwater-dependant species. Overall, the aquatic and freshwater-dependant species represent around 70 o...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Hydrobiologia 2008, Vol.595 (1), p.607-617
Main Authors: Veron, Geraldine, Patterson, Bruce D, Reeves, Randall
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Biodiversity
Biomedical and Life Sciences
Cetacea
Conservation status
Diversity
Ecology
Endangered species
Fresh water
Freshwater
Freshwater & Marine Ecology
Freshwater Animal Diversity Assessment
Freshwater environments
Freshwater mammals
Habitat loss
Life Sciences
Mammalia
Marine biology
Marine mammals
natural resource management
Sirenia
Studies
Zoology
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Summary:Species that are dependant on, or adapted to, freshwater environments are found in almost all mammalian orders, and two orders, the Cetacea and the Sirenia, are strictly aquatic and include some freshwater-dependant species. Overall, the aquatic and freshwater-dependant species represent around 70 of the more than 1,200 living or recent genera of mammals, and occur in all continents except Antarctica. They include some of the most endangered species of mammals, and several have gone extinct or become critically endangered in recent decades. One of the main threats is habitat loss or degradation. This chapter provides an overview of the freshwater species within each order of mammals, their evolutionary history, their relations to humans and their conservation status.
ISSN:0018-8158
1573-5117
DOI:10.1007/s10750-007-9122-1