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Saturday, 18 July 2026

Global Animal Guide

Animals that start with C

There are 59 animals that start with the letter C, including the Caecilian, California Condor, Camel, and more. See photos, facts, and full guides for each.

Smooth limbless caecilian resembling a large earthworm crawling across damp soil

Amphibian

Caecilian

The limbless, burrowing amphibians

California condor soaring with white underwing triangles and numbered wing tag visible

Critically Endangered

Bird

California Condor

North America's largest flying land bird

Dromedary camel with a single hump standing on golden desert sand dunes

Mammal

Camel

The desert traveler that thrives without water

Canada geese flying in V formation

Bird

Canada Goose

The honking V-formation flyer

Yellow canary perched on a cage bar singing

Bird

Canary

The singing island finch of parlours worldwide

Large brown warty cane toad sitting on damp soil at night

Amphibian

Cane Toad

A large, toxic toad turned invasive pest

Capuchin monkey in tropical forest

Mammal

Capuchin Monkey

The clever New World monkey

Capybara with brown fur sitting at the edge of a river surrounded by greenery

Mammal

Capybara

The world's largest rodent

Caracal with black ear tufts crouched in dry grassland

Mammal

Caracal

The tufted hunter of Africa and Asia

Eastern carpenter bee hovering at azalea blossom with shiny black abdomen and yellow thorax fuzz

Insect

Carpenter Bee

Wood-boring giant bee of eastern gardens

Domestic tabby cat with green eyes sitting beside a sunlit window

Mammal

Cat

The world's favorite small predator

Reddish-brown centipede with long antennae and many legs on damp leaf litter

Invertebrate

Centipede

The fast, venomous predator with many legs

Chambered nautilus with a spiral striped shell and many small tentacles in dark water

Invertebrate

Chambered Nautilus

The living-fossil cephalopod in a spiral shell

Chambered nautilus with coiled striped shell and many tentacles hovering above Indo-Pacific reef slope

Invertebrate

Chambered Nautilus

Vulnerable coiled survivor of deep reefs

Colorful chameleon gripping a thin branch with curled tail

Reptile

Chameleon

The color-changing lizard with 360-degree eyes

Channel catfish with barbels near river bottom

Fish

Channel Catfish

North America's whiskered bottom feeder

Cheetah sprinting across golden grassland with legs extended mid-stride

Mammal

Cheetah

The fastest land animal on Earth

Free-range chicken foraging in farmyard

Bird

Chicken

The world's most common bird

Chimpanzee sitting in a lush rainforest with a thoughtful expression

Mammal

Chimpanzee

Our closest living relative

Chinchilla with dense grey fur sitting on a rock

Mammal

Chinchilla

The soft-furred rodent of the Andes

Chinese giant salamander with wrinkled brown skin resting on a rocky stream bed

Critically Endangered

Amphibian

Chinese Giant Salamander

World's largest amphibian

Eastern chipmunk with striped back and full cheek pouches perched on a mossy log

Mammal

Chipmunk

The striped, cheek-stuffing squirrel of North America

Chuckwalla with loose folds of skin flattened against dark desert basalt

Reptile

Chuckwalla

Rock-dwelling desert lizard that inflates to wedge itself

Cicada with clear veined wings clinging to a tree trunk

Insect

Cicada

The loud summer singer with a long underground youth

Clouded leopard with cloud-shaped spots on a tree branch

Mammal

Clouded Leopard

The tree-climbing cat of Asian rainforests

Orange and white clownfish nestled among sea anemone tentacles

Fish

Clownfish

The reef fish that lives among stinging tentacles

Coastal taipan raised in defensive posture showing coppery head and pale body in dry grass

Reptile

Coastal Taipan

Lightning-fast elapid of Australian cane fields

Grey cockatiel with yellow crest and orange cheek patches perched on a wooden perch

Bird

Cockatiel

The crested Australian parrot known for whistling

Brown cockroach with long antennae on a flat surface

Insect

Cockroach

The hardy survivor that lives almost anywhere

Coconut crab climbing a palm tree trunk at night showing its large orange-brown body and powerful claws

Invertebrate

Coconut Crab

The world's largest land arthropod and tree-climbing island giant

Blue-scaled coelacanth with lobed fins hovering near a deep volcanic reef cave

Critically Endangered

Fish

Coelacanth

Living-fossil lobe-finned fish

Collared peccary standing in desert scrub with pale neck band and bristly dark coat

