Mammals

More than 90 species of mammals can be found throughout the state of Georgia. They range in size from the tiny pygmy shrew found in the Appalachian Mountains to the enormous North Atlantic right whale off the coast. Nearly half of the mammal species in Georgia are rodents and bats, and roughly a half-dozen mammal residents are listed as threatened or endangered. These include several species of bats, marine mammals, and even the Appalachian cottontail, a smaller cousin of the more familiar Eastern cottontail.

What Makes Mammals Unique

>>  They are endothermic (warm-blooded, can regulate body temperature)

>> They give live birth (except for echidnas and platypuses)

>>  Drink milk from mothers

>>  Have fur

Mammals

 

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Meet our Mammals

Largest rodent in the United States Front teeth are orange due to thick enamel to strengthen them. See her on the Wildlife Walk. Female: This female beaver was transferred from a rehabilitator in Virginia and arrived at CNC in October 2016. She was born very late in the season and was found washed into a residential yard after flooding in August 2015 when only a few weeks old. Annual food cost: $300

BEAVER: Castor canadensis

Largest rodent in the United States Front teeth are orange due to thick enamel to strengthen them. See her on the Wildlife Walk. Female: This female beaver was transferred from a rehabilitator in Virginia and arrived at CNC in October 2016. She was born very late in the season and was found washed into a residential yard after flooding in August 2015 when only a few weeks old.
Annual food cost: $300
Only marsupial in the United States Can eat over 5000 ticks each year, controlling the spread of disease. See her In the Watershed Gallery. These bonded females was transferred to CNC from Primarily ‘Possums in November 2024. The larger opossum arrived in rehab with severe neurological damage and was unable to walk or crawl. After more than 3 months of rehab, she is able to walk and climb, but only very slowly and with obvious deliberation. The smaller opossum arrived in rehab when she was found alone in the wild. She was placed with unrelated juveniles who were the same age and size. However, a few weeks later she quit growing and gaining weight at the same rate as her cage mates. She is physically developmentally delayed due to a suspected congenital metabolic issue. Annual food cost: $375

VIRGINIA OPOSSUM: Didelphis virginiana

Only marsupial in the United States Can eat over 5000 ticks each year, controlling the spread of disease. See her In the Watershed Gallery. These bonded females was transferred to CNC from Primarily ‘Possums in November 2024. The larger opossum arrived in rehab with severe neurological damage and was unable to walk or crawl. After more than 3 months of rehab, she is able to walk and climb, but only very slowly and with obvious deliberation.
The smaller opossum arrived in rehab when she was found alone in the wild. She was placed with unrelated juveniles who were the same age and size. However, a few weeks later she quit growing and gaining weight at the same rate as her cage mates. She is physically developmentally delayed due to a suspected congenital metabolic issue.
Annual food cost: $375
Clifford-Martin_Other_Beaver_D80-0981-1

Life of a beaver

Beavers live in family groups or colonies that include a breeding pair and four or five offspring which range in age from newborns to two years. At the age of two, kits (young beavers) leave their parents’ lodge and establish colonies of their own. In poor habitats, where new colonization sites are limited, the kits may stay with their parents longer. During this time, the young learn valuable skills from their parents while contributing to the colony’s work force. This social structure is important because of the methods beavers use to ensure their survival require a great deal of skill, strength and cooperation among family members.

Mammals

Life of an Opossum

Opossums’ body temperature is 94˚F – 97˚F. Because the rabies virus does not survive for long in animals with body temperature under 98˚F, it is exceptionally rare for an opossum to carry the virus.  They are true omnivores and can eat anything that fits into their mouths. In urban areas, one of their favorite prey items is cockroaches!  However, they are quite short-lived, surviving an average of 2 years in the wild and 3-4 years in captivity.

View other animal facts