Female mammals make milk, a cocktail of filtered blood, to provide their babies with vital nutrients.

LEARN MORE

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To learn more about this topic, start your googling with these keywords:

• Mammal: Endothermic vertebrates that nurse their young.
• Lactation: The secretion of milk by the mammary glands.
• Mammary Gland: A cluster of alveoli and ducts that secretes milk.
• Mammary Alveoli: The tiny sacs that are the site of milk production and storage in the mammary gland.
• Oxytocin: A hormone released by the pituitary gland that - among other things - causes the milk ejection reflex during nursing.
• Holstein: A large black and white cow known for the large quantities of milk it yields.

CREDITS

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Script Writer: David Goldenberg (@dgoldenberg) Script Editor: Emily Elert (@eelert) Video Illustrator: Qingyang Chen (@QCVisual) Video Director: David Goldenberg (@dgoldenberg) Video Narrator: Emily Elert (@eelert) With Contributions From: Henry Reich, Alex Reich, Kate Yoshida, Ever Salazar, Peter Reich Music by: Nathaniel Schroeder: http://www.soundcloud.com/drschroeder

Photo of Aftershock by: Selz Pralle Dairy https://hoards.com/article-22654-she-exceeded-all-expectations.html

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REFERENCES

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Skibiel, A., Downing, L., Orr, T., and Hood, W. (2013).The Evolution Of The Nutrient Composition Of Mammalian Milks. Journal of Animal Ecology. 82 (6): 1254-1264. Retrieved from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23895187

Sharp, J., Wanyonyi, S., Modepalli, V., Watt, A., Kuruppath, S., Hinds, L., Kumar, A., Abud, H., Lefevre, C., and Nicholas, K. (2017). The Tammar Wallaby: A Marsupial Model To Examine The Timed Delivery And Role Of Bioactives In Milk. General and Comparative Endocrinology. 244: 164-177. Retrieved from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27528357

Tsuruta, S., Misztal, I., and Lawlor, T. (2004). Genetic Correlations Among Production, Body Size, Udder,and Productive Life Traits Over Time in Holsteins. Journal of Dairy Science. 87(5):1457-1468. Retrieved from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15290995

Nicholas, K. (1988). Asynchronous Dual Lactation In A Marsupial, The Tammar Wallaby. Biochemical and Biophysical Research Communications. 154 (2): 529-536. Retrieved from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/2456758