What is the difference between a bird and a mammal?

Question

What is the difference between a bird and a mammal?

Answer 1

There are many differences between them in Taxonomy.  Some of the characteristics are "shared" between them in a few rare cases, but the obvious ones are:

Birds - beaks, scales on legs, feathers, lay eggs.

Mammals - teeth, fur or hair, give live birth, suckle their young.

The one and biggest difference between Mammals and "all" other animal types is the ability to suckle their young.

Some Mammals have scales, some have beaks, some lay eggs,  some can fly, and some can walk on two legs.  These characteristics are also shared with other animals, like birds, reptiles, amphibians, and fish.

Answer 2

birds lay eggs while mammals give birth

Answer 3

First off, mammals have fur, not feathers. For example, gorillas and rabbits have fur to keep them warm. On the other hand, birds have feathers. Next, mammals do not lay eggs although a certain animal called the platypus does. Bird do not suckle their young while mammals do. Lastly, almost all birds fly, except ostriches and dodo birds.

Answer 4

It is as simple as such: Birds lay eggs, sit on them for some time , hatch baby birds, mouth feed them to grow. Mammals give birth directly to baby mammal, Brest feed them to grow,

Answer 5

First of all, the wording of your question implies that there is only one ("the") difference between them. So take care with your wording.

Second of all, although people have been saying birds=eggs and mammals=live births, while this is generally true, they aren't really unique differences. For instance, some snakes have live births and other lay eggs but they are still reptiles. Also, three species of mammals do lay eggs - platypus and two echidna species.

The main identifying characteristic of mammals is that they have mammary glands. That's why they are called mammals. To my knowledge, no other animal has that feature.

Answer 6

All mammals, including dolphins and whales, have some hair and are descendants of the first mammals.  No bird has hair, and they're descendants of the first bird.  Mammalian lower jaws are single-boned.  Bird ones are multi-boned.  Mammalian ears contain three small bones for processing sound.  Bird ears contain only one.  Birds have armoured reptilian scales (look at the leg of a chicken) whereas mammals don't.

Those are a few points.  Some of the other ones mentioned are a bit problematic.  Whereas most mammals reproduce by giving birth to live young rather than laying eggs, there are three exceptions; the monotremes.  Their eggs, in contrast to bird eggs, are pachment-shelled rather than hard-shelled.

While birds don't produce mammalian milk, and don't generally produce anything like it, there are a few that do produce a parallel baby food known as crop milk.  Pigeons, flamingoes and the Emperor penguin are examples.

Flight is no help.  Lots of mammals, known as bats, fly.

Answer 7

mammals give live birth and milk. birds just lay eggs.

Answer 8

Mammals give birth to live babies and produce milk, birds lays eggs and hunt for food for their young.

Answer 9

1. Birds lay eggs, mammals give birth

2. Birds have feathers, mammals have hairs

3. Forelimbs of birds modified to wings

4. Most birds have a gullet to grind food

5. Eggs of birds are mesolecithal, while those of mammals r microlecithal