Why do ALL mammals (except human) have Tails?

Question

What are tails for...is it very important?

Answer 1

Not -all-...but besides that, it's largely for one of two reasons:
1. To aid in balance while moving. Just watch a cat's tail when it's on a fence or railing.
2. To show feelings/mood. Ex: when a dog is hurt or scared, it puts its tail between its legs.

Answer 2

The tail is the section at the rear end of an animal's body; in general, the term refers to a distinct, flexible appendage to the torso. It is the part of the body that corresponds roughly to the sacrum and coccyx in mammals and birds. While tails are primarily a feature of vertebrates, some invertebrates—including scorpions and springtails—have tail-like appendages.

Animal tails are used in a variety of ways. They provide a source of locomotion for fish and some other forms of marine life. Many land animals use their tails to brush away flies and other biting insects. Some species, including cats and kangaroos, use their tails for balance, and some, such as New World monkeys and opossums, use their prehensile tails to grasp tree branches.

Human embryos have a tail that measures about one-sixth of the size of the embryo itself. As the embryo develops into a fetus, the tail is absorbed by the growing body. The developmental tail is thus a human vestigial structure (an atavism). Infrequently, a child is born with a "soft tail", which contains no vertebrae, but only blood vessels, muscles, and nerves, although there have been a very few documented cases of tails containing cartilage or up to five vertebrae. Modern procedures allow doctors to eliminate the tail at delivery. The longest human tail on record belonged to a twelve-year-old boy living in what was then French Indochina, which measured nine inches (229 mm).[1] A sound case is that of a man named Chandre Oram who was born in India and has been famous because of his 13-inch tail. Nonetheless, it is believed it is not a true tail but a case of spina bifida.

Humans have a tail bone (the coccyx) attached to the pelvis, in the same place which other mammals have tails. The tail bone is formed of fused vertebrae, usually four, at the bottom of the vertebral column. It doesn't protrude externally, but retains an anatomical purpose: providing an attachment for muscles like the gluteus maximus.

One autumn day The Creator Of The Universe said "I shall send you all on a mission to find me a coconut. Now GO!!!!" And all the mammals hurried off to find a coconut. But not the humans. The humans thought they were too great to go on the mission, so they stayed at home all day instead.

A week later all the mammals had returned with coconuts. (except the humans of course.) The Creator Of The Universe was very pleased. As a reward he blessed the mammals with tails. Each mammal had a different tail. The humans had been listening in and they had turned green with envy. Now you know why humans don`t have tails.

Answer 3

A TALE OF THE TAILS

Not all animals have tails .but the ones that do can have many uses.

With bird tails are crucial for flying

We also used to have tails ,we still got the last bone (coxix)
And there are quite a few people who are born with tails ,but they get cut off at birth ,except in very poor countries and there there are adults who still have a tail .

Tails can have many uses, depending on the species ,

There are animals like a lemur and some monkeys,and the sloth ,who can use their tail to grip with like an exstra hand ,

For most animals it helps to balance them when they are running .

And as with dogs and deer and lions and many others ,it is a limb that is important in bodytalk ,giving many signs ,from pleasure to anger

And with many reptilians it is also a weapon that they use to sweep their enemies legs from under him ,or as a way of propelling them in the water

Some dinosaurs could even kill with their tails ,which had a heavy knob on the end

Answer 4

There are mammals without tails, including apes, some bats, the Barbary macaque, and the tailless tenrec. But all these, including humans, have tails during their embryonic development. In some species the tails just don't develop, and are vestigial.

Tails are used in a variety of ways. Monkeys use them to grab things, cows use them to swat at flies, cats and dogs use them to communicate emotions, many animals use them for balance.

Answer 5

Not all animals have tails, but those that do usually use it for balance, communication, flyswatters, etc.

Even in the rare instances of humans who claim to have "tails" (like in "Shallow Hal"), it's really just a fleshy protuberance at the base of the spine and contains no bone at all. It is not connected to the coccyx, nor is it a part of it. Some evolutionists like to use the existence of the coccyx as evidence for evolution, but the coccyx exists because there are 13 very important muscles that attach to the coccyx; without which you cannot perform some very important functions. It is an anchor point for muscles, not a useless vestige of our so-called "ape ancestors".

Answer 6

Not ALL mammals do:
"But even with that bit of science out of the way, humans are known as tailless mammals. Joining us in our small club are the great apes: gorillas, chimpanzees, bonobos, and orangutans. The only monkey without a tail is the Barbary macaque. Some bats also lack the rear appendage, as does the tailless tenrec (a small insectivorous mammal)."

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Answer 7

Most animals have tails because they have adapted to have them. Most animals' tails are very important because they help with things like balance. Balance is important to animals such as cats and monkeys, because of what they do in their habitats. They climb, right? So balance is important when climbing high. Tails are an adaption many animals share, because it helps them live in their environment, and helps them do things they just have an instinct to do.

Answer 8

Humans have a vestige of a tail. It's your coccyx.

We all have tails so that there is meaning to the expression, "neither head nor tail".

Answer 9

Apes don't have tails either.