Thursday, March 18, 2010

Reflection 2. Tasmanian Devils


Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tasmanian_Devil
About their reproduction:

Males fight over females in the breeding season, and female devils will mate with the dominant male. Females can mate with several males if not guarded after mating. Gestation lasts 21 days, and devils give birth to 20-30 young. When the young are born, they move from the vagina to the pouch. They will remain attached to a nipple for the next 100 days when they are inside the pouch. It is physically difficult for the female to interact with young inside the pouch. The female has only four nipples, so there are never more than four babies nursing in the pouch
As the female devil gets older, the smaller her litters will become. On average, more females survive than males. The nourished young develop quickly in the pouch. After 15 days, the external parts of the ear are visible. Eyelids are apparent at 16 days, whiskers at 17 days, and the lips at 20 days. The young will only start to grow fur at 49 days and have a full coat by 90 days.
After their fur coat develops, the can open their eyes and soon, their mouths can relax their hold of the nipple. They are able to leave the pouch 105 days after birth, and they will weigh about 500 grams. After the devils leave the pouch, they will not return, instead, they will stay in the den for 3 months before becoming independent. Female devils are occupied with raising their young for all but approximately six weeks of the year.

Reflection:
From this, I know that the females can give birth to 20-30 young devils. Females can also mate with several males if not guarded after mating. The devils will then move from the vagina to the pouch. They will remain attached to a nipple so that the devils will grow. However, the female has only four nipples, so there are never more than four babies nursing in the pouch. The devils will only leave the pouch after 105 days and stay in the den for 3 months before becoming independent.

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