Are Humans Mammals? A Detailed Explanation of Human Biological Classification

Humans are mammals, and moreover highly advanced mammals. Most mammals are vertebrates covered in hair, capable of rapid movement, warm-blooded and viviparous, with a diaphragm in the body; they are the animal group among vertebrates with a body structure, named for their ability to secrete milk through mammary glands to nurse their young.

Characteristics of Humans

Humans generally refer to Homo sapiens, who can be distinguished from other living apes by a markedly enlarged brain, a relative reduction in hair coverage over most of the body, and a series of skeletal and muscular features adapted to habitual bipedal movement, including a foot structure that has lost grasping ability. They are terrestrial bipeds, with limited swimming and diving abilities that must be learned after birth. They show strong variation in body size and proportions, as well as pigmentation, some of which may be related to the wide range of environments in which Homo sapiens live. They exhibit a moderate degree of sexual dimorphism in body size.