Dugong Male Skull Replica

$363.00

The Dugong possess small tusks that aid in feeding on aquatic vegetation and sea grasses. Populations can be found throughout the Indian and south Pacific Oceans. Like all sirenians, the Dugong is a distant relative of the elephant.

Description

Dugong Male Skull Replica measures 11.8 inches. The Dugong Male Skull Replica is museum quality polyurethane cast. Made in USA. California Academy of Sciences Specimen. 2-part skull (separate cranium and jaw). Our precise skull can be used as a teaching tool, museum skull exhibit, home décor skull, or office décor skull.

The Dugong or Dugong dugon is a medium-sized marine mammal. It is one of four living species of the order Sirenia, which also includes three species of manatees.

It is the only living representative of the once-diverse family Dugongidae; its closest modern relative, Steller’s sea cow (Hydrodamalis gigas), was hunted to extinction in the 18th century. The Dugong is the only strictly marine herbivorous mammal.

The Dugong or Dugong dugon body is large with a cylindrical shape that tapers at both ends. It has thick, smooth skin that is a pale cream color at birth, but darkens dorsally and laterally to brownish-to-dark-grey with age. The color of a dugong can change due to the growth of algae on the skin.

The Dugong’s body is sparsely covered in short hair. These hairs are most developed around the mouth, which has a large horseshoe-shaped upper lip forming a highly mobile muzzle. This muscular upper lip aids the Dugong in foraging.

With very small eyes, Dugongs or Dugong dugon have limited vision, but acute hearing within narrow sound thresholds. Their ears, which lack pinnae, are located on the sides of their head. The nostrils are located on top of the head and can be closed using valves.

The lungs in a dugong are very long, extending almost as far as the kidneys, which are also highly elongated in order to cope with the saltwater environment. If wounded, a dugong’s blood will clot rapidly.

The Dugong or Dugong dugon skull is enlarged with sharply down-turned premaxilla, which are stronger in males. The spine has between 57 and 60 vertebrae. The dugong’s teeth do not continually grow back via horizontal tooth replacement.

The dugong has two incisors (tusks) which emerge in males during puberty. The Dugong female’s tusks continue to grow without emerging during puberty, sometimes erupting later in life after reaching the base of the premaxilla.

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Additional information

Weight 9 lbs
Dimensions 11.8 in
Dugong Facts:

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Sirenia
Family: Dugongidae
Subfamily: Dugonginae
Genus: Dugong
Species: D. dugon
Binomial name: Dugong dugon
Conservation status: Endangered