Meet the world’s animals.

Photos: 12,636 · Stories: 19,540

• Hoary Fox Lycalopex vetulus

  

  The hoary fox is a small fox of open landscapes in central and eastern Brazil, with gray fur and a dark stripe along its back and tail.

• Hartlaub's Bustard Lissotis hartlaubii

  

  Hartlaub's Bustard is a ground-dwelling bird active by day in open eastern African grassland. It eats both plant and animal foods.

• Ghost-faced Bat Mormoops megalophylla

  

  The ghost-faced bat ranges from the southern United States through Central America to northern South America. It roosts in caves by day and emerges in the evening to hunt large moths and insects.

• Oriental Pratincole Glareola maldivarum

  

  A pratincole with a tern-like flight that catches insects over open country near water.

• Brown fur seal Arctocephalus pusillus

  

  A fur seal with separate subspecies in southern Africa and southern Australia. It lives at sea and comes ashore to breed.

• Blue-winged Leafbird Chloropsis cochinchinensis

  

  In the Chinese subspecies C. c. kinneari, males have blue wings and a black throat, while females have a blue-green throat.

• Brown-throated Sloth Bradypus variegatus

  This sloth lives in forests from Central America to South America and spends much of its time in trees.

• Chaco Owl Strix chacoensis

  The Chaco Owl has a white facial disk edged in dark, a white crown with a brown center stripe, and dense brown barring below. It is active at dusk and night in the dry Chaco region of South America.

• Caspian Seal Pusa caspica

  The Caspian seal lives only in the Caspian Sea. Newborn pups have a white coat, and many are born on winter ice in the north.

• Javan Kingfisher Halcyon cyanoventris

  This kingfisher is endemic to Java and Bali. Its blue head and wings and large red bill stand out, and it searches for prey in farms and parks as well as near water.

• Mauritian fruit bat Pteropus niger

  The Mauritian fruit bat is a large fruit-eating bat with golden fur, endemic to Mauritius.

• Purple-bearded Bee-eater Meropogon forsteni

  The Purple-bearded Bee-eater occurs only on Sulawesi. Adult males have long purple throat feathers that hang like a beard.

• Cowan's Shrew Tenrec Microgale cowani

  Cowan's shrew tenrec is a small tenrec from the humid forests of eastern Madagascar. It searches among leaf litter and fallen wood for small prey.

• Pectoral Sparrow Arremon taciturnus

  This sparrow occurs in the forest understory of the Amazon Basin. White head stripes and the male's black breast band are useful field marks.

• Maghrebian Bent-wing Bat Miniopterus maghrebensis

  The back is chestnut to dark grayish brown, and the underside is pale brown. The species account lists Mediterranean scrub, dry forest, and other habitats. The 2019 HMW account confirms Morocco and Tunisia in its range; Algeria is only a possible occurrence.

• Great Iora Aegithina lafresnayei

  The Great Iora is a small bird with a yellow face and underparts and a black-edged yellow forecrown. It lives in lowland evergreen and semi-deciduous forests.

• Steppe Polecat Mustela eversmanii

  The Steppe Polecat is a mustelid of dry open habitats across parts of Europe and Central Asia. Its pale coat contrasts with a dark facial mask, legs, and part of the tail.

• Dark-winged Trumpeter Psophia viridis

  A large bird that walks on long legs along the forest floor, it lives in vocal groups and has regionally variable wing color.

• True's Beaked Whale Mesoplodon mirus

  A whale with a rounded forehead and short beak that feeds on fish and squid in deep water.

• Tristram's Storm Petrel Hydrobates tristrami

  Tristram’s Storm-Petrel has long, pointed wings and a notched tail, and glides low over the sea. It nests in island rock recesses and burrows, then ranges widely across the Pacific outside the breeding season.

• Russian Desman Desmana moschata

  The Russian desman is a mole relative that lives by water. It has a flexible snout and fully webbed hind feet.

• Rufous-faced Warbler Abroscopus albogularis

  The Rufous-faced Warbler is a small bird of forests from the eastern Himalayas to southern China and northern Indochina. It quietly searches for insects in the middle and lower canopy.

• Dusky Antechinus Antechinus swainsonii

  This small marsupial lives in moist forests and dense understory in southeastern Australia. It has dark fur and searches for small invertebrates at night.

• Spot-billed Pelican Pelecanus philippensis

  The Spot-billed Pelican is a waterbird of South and Southeast Asian wetlands. It scoops fish near the surface into its bill pouch, drains the water, and swallows the fish.