Meet the world’s animals.

Photos: 12,038 · Stories: 19,488

• Moluccan Cuscus Phalanger ornatus

  

  The Moluccan cuscus is a marsupial from the Moluccan Islands. Its short, woolly coat can have white spots, and a field study also recorded the species on Obi Island.

• Black-necked Stilt Himantopus mexicanus

  

  It walks through shallow water on long pink legs and searches for food with a slender bill.

• Magdalena Rat Xenomys nelsoni

  

  The Magdalena rat lives in dry forests on Mexico's Pacific coast. It is arboreal and nocturnal, usually solitary, and feeds on leaves, buds, and fruit.

• Magpie Shrike Lanius melanoleucus

  

  The Magpie Shrike is an African shrike with a long tail and black-and-white plumage. It watches for prey from savanna branches and may breed cooperatively in family groups.

• European Garden Dormouse Eliomys quercinus

  

  The European garden dormouse is marked by a dark mask and a black-and-white tail tip. In Spain, it occurs across the Iberian Peninsula, but its distribution is uneven.

• Forest Elaenia Myiopagis gaimardii

  

  The Forest Elaenia is widespread in the Amazon region. It forages in the canopy and sub-canopy of humid forest and sometimes joins mixed-species flocks.

• Brazilian Funnel-eared Bat Natalus macrourus

  This bat occurs south of the Amazon in South America, from dry Caatinga and Cerrado to humid forests. It is known to roost in caves, but species-specific diet information is limited.

• Ascension Frigatebird Fregata aquila

  The Ascension Frigatebird is a seabird with long wings and a deeply forked tail.

• Mountain Pygmy Possum Burramys parvus

  The mountain pygmy possum is a small mammal adapted to Australia's alpine zone. It is known to store food and hibernate for long periods.

• Matinan Blue Flycatcher Cyornis sanfordi

  Matinan Blue Flycatcher is a montane flycatcher of the Minahasa Peninsula in northern Sulawesi. A study observed it in evergreen montane forest and recorded its repeated, clear song.

• Grant's Golden Mole Eremitalpa granti

  This small golden mole has no visible tail, and its eyes are covered by skin. It moves through dunes and searches for food at night.

• South Island Saddleback Philesturnus carunculatus

  Adult South Island Saddlebacks are black, with a chestnut saddle and orange-red wattles. Their original range is South Island and Stewart Island, while conservation translocations have established populations on other islands.

• Ross Seal Ommatophoca rossii

  The Ross seal breeds in dense Antarctic pack ice. Six seals tracked off Queen Maud Land moved into open water after their February moult and returned to the pack ice in October.

• Sunbittern Eurypyga helias

  The Sunbittern is reported in watery habitats in Guatemala and northern Brazil. When frightened, it spreads its wings and tail to reveal hidden orange and chestnut patches.

• Sloth bear Melursus ursinus

  A South Asian bear with a shaggy coat, a sparsely furred muzzle and a pale chest marking.

• Crested Jayshrike Platylophus galericulatus

  This bird has a black-and-white body and a long crest that curves forward. It occurs in Southeast Asian forests, often in pairs or small family groups.

• Longman's Beaked Whale Indopacetus pacificus

  Longman's beaked whale lives offshore in tropical Indian and Pacific waters. It is difficult to identify at sea, and much of its biology remains poorly known.

• Golden-breasted Fulvetta Lioparus chrysotis

  The Golden-breasted Fulvetta is patchily distributed in mountain forests from the Himalaya into mainland Southeast Asia. It has a black head with silvery ear-coverts and orange-yellow underparts.

• Javan Rhinoceros Rhinoceros sondaicus

  The Javan rhinoceros lives in Ujung Kulon National Park, Indonesia. Its gray skin has deep folds.

• Purple Needletail Hirundapus celebensis

  The Purple Needletail is a swift that flies over forests and open country.

• Red-nosed Armored Tree-rat Makalata didelphoides

  A South American tree-dwelling rodent with a conspicuous red muzzle and spiny hairs on its back. It feeds in trees on plant material and fruit, and is recorded active from dusk into the night.

• Stitchbird Notiomystis cincta

  This forest bird is endemic to New Zealand. Its naturally surviving population is on Little Barrier Island; managed populations have been translocated elsewhere.

• Ebony Glider Petaurus gracilis

  The mahogany glider is a marsupial that glides through woodlands in northern Queensland. Its buff-to-apricot belly and dark stripe from the head toward the rump are distinctive.

• Lesser Melampitta Melampitta lugubris

  The Lesser Melampitta lives in New Guinea's montane forests. This account separates an early description of an adult male from one survey record in eastern Papua New Guinea.