Mammal

Collared Peccary

Collared herd animal of American scrublands

Male chaffinch perched on branch showing pink breast, blue-grey cap, and white wing bars

Bird

Common Chaffinch

Pink-breasted songbird of European woods

Common garter snake with three light longitudinal stripes crossing damp garden mulch

Reptile

Common Garter Snake

Familiar harmless snake of North American yards

Common guitarfish resting on sandy seabed with shark-like tail and ray-like flattened front

Critically Endangered

Fish

Common Guitarfish

Critically Endangered shovel ray of sandy coasts

Common kestrel hovering with fanned tail and pointed wings against a pale sky

Bird

Common Kestrel

Hovering falcon of fields and roadsides

Common kingfisher with bright blue back and orange chest perched over a river

Bird

Common Kingfisher

A jewel-colored diver of rivers and streams

Breeding common loon with black head and white-checkered back floating on a still boreal lake

Bird

Common Loon

Iconic diving bird of northern lakes

Common murre standing upright on narrow cliff ledge beside pear-shaped speckled egg

Bird

Common Murre

Pear-egg diver of northern sea cliffs

Male ring-necked pheasant with long tail in autumn field

Bird

Common Pheasant

The ring-necked game bird of field and forest

Glossy black common raven perched on a weathered branch with a thick beak

Bird

Common Raven

One of the world's most intelligent birds

Common shrew on forest floor

Mammal

Common Shrew

The tiny insectivore with a fierce appetite

Common squirrel monkey with white face and black muzzle perched on a rainforest branch

Mammal

Common Squirrel Monkey

The tiny big-brained monkey of the Amazon

Flock of starlings swirling in dense murmuration against an orange winter sunset sky

Bird

Common Starling

Speckled invader of global cityscapes

Common swift with scythe-shaped wings screaming over red roof tiles at dusk

Bird

Common Swift

Screaming aerialist of summer rooftops

Brown warty common toad with copper eyes sitting on damp soil among leaves

Amphibian

Common Toad

The warty garden toad of Europe

Common torpedo ray buried in sand with rounded disc and small eyes on Mediterranean seabed

Fish

Common Torpedo

Mediterranean voltage trap of the sandy seabed

Cookiecutter shark showing oval bite scar pattern and greenish glow from belly photophores

Fish

Cookiecutter Shark

Bioluminescent plug-biter of the deep

Copperhead coiled on leaf litter showing hourglass crossbands and copper-coloured head

Reptile

Copperhead

Common US pit viper with hourglass bands

Colorful coral colony with many tiny polyps on a sunlit tropical reef

Invertebrate

Coral

The tiny reef-building animals of tropical seas

Corn snake with orange and red blotched pattern coiled on a wooden surface

Reptile

Corn Snake

The gentle, colorful beginner's pet snake

Cougar with tan fur crouched on a rocky outcrop in a mountainous landscape

Mammal

Cougar

The wide-ranging big cat with many names

Domestic cow grazing in a green pasture at sunrise

Mammal

Cow

The domestic cattle that feeds the world

Coyote standing alert in a dry North American grassland at golden hour

Mammal

Coyote

North America's adaptable 'song dog'

Crested gecko with eyelash-like crests and sticky toe pads clinging to a vertical branch

Reptile

Crested Gecko

Eyelash-crested gecko of New Caledonia

Brown cricket with long antennae and hind legs on the ground

Insect

Cricket

The chirping insect of warm evenings

American crow with glossy black feathers perched on a bare branch

Bird

Crow

The glossy black genius of the bird world

Crown-of-thorns starfish with venomous spines draped over bleached coral on Indo-Pacific reef

Invertebrate

Crown-of-thorns Starfish

Spiny coral scourge of Indo-Pacific reefs

Cuttlefish hovering above the seabed with a patterned mantle and wavy fins

Invertebrate

Cuttlefish

The color-changing master of camouflage

Animals starting with B Animals starting with D

Animals that start with C: FAQs

What animals start with the letter C?

Animals beginning with C include Caecilian, California Condor, Camel, Canada Goose, Canary, and 54 more.

How many animals begin with C?

Our guide currently covers 59 animals whose names start with C.