Without fur or hair, most mammals would be pretty uncomfortable. That's because a furry covering shields mammals' bodies from the weather, keeping them warm and dry—sort of like your clothes do for you.

　　Of the 5,000 kinds of wild mammals, only a few are nearly hairless. These creatures developed other ways to thrive comfortably.

　　A few animals, such as the sphynx cat below and the Mexican hairless dog at left, are practically hairless because people bred them that way. They're bred as pets.

　　A sphynx generally feels like suede to the touch. Some sphynxes have very fine, hard-to-see body hair. They feel like warm, fresh peaches!

　　Many animals thrive in their near-nakedness.

　　Elephants, rhinos, and hippos don't have fur. They all live in hot places, where the trick is to keep cool. Being practically hairless is one way these animals deal with the heat. They use mud, dust, and water to protect their skin from sunburn.

　　Whales spend all of their time underwater. Their body fat keeps them warm, so they don't need fur coats. Naked mole rats live entirely underground, where the temperature stays warm year-round. No need for hair there!

　　Hair has a special importance for some animals. If it's long and colorful, or short and cropped in different shapes, it can attract lots of attention from the opposite sex. Think about that the next time you see a male lion's mane at the zoo or a teenager with a spiked Mohawk hairstyle at the mall!

　　Some people call humans "naked apes." That's not entirely accurate, though. An adult human's body is covered with about five million hairs—the same number that an adult gorilla has.

　　However, human hair is generally shorter and thinner than gorilla hair. You may have to look closely to see the hairs on most of your body.