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| ORDER | EXAMPLES | DESCRIPTION |
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| Monotremata | platypus,echidnas | Primitive mammals that lay eggs. Mammary glands lack nipples. Teeth present only in young; adults have horny beak |
| Didelphimorphia | opossums | ... |
| Paucituberculata | shrews opossums | ... |
| Microbiotheria | Monito del Monte | ... |
| Dasyuromorphia | tasmanian wolfs, antechinuses, quolls, dunnarts | ... |
| Peramelemorphia | bandicoots | ... |
| Notoryctemorphia | marsupial moles | ... |
| Diprotodontia | coalas, cuscuses, wombats, possums, kangaroos, docopsises, wallabies | ... |
| Xenarthra | xenarthrans (also called edentates)(30) : sloths, armadilos, anteater, tamandua | Mammals that lack teeth or have only small, peglike teeth. Forelimbs adapted for digging or for clinging to branches. |
| Insectivora | (>425) solenodons, tenrecs, otter shrews, golden moles, hedgehogs, moonrats, shrews, moles, shrew moles | shrews. Small mammals with teeth adapted for crushing insects. Most have a pointed snout and five-toed feet. |
| Scandentia | (19) tree shrews | Small, squirrellike mammals with long snouts. They have strong claws on all toes and are excellent climbers. |
| Dermoptera | cobegoes | Tree-dwelling Asian mammals with flaps of skin adapted for gliding. Order consists of two species of flying lemurs, also called colugos. |
| Chiroptera | (925) bats | The only mammals that are capable of true flight, having forelimbs adapted as wings. |
| Primates | Carnivores(>230) lemurs, lorises, bush baby, tarsiers, marmosets, tamarins, monkeys, langurs, gobbons, humans | Most species are tree dwellers. Hands have five fingers, and feet five toes. Many species have thumbs and big toes capable of grasping. |
| Carnivora | (~270) raccoons, bears, dogs, cats, mongooses, hyaenas, otters, badgers, skunks, grisons, weasels, martens, minks, seals, sea lions, civets | Most are meat-eaters and have claws and large canine teeth. Seals and walruses are sometimes put in a separate order, Pinnipedia |
| Cetacea | cetaceans(~80) whales, dolphins | Aquatic mammals with streamlined bodies, paddlelike forelimbs, no hindlimbs, horizontally flattened tail, and nostrils on top of the head. |
| Sirenia | (5) dogongs, manatees | dugongs, manatee. Aquatic mammals with paddlelike forelimbs, no hindlimbs, and flattened muzzle. |
| Proboscidea | (2) elephants | Large, thick-skinned mammals. Nose and upper lip form trunk; upper incisors enlarged as tusks. |
| Perissodactyla | odd-toed ungulates(~16) horses, zebras, asses, tapirs, rhinoceroses | Hoofed mammals with one or three toes on each foot. Axis of limb passes through middle toe. |
| Hyracoidea | (7) hyraxes | Mammals with hooflike claws and a short tail. |
| Tubulidentata | (1) aardvarks | Burrowing, insect-eating mammal with long, piglike snout and long, sticky tongue. |
| Artiodactyla | even-toed ungulates(~220) pigs, hipopotamuses, camels, giraffe, deers, gazelles, dikdiks, buffalos, ibexes, goats, duikers | Hoofed mammals with two or four toes on each foot. Axis of limb passes between middle of toes. |
| Pholidota | (7) pangolins | Toothless mammals covered with horny scales. A few hairs grow between scales. |
| Rodentia | Rodents(~2,025) mole rats, porcupines, bamboo rats, spiny rats, squirrels, prairie dogs, marmots, chipmunks, gophers, kangaroo rats, pocket mouses | Small, gnawing mammals with one pair of chisellike upper incisors; no canines. |
| Lagomorpha | lagomorphs.(~80) pikas, rabbits, hares, cottontails | Small mammals with two pairs of upper incisors, no canine teeth, and molars without roots. Tail short or absent. |
| Macroscelidea | (15) elephant shrews | Small, shrewlike mammals with a long, flexible, sensitive snout. |
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