Meet the world’s animals.

Photos: 12,673 · Stories: 19,540

• Parrot-billed Sparrow Passer gongonensis

  

  The Parrot-billed Sparrow is an eastern and central African sparrow with a large, thick bill. It feeds on seeds in dry open country.

• North Sumatran Leaf Monkey Presbytis thomasi

  This arboreal monkey lives in forests of northern Sumatra. It has a mostly black body, a pale underside and a distinctive white V-shaped pattern around the eyes.

• Alstrom's Warbler Seicercus soror

  Alstrom’s Warbler, Phylloscopus soror, breeds in China and winters from southwestern China into Indochina. In Hong Kong it is a passage migrant in autumn and early winter.

• Merriam's Chipmunk Tamias (Neotamias) merriami

  Merriam’s chipmunk occurs in central and southern California, including chaparral and oak woodland.

• Williams's Lark Mirafra williamsi

  This small lark lives on lava-strewn plains in Kenya's semi-desert. Its upperparts vary from dark to rusty brown, and its streaked chest and white outer tail feathers are noticeable in flight.

• Indochinese Forest Rat Rattus andamanensis

  The Indochinese forest rat has brown upperparts, a white underside, and a tail longer than its head and body. It is nocturnal and omnivorous in forest settings.

• Golden-shouldered Parrot Psephotellus chrysopterygius

  The Golden-shouldered Parrot lives in open woodland with grassy ground in northern Australia. It feeds on grass seeds on the ground and nests in old termite mounds.

• Alfaro's Rice Rat Oryzomys alfaroi

  The current scientific name is Casiomys alfaroi. A 1946 description from Costa Rica reports an ochraceous back mixed with black hairs and a buff-white underside. A survey in Chiapas recorded it at Bird Friendly shade-coffee farms under its former combination, Handleyomys alfaroi.

• Brazilian Laniisoma Laniisoma elegans

  This bird inhabits humid forests in southeastern Brazil and forages from the understory into the subcanopy.

• Leon Paniagua’s Big-eared Bat Corynorhinus leonpaniaguae

  This big-eared bat lives in northeastern Mexico. Its description reports the dorsal fur colors and a group of pregnant females found in a cave.

• Chinese Grey Shrike Lanius sphenocercus

  The Chinese Grey Shrike is widespread in Northeast Asia and moves to southern China for the winter. Its large white wing slash differs from the wing pattern of the separate Giant Shrike.

• Bharal (blue sheep) Pseudois nayaur

  A mountain animal also known as the blue sheep, found in the Indian Himalaya.

• Plain-tailed Warbling Finch Microspingus alticola

  This small bird is restricted to a limited part of the northern Peruvian Andes. It searches for food in Polylepis woodland and nearby scrub.

• Maroon Langur Presbytis rubicunda

  The maroon langur is a leaf monkey of Borneo and the Karimata Islands. Its coat ranges from reddish brown to golden, and it feeds on forest plants.

• Lesser Adjutant Leptoptilos javanicus

  A stork with a large bill and little feathering on its head and neck. In Bangladesh it occurs around shallow wetlands, grassland and farmland.

• Japanese flying squirrel Pteromys momonga

  A Japanese forest squirrel that glides between trees. It is mainly active in the treetops at night.

• White-tailed Swallow Hirundo megaensis

  A swallow restricted to southern Ethiopia's Acacia–Commiphora woodland. A study recorded many nests in homes occupied by villagers.

• Ricefield Rat Rattus argentiventer

  The ricefield rat uses rice paddies and grasslands in Southeast Asia and eats both plant and animal foods.

• Plain-backed Pipit Anthus leucophrys

  The Plain-backed Pipit occurs across sub-Saharan Africa and searches for food on the ground in open grassland and similar habitats. The nominate subspecies in southern Africa has an inconspicuously streaked back.

• Oldfield Deermouse Peromyscus polionotus

  This nocturnal mouse lives in grassland and dunes in the southeastern United States. It digs underground burrows and stores seeds. Coastal animals tend to have paler coats than inland populations.

• Rufous Whistler Pachycephala rufiventris

  Males combine dark grey and rufous plumage, while females are grey-brown and streaked; the birds often search for insects high in trees.

• Zenati Myotis Myotis (Myotis) zenatius

  This bat has a small number of records from Morocco and Algeria. Adults have dark gray-brown fur on the back and whitish flanks. Most identified individuals were found at caves, including records of year-round cave use, but the species' ecology remains poorly known.

• Salvadori's Nightjar Caprimulgus pulchellus

  Salvadori's Nightjar has dark plumage and a short tail. It is active at night in forests of Sumatra and Java, catching insects in flight; the wing patch differs between the sexes.

• Cape Bushbuck Tragelaphus sylvaticus

  A bushbuck studied in KwaZulu-Natal, eastern South Africa. The sexes differ in coat colour, and only males have horns.