page_title: Whiskers
hierarchical_section_title: Whiskers
caption_attribution_description: English: Manatee, Columbus zoo, Ohio Français&#160;: lamantin
context_page_description: Whiskers or vibrissae are a type of mammalian hair that are typically characterised, anatomically, by their long length, large and well-innervated hair follicle, and by having an identifiable representation in the somatosensory cortex of the brain.
  They are specialised for tactile sensing. Vibrissae grow in various places on most mammals, including all primates except humans. Vibrissae are analogous to antennae found on insects and other arthropods.
  In medicine, the term vibrissae also refers to the thick hairs found inside human nostrils.
context_section_description: Whiskers or vibrissae (/vəˈbrɪsi/; singular: vibrissa; /vəˈbrɪsə/) are a type of mammalian hair that are typically characterised, anatomically, by their long length, large and well-innervated hair follicle,  and by having an identifiable representation in the somatosensory cortex of the brain.
  They are specialised for tactile sensing (other types of hair operate as more crude tactile sensors). Vibrissae grow in various places on most mammals, including all primates except humans. Vibrissae are analogous to antennae found on insects and other arthropods.
  In medicine, the term vibrissae also refers to the thick hairs found inside human nostrils.
caption: All the hairs of the manatee may be vibrissae.
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