The raccoon (Procyon lotor), sometimes called the common raccoon to distinguish it from other species, is a mammal native to North America. It is the largest of the procyonid family. Three of the raccoon's most distinctive features are its extremely...
The fisher (Pekania pennanti) is a small, carnivorous mammal native to North America. It is a member of the mustelid family (commonly referred to as the weasel family), and is sometimes misleadingly referred to as a fisher cat, although it is not a...
The ocelot (Leopardus pardalis) is a medium-sized wild cat that was first described by Carl Linnaeus in 1758. The association of the ocelot with humans dates back to the Aztec and Incan civilizations; it has occasionally been kept as a pet.
The cockatiel (Nymphicus hollandicus) is a member of its own branch of the cockatoo family endemic to Australia. They are prized as household pets and companion parrots throughout the world and are relatively easy to breed. As a caged bird,...
The unusual-looking fossa (Cryptoprocta ferox) from Madagascar looks like a puma and has both canine and feline features. It is the largest mammalian carnivore on the island, and preys mainly on lemurs, pursuing them through the trees with...
The kākāpō (Strigops habroptilus) is a species of large, flightless, nocturnal parrot found only in New Zealand. It is the world's only flightless parrot, the world's heaviest parrot, and also is nocturnal, herbivorous, visibly sexually dimorphic in...
The binturong (Arctictis binturong) is a carnivore of a medium size found in dense forests in South-East Asia. This animal is thought to be a close relative of the palm civet. It is the biggest member of this family.
The Asian palm civet (Paradoxurus hermaphroditus) is a viverrid native to South and Southeast Asia. In Indonesia, this animal is threatened by poaching and illegal wildlife trade and buyers use it for the increasing production of kopi luwak, also...
The Clouded leopard (Neofelis nebulosa) is a wild cat inhabiting dense forests of the Himalayas through mainland Southeast Asia into South China. In the early 19th century, a Clouded leopard was brought to London from China and described in 1821....
The Sun bear (Helarctos malayanus) is found in the tropical forests of Southeast Asia. The animal gets its name from the characteristic orange-to-cream-colored chest patch. It is also known as the "honey bear", for its love of honeycombs and honey....
The Eastern gray squirrel (Sciurus carolinensis) is a tree squirrel native to eastern North America; there it is the most prodigious and ecologically essential natural forest regenerator. Widely introduced to certain places around the world, the...
The Aye-aye (Daubentonia madagascariensis) is a long-fingered lemur that inhabits the rainforests in Madagascar. It is the world’s largest nocturnal primate and has a unique appearance. When first discovered, it was thought to be a type of large...
The kinkajou (Potos flavus) is a tropical rainforest mammal related to olingos, coatis, raccoons, and the ringtail and cacomistle. It is the only member of the genus Potos and is also known as the "honey bear". Kinkajous are arboreal, a lifestyle...
The Red squirrel (Sciurus vulgaris) is a species of tree squirrel in the genus Sciurus common throughout Europe and Asia. It lives in trees and its long tail helps the squirrel to balance and steer when jumping from tree to tree and running along...
The Virginia opossum (Didelphis virginiana) is the only marsupial found in North America north of Mexico. In the United States, it is typically referred to simply as a possum. Virginia opossums are familiar to many North Americans as they are often...
The boomslang (Dispholidus typus) is a large, highly venomous snake in the family Colubridae. It is native to Africa and its common name means "tree snake" in Afrikaans.
The Spectacled bear (Tremarctos ornatus) is a species of bear native to the Andes Mountains in western South America. It is the only living species of bear native to South America, and the last remaining short-faced bear (subfamily Tremarctinae)....
The Asian black bear (Ursus thibetanus) is a medium-sized bear species native to Asia. It is unique among bears in that it is largely adapted to an arboreal lifestyle. It is listed as vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, and is threatened by...
The Ivory-billed woodpecker (Campephilus principalis) is a very rare member of the woodpecker family and is one of the largest woodpeckers in the world. The last universally accepted sighting of an American ivory-billed woodpecker occurred in...
The Gray fox (Urocyon cinereoargenteus) is an omnivorous mammal of the family Canidae widely distributed throughout North America and Central America. It was once the most common fox in the eastern United States, and though still found there, human...
The Eastern fox squirrel (Sciurus niger) is the largest species of tree squirrel native to North America. Despite the differences in size and coloration, it is sometimes mistaken for American red squirrels or Eastern gray squirrels in areas where...
