Animal habitats & biomes

Oceans hold most of Earth's living space — from coral reefs and coasts to the open sea and deep trenches. Whales, sharks, sea turtles, seabirds, and countless invertebrates depend on salinity, currents, and depth zones that define marine life.

Rainforests are warm, wet forests with layered canopies and unmatched species richness. Most animals live in the trees; jaguars, toucans, poison frogs, and countless insects depend on continuous forest cover.

Savannas are tropical grasslands with scattered trees, seasonal rains, and fire. They support large grazers and famous predators — lions, cheetahs, elephants, and giraffes — adapted to open country.

Grasslands are landscapes dominated by grasses — prairies, steppes, and meadows — supporting grazers, burrowers, and ground-nesting birds. Deep soils make them productive and heavily converted to farmland.

Deserts receive very little rain. Animals conserve water, hunt at night, or burrow to escape heat — from camels and fennec foxes to specialised reptiles and insects.

Arctic and polar habitats include tundra, sea ice, and ice-edge seas. Thick fur or blubber, seasonal migration, and ice hunting define polar bears, seals, penguins, and arctic foxes.

Wetlands — marshes, swamps, mangroves, and floodplains — filter water, buffer floods, and nursery fish, amphibians, waterbirds, and reptiles at the land–water edge.

Mountain habitats change with elevation — forest to alpine meadow to rock and snow. Thin air and steep terrain favour climbers, thick coats, and seasonal movement.

Rivers, lakes, streams, and ponds support fish, amphibians, otters, and riverside birds. Freshwater habitats cover little of Earth's surface but hold a large share of threatened species.

Temperate, boreal, and dry forests structure life around trees, leaf litter, and seasonal light. Deer, owls, woodpeckers, and woodland foxes use canopy, understorey, and ground layers differently.

Cities, gardens, and farmland favour adaptable species — foxes, pigeons, raccoons, and many insects — that exploit food, shelter, and edges people create.