We’ve all seen birds, reptiles and amphibians – and hopefully after reading this website you’ll know what an amphibian is – but have you ever wondered how these animals look alike?
This afternoon I sat in my backyard and thought about the different animals and how they look alike.
I tried to list a few things, but this was harder than I thought.
So I jumped up and ran to my computer destined to find the answers. If you want to know what birds, reptiles, amphibians and fish have in common, read on!
These animals have a lot in common.
These animals have a lot in common.
These animals all need and use energy, they are all made up of cells, they all also have bones, which means they are vertebrates, and they all use muscles to move from one place to another.
Below is a list of what these animals have in common.
An organ system is nothing more than a group of organs that work together to make what is called a “biological system” perform only one or more functions.
Each organ in the group has a distinct function and helps to keep the whole biological system working.
This is the same as with humans.
All animals have a jaw.
In vertebrates, this usually also means that they have teeth and a movable lower jaw.
Now the jaw seems normal to have, but not every animal has it.
For example, Agnatha is a superclass of jawless fish.
The first thing to know is the fact that most male birds do not have penises.
Instead, both male and female birds have something called the cloaca.
And it is through this opening that the bird’s genitals (testes or ovaries, depending on whether it’s a boy or a girl) release sperm or eggs.
During the mating season, this cloaca swells in both females and males to the point that it protrudes slightly from their bodies.
When the two birds want to have sex, they rub their cloacas together and the sperm is deposited in the female’s cloaca where it will fertilize an egg.
With amphibians it is a bit simpler than with birds (at least I think so).
Most female amphibians will lay eggs and then the male will fertilize those eggs.
For example, with frogs:
In the mating season, the male frog will look for a female to mate with near a pond.
When he finds a female, he climbs on top of her and when the female releases the eggs into the water, the male fertilizes them with his sperm.
Here’s an article I wrote about why amphibians lay eggs in water.
They resemble birds (this is because birds are considered reptiles).
They all have an opening called the cloaca.
This time let me give you an example of how snakes do it.
In snakes, the males have 2 penises (they call these hemipenes).
Now when the male snake is horny, one of the penises flips itself inside out and then passes through its cloaca (just like with the birds where the genitals come out of their bodies).
If the female also wants to mate, she will lift her tail and open her cloaca to allow the male to enter her.
Then the sperm goes into the female and fertilizes the eggs.
This means that the embryo develops inside the egg, but outside the body.
This method required the female to lay eggs which must then be fertilized by the male.
This means that the fertilization and development of the embryo takes place in the mother.
Then sperm cells are released into the woman’s body and this is how fertilization takes place.
This means that the fertilization of the embryo takes place in the mother’s body and eventually leads to a live birth.
I didn’t think there were so many ways fish would reproduce!
What are the differences between birds, reptiles, amphibians and fish?
This may or may not come as a surprise, but not all animals are warm or cold blooded.
Birds, for example, are warm-blooded, which means they can make their body heat just like us (even when it’s cold outside). Frogs are different.
Frogs are cold-blooded.
This means that frogs take on the temperature of their environment.
This is how they regulate their body temperature. Reptiles are also cold-blooded, so they also depend on the outside temperature.
The same goes for fish!
That’s why you don’t see feathers on reptiles, amphibians, and fish.
They don’t need anything to keep their bodies warm.
All they need is a good environment.
The difference in the hearts and urea
There is also a difference between fish and amphibians.
Amphibians have a heart that contains 3 chambers, while the fish only have 2.
Another difference between the two is the fact that amphibians have urea-producing bladders and fish excrete their nitrous oxide from their gills as ammonia.
When we look at amphibians and reptiles, we also see that there are some differences.
Amphibians live a “double life” (meaning they spend half their lives in water and the remaining half on land), and reptiles are a group of animals that live on land.
Reptiles also have scales on their body and function to retain moisture.
So, the differences between the two are mainly in their life cycle and appearance.
What are the 5 classifications of animals?
Now that you know the differences and similarities of the animals, you may be wondering what the 5 classifications are.
Here they are mammals, birds, fish, reptiles and amphibians.
Is there a difference between amphibians and a reptile that I don’t know about?
Reptiles usually have dry, scaly skin and leathery eggs, which amphibians lay soft eggs with a jelly-like substance in the water.
There is also the difference that some amphibians (such as the frog) lay as many as 20,000 eggs and in reptiles this ranges from 150 to just one or two.
Want to know more about why frogs lay so many eggs?
It would be: passionate about amphibians!
Whether you want to know more about amphibians or want to give a presentation at school, you’ve come to the right place.
Do you want to know what similarities connect people and animals?
Then you’ve come to the right place!
Since campaigning for animal rights, I often feel how little appreciation many people have for an animal’s life.
Many people would like to save endangered species such as polar bears or orangutans – but when it comes to cows, pigs, chickens and other “farm animals”, compassion ends abruptly.
But are we humans and animals really that different?
Be it a dolphin, a dog, a cat or a cow – it’s the 21st century and it’s time to become aware of the similarities between humans and animals to give all animals the life they deserve.
Here I present to you 10 similarities that show you how similar we are to our animal friends.
What similarities connect humans and animals?
10 beautiful examples
Of course, we humans are not exactly like animals.
But animals are also not the exact opposite of us humans.
We don’t differ completely, but only in degree.