The American anole (Anolis carolinensis) is an arboreal anole lizard native to the southeastern United States and introduced elsewhere. It is also sometimes referred to as the American chameleon due to its ability to change color from several brown...
The American marten (Martes americana) is a small North American mammal, a member of the family Mustelidae. It is sometimes called simply the Pine marten; the name "pine marten" is derived from the common name of the distinct Eurasian species,...
The Red-bellied woodpecker (Melanerpes carolinus) is a medium-sized woodpecker of the family Picidae. It breeds mainly in the eastern United States and earns its name from the pale reddish blush of its lower underside.
The Japanese macaque (Macaca fuscata) is a terrestrial Old World monkey species. Colloquially, they are referred to as "snow monkeys" because some live in areas where snow covers the ground for months each year - no other non-human primate is more...
The Common brushtail possum (Trichosurus vulpecula) is a nocturnal, semiarboreal marsupial native to Australia. It is the second-largest of the possums. It is mainly a folivore and in most Australian habitats, eucalyptus leaves are a significant...
The Ring-tailed lemur (Lemur catta) is a large strepsirrhine primate and the most recognized lemur. It belongs to Lemuridae, one of five lemur families, and is the only member of the Lemur genus. Like all lemurs it is endemic to the island of...
The American red squirrel (Tamiasciurus hudsonicus) is one of three species of tree squirrels currently classified in the genus Tamiasciurus, known as the pine squirrels. The American red squirrel is variously known as the Pine squirrel, North...
The margay (Leopardus wiedii) is a small wild cat native to Central and South America. Until the 1990s, margays were hunted illegally for the wildlife trade, which resulted in a large population decrease.
The North American porcupine (Erethizon dorsatum) is the second largest rodent in North America, after the North American beaver. In addition, the range of this species is the northernmost of all porcupines. Its ancestors crossed the Atlantic from...
The Sumatran orangutan (Pongo abelii) is one of the three species of orangutans. Critically Endangered, and found only in the north of the Indonesian island of Sumatra, it is rarer than the Bornean orangutan but more common than the recently...
The pygmy marmoset, genus Cebuella, is a small genus of New World monkey native to rainforests of the western Amazon Basin in South America. It is notable for being the smallest monkey and one of the smallest primates in the world, at just over 100...
The unique Barbary macaques (Macaca sylvanus) are the only primates, occurring north of the Sahara in Africa. In addition, these animals are the only macaques, found outside of Asia. As highly adaptable creatures, they are capable of surviving in...
The Edible dormouse (Glis glis) is a large dormouse and one of only two living species in the genus Glis, found in most of Europe and parts of western Asia. Its name comes from the Romans, who ate them as a delicacy.
The spring peeper (Pseudacris crucifer ) is a small chorus frog widespread throughout the eastern United States and Canada. They are so called because of their chirping call that marks the beginning of spring. Crucifer is derived from the Latin root...
The Indian pangolin (Manis crassicaudata) is a shy slow-moving mammal that feeds on ants and termites, digging them out of mounds and logs using its long claws, which are as long as its forelimbs. It is nocturnal and rests in deep burrows during the...
The Crested gecko (Correlophus ciliatus) is a species of lizard native to southern New Caledonia. In 1866, it was described by a French zoologist named Alphonse Guichenot. This species was thought extinct until it was rediscovered in 1994 during an...
The Brown-throated sloth (Bradypus variegatus) is the most common of the four species of three-toed sloth. It is native to rainforest canopies of Central and South America. The slowest mammal in the world, the Brown-throated three-toed sloth is an...
The Nile monitor (Varanus niloticus) is a large member of the monitor family (Varanidae) found throughout most of Sub-Saharan Africa and along the Nile. It is one of the largest lizards in the world reaching and even surpassing the perentie by size....
The Golden lion tamarin (Leontopithecus rosalia) is a small, endangered primate, endemic to the Atlantic coast of Brazil. It is a member of the family Callitrichidae. In spite of its name, this monkey isn't related to lions. Instead, this species is...
The Red-breasted nuthatch (Sitta canadensis) is a small songbird that breeds in North America. These tiny birds eat mainly insects and seeds and their habit of wedging a large food item in a crevice and then hacking at it with their strong bills...
The Sunda clouded leopard (Neofelis diardi) is a medium-sized wild cat native to Borneo and Sumatra. In 2006, it was classified as a species, distinct from the Clouded leopard in mainland Southeast Asia.
