Meet the world’s animals.

Photos: 12,825 · Stories: 19,540

• European starling Sturnus vulgaris

  

  A bird native to Europe and other Palearctic regions, introduced to North America. Outside breeding season it may form large flocks.

• Malagasy giant rat Hypogeomys antimena

  The Malagasy giant rat lives in a restricted area on Madagascar's western coast. Family groups use underground burrows, are mainly active at night, and are thought to feed mostly on fallen fruit.

• Secretarybird Sagittarius serpentarius

  An African bird of prey that walks across grassland on long legs while hunting.

• European hedgehog Erinaceus europaeus

  An animal of European grasslands, hedgerows and gardens. Spines cover its back, and it curls into a ball when threatened.

• Australian False Vampire Bat Macroderma gigas

  The ghost bat is a large bat with a scattered range across northern Australia. It has large ears and roosts in caves and deep rock crevices.

• Crested Satinbird Cnemophilus macgregorii

  The Crested Satinbird lives in high mountain forest. Male plumage varies by region, while females are mainly olive green.

• European robin Erithacus rubecula

  A small bird seen in British gardens and parks. Adults have reddish breasts, and males and females look alike.

• Western Tree Hyrax Dendrohyrax dorsalis

  This hyrax has short ears and legs and thick fur ranging from gray-brown to black. It feeds at night on leaves, fruit, and other plant material and usually lives alone.

• Sapayoa Sapayoa aenigma

  A greenish bird of lowland forest from Panama to northwestern Ecuador. It has a broad, subtly hooked bill and lives in the forest understory.

• Harbor porpoise Phocoena phocoena

  A small porpoise of cool Northern Hemisphere waters. It uses bays and estuaries and mainly eats schooling fish.

• Colombian Speckled Tree-rat Pattonomys semivillosus

  The Colombian Speckled Tree-rat is recorded in northeastern Colombia. Its white muzzle contrasts with an almost black crown, and some back and hind-leg spines have white tips. In Colombian dry forest, it has been recorded using termite mounds as shelters.

• Mossy-nest Swiftlet Aerodramus salangana

  A small swiftlet that builds nests containing moss and other plant matter.

• Eurasian blackbird Turdus merula

  A thrush commonly seen in British gardens and parks. It searches ground litter for worms, insects and fruit.

• Lowland paca Cuniculus paca

  A spotted forest rodent that feeds on fallen fruit.

• Grey-crowned Greenbul Xanthomixis cinereiceps

  It lives in eastern Madagascar's middle- and high-elevation rainforest. It forages along mossy branches in the mid-story and sometimes joins mixed-species flocks.

• European Mole Talpa europaea

  This stocky mole digs tunnels underground and searches for earthworms and other food in the soil.

• Commerson's dolphin Cephalorhynchus commersonii

  A boldly patterned dolphin of shallow seas around southern South America and elsewhere.

• Brown-rumped Tapaculo Scytalopus latebricola

  This small tapaculo occurs in the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta in northeastern Colombia. It moves on the ground near leaf litter in dense understory of humid montane forest.

• Black-headed gull Chroicocephalus ridibundus

  A gull that gathers around watersides and visits Japan mainly in winter.

• Gray-bellied Caenolestid Caenolestes caniventer

  The gray-bellied caenolestid is a small marsupial with an elongated face and a grayish belly. It lives in cool, wet Andean habitats of central Ecuador and northwestern Peru.

• Patagonian Forest Earthcreeper Upucerthia saturatior

  This earthcreeper inhabits Patagonian forest. A primary study distinguishes it from the related open-country species by traits including its short black bill and breeding habitat.

• Bowhead whale Balaena mysticetus

  A whale with a large head and a white chin, living in icy northern seas.

• Stein's Cuscus Phalanger vestitus

  Stein's cuscus occurs on New Guinea. A broad stripe across its back is a distinguishing feature, and a survey recorded it in the highland forests of Lanny Jaya.

• African Red-rumped Swallow Cecropis melanocrissus

  This African swallow has a glossy blue-black back, a chestnut nape, and an orange-rufous rump. The color of the underparts varies by region.