Mammals are organisms who possess the distinctive features of warm blood, mammary glands, three inner ear bones, and hair or fur. Mammalia is a class of animals, and in order to fall into this class, an organism must meet all of these characteristics.
The class Mammalia falls under the phylum Chordata. Chordates, members of Chordata, all possess a bundle of dorsal nerves in addition to a few other distinctive characteristics. In mammals, this bundle of nerves is protected by the vertebrae that make up the spine.
Living organisms are even more generally classified into one of six Kingdoms of Life: Archaeabacteria, Eubacteria, Protista, Fungi, Plantae, and Animalia. The kingdom Animalia is distinctive because all members of the "Animal Kingdom" are multicellular, motile organisms who must eat other organisms for energy. Mammals are members of the Animal Kingdom because they are all multicellular organisms who eat other organisms and are capable of movement at some point in their lives.
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