EnchantedLearning.com Artiodactyls

Artiodactyls are even-toed ungulates (hoofed mammals). This order of herbivorous (plant-eating) mammals includes cloven-hoofed animals with two hoofs on each foot (like pigs) and or four hoofs on each foot (like deer and cows). (Odd-toed ungulates are perissodactyls.)

The word artiodactyl comes from the Greek language, and means "even-number finger or toe."

Artiodactyls are divided into 3 suborders, 9 families, and about 210 species, including:

• Suborder Suiformes
  • Family Suidae - swine (pigs, hogs)
  • Family Tayassuidae - peccaries (javelina)
  • Family Hippopotamidae - hippopotamus, pygmy hippopotamus
• Suborder Tylopoda
  • Family Camelidae - camels, llamas, alpacas
• Suborder Ruminantia (ruminants - having a 3- or 4-part stomach)
  • Family Tragulidae - chevrotains (mouse deer)
  • Family Giraffidae - giraffe, okapi
  • Family Cervidae - deer, including musk deer, moose, muntjacs, brockets, roe deer, pudu, caribou, elk, etc.
  • Family Antilocapridae - pronghorn
  • Family Bovidae - antelope, cattle, goats, sheep

Click on an artiodactyl mammal for more information

AEPYCAMELUS or ALTICAMELUS An extinct, giraffe-like camel that lived millions of years ago in Colorado, USA.

ALPACA The alpaca is a South American mammal related to and smaller than the llama. Or go to a printable alpaca read-and-answer quiz or quiz answers.

ANTELOPE Antelopes have beautiful horns.

BACTRIAN CAMEL A two-humped camel from deserts and steppes of Asia.

BIGHORN SHEEP A wild brown sheep from mountains and deserts of North America.

BISON The Bison (also called the American Buffalo) is the heaviest land animal in North America.

BONGO The bongo is a large, striped antelope from African forests.

CAMEL Camels are large mammals that live in dry areas.

CAPE BUFFALO Cape Buffalo are large, hoofed mammals that live in African savannas.

CARIBOU Caribou live in Arctic regions.

COLLARED PECCARY A pig-like mammal, also known as the javelina, from deserts and chaparrels of North and Central America.

COW Most of the milk we drink comes from cows.

DALL SHEEP A wild sheep from the Arctic and sub-Arctic of North America.

DEER Deer are a family of long-legged artiodactyls that include deer, caribou, reindeer, elk, moose, and the pudu.

DEER, WHITE-TAILED White-tailed deer are a type of deer from the Americas.

DROMEDARY The dromedary is the Arabian or one-humped camel.

ELK Elk are large, hoofed mammals with beautiful antlers.

GAZELLE Gazelles live in herds in Africa.

GIRAFFE The giraffe is the tallest land animal.

GNU The gnu is a fast-running, herding, grass-eater from eastern Africa. It is also known as the wildebeest.

GOAT Goats are sure-footed, hoofed mammals.

HIPPOPOTAMUS The hippopotamus is a large mammal that stays in the water a lot.

IMPALA A high-jumping, lightly-built antelope from southern Africa.

JAVELINA A pig-like mammal, also known as the collared peccary, from deserts and chaparrels of North and Central America.

KARAKUL The karakul is a sheep that is native to Central Asia; they may be the earliest-domesticated sheep.

LLAMA Llamas are domesticated animals that are related to camels.

MOOSE A moose is a large type of deer from the USA and Canada.

MUSK OX Musk oxen are large, hairy mammals that live in the far north.

OKAPI The Okapi is a nocturnal, giraffe-like mammal from African rainforests.

ORYX Oryx are long-horned antelopes from dry areas in Africa and Asia.

PIG Pigs, also known as swine, are omnivores with a flattened snout.

PRONGHORN Pronghorns are the fastest moving mammals in North America.

REINDEER Reindeer live in the far north.

Reindeer: Printable Read and Answer Worksheet A printable worksheet on reindeer with a short text, a labeled picture, definitions to match, and questions to answer. Or go to the answers.

SHEEP Sheep are farm animals that are raised for wool and meat.

WARTHOG The warthog is a wild pig from Africa.

WILDEBEEST The wildebeest is a fast-running, herding, grass-eater from eastern Africa. It is also known as the gnu.

WOODLAND CARIBOU A rare caribou from Canada that eats lichens.

YAK Yaks are large, strong, plant-eating mammals.

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