Biologically, we humans are even animalsHomo sapiens is defined as a higher mammal from the order of primates and belongs to the family of monkeys.
A DNA comparison between humans and chimpanzees supports this classification.
But actually every animal has something in common with us humans.
Here I want to introduce you to 10 of them – and I’m sure I can surprise you with one or the other.
Just like us humans, animals have a central nervous system₂ and therefore experience the world very consciously.
They can hear, smell, taste, feel and see and perceive the stimuli from the environment.
Many animals can do these things even better than us humans.
Note: Most people justify their carnality with the argument “Do plants have feelings?”.
But they have no consciousness and do not need it.
For example, the fact that they lead an orderly social life.
In this hierarchy of the community, every chicken has its place – even friendships are made.₃ Pigs also display very sophisticated, socially competitive behavior.₄
We humans are not the only ones who like it clean!
An example from the animal world?
Even if the term “dirty pig” has established itself in the parlance of many people, pigs are perfectly clean animals.
For example, studies have shown that pigs are even smarter than average three-year-old children.₅ And crows are inventive, language-savvy and can use tools.
There are numerous examples of intelligence in the animal kingdom that support this resemblance to us humans.
Tip: Also feel free to read my post with the tips that we humans can learn from animals!
Most certainly know feelings from the animal world from their dog or cat.
In fact, however, almost all animals show that they can feel feelings such as Joy, Fear or also Loyalty.
For example, many chickens and turkeys like to be cuddled and cows like to listen to music – behaviors that surprise most people.
It has been scientifically proven that animals have emotions.
Yet many people still place animals on the same level as plants.
Not all, but many animals recognize themselves in the mirror.
For example monkeys, magpies, dolphins and pigs.
They have all passed the so-called Mirror Test and show that you recognize yourself.
So the similarities between humans and animals also include self-awareness.₇
Even though I don’t want to reject any form of animal testing, medicine teaches a lot of sick animals.
For example, about the relationship between stress and sudden heart failure, which is common in birds, rabbits and monkeys.
Just like humans, animals can also develop food intolerances or allergies.
The symptoms are similar, but in dogs, cats or horses, for example, it mainly concerns gastrointestinal complaints and the skin.₈
Please note: The cattle disease or the Corona pandemic are a result of our dealings with animals.
Rethinking this is one of the things we humans need to learn from the covid19 pandemic.
What else connects humans and animals?
We humans may not be able to directly translate and understand the lowing of a cow or the crowing of a rooster – yet the animals communicate with each other in this way.
If we stand up for the rights of animals in our society – which we humans give them – we must still give them a “human” voice to improve their living conditions.
What other similarities do humans and animals have?
We are both pretty good at remembering faces and recognizing them.
For example, in a study conducted by the University of Cambridge Sheep, President Obama’s faces match an astonishing number of hits.₉ Even crows and chickens can remember and recall faces.
However, the ability to recognize faces applies not only to human faces, but also to faces between animals themselves.
BOTH WANT TO LIVE
“All animals, except man, know that the highest purpose of life is joy.” – this animal welfare quote from former British writer Samuel Butler is representative of another human-animal similarity: the will to live.
However, the way we humans treat most animals gives the feeling that we are rather indifferent to the animals’ will to live and happiness.
In the Factory Farm, cows, pigs or chickens try to escape from the slaughter boxes as soon as they smell the blood of their peers.
Even small fish try to flee from predators such as sharks or jump back into the water when fishermen pull them onto the cutter.
No person or animal who consciously experiences our world wants to die voluntarily.
Use the common characteristics of humans and animals to treat each other with respect
Respectful towards animals – and therefore even more respectful towards other people!
Because let’s be honest: how great would the psychological hurdle be to harm another human being, if it is already reprehensible in our society to harm animals?
We are in the comfortable position of being able to exploit animals, but should we do so if it is not necessary?
Humans and animals have so much in common.
Humans and animals have so much in common.
Humans and animals have so much in common.
We should use the common ground to better put ourselves in the shoes of animals.
And think about whether it is worth it for a living being to pay with his whole life for us to enjoy his body parts on a sandwich for 4 minutes.
Humans and animals are similar in so many of their behaviors and ways of thinking – even though they differ significantly in appearance (with fur and feathers) from us humans.
All animals should be treated equally by us in order to defeat speciesism
Or can you think of other similarities between humans and animals?
PS: Today you learned what humans and animals have in common.
You will get many more tips on the Animal Welfare blog!
For example, learn what you can do against bio-industry in everyday life.
Dambeck: Genetic comparison – chimpanzees and humans almost identical (as of 31.08.2005), https://t1p.de/metg.
[12.04.2021].₂ Toshiyuki Saito (2002): Functional study of the central nervous system for farm animals, https://t1p.de/azf2.
Petras: Pigs are intelligent, http://www.agtiere.de/tierschutz-info/info-schweine.
Brunke: Moral behavior in animals, https://t1p.de/faq7.
[12.04.2021].₇ PETA Deutschland e.V.: Self-perception: These 5 animals recognize themselves in the mirror (as of September 2018), https://t1p.de/d4wc.
[12.04.2021].₈ MTA – DAS PORTAL: Incompatibilities – What humans and animals have in common (as of 26.08.2017), https://t1p.de/lbe5.
[12.04.2021].₉ University of Cambridge: Sheep can recognize human faces from photos, available at https://t1p.de/12a7.