Mammal
Lion
The social big cat of the African savanna
Animals of Africa
Africa is home to the world's most iconic large animals, from lions and elephants to cheetahs. Its savannas, rainforests, wetlands, and deserts support an extraordinary range of wildlife found nowhere else on Earth.
Test yourself: Where in the World game167 animal profiles from Africa
Mammal
Cat
The world's favorite small predator
Mammal
African Elephant
The largest land animal alive today
Mammal
Honey Badger
The world's most fearless animal
Bird
Chicken
The world's most common bird
Mammal
Giraffe
The tallest animal on Earth
Mammal
Pangolin
The world's only scaly mammal
Mammal
Mountain Gorilla
The gentle giant of Rwanda's volcanoes
Mammal
Pygmy Hippopotamus
The small forest hippo of West Africa
Mammal
Aye-aye
Madagascar's nocturnal oddity
Reptile
Leatherback Sea Turtle
The giant jellyfish specialist
Mammal
Leopard
The stealthy, tree-climbing big cat
Mammal
Cow
The domestic cattle that feeds the world
Mammal
Gorilla
The largest living primate
Reptile
Hawksbill Sea Turtle
The tortoiseshell turtle
Mammal
Sperm Whale
The deep-diving giant with the largest brain
Fish
Ocean Sunfish
The heaviest bony fish
Mammal
Rhinoceros
The armored giant with a horn of keratin
Mammal
Okapi
The forest giraffe of the Congo
Mammal
Mandrill
The world's most colourful primate
Mammal
Black Rhinoceros
Africa's hook-lipped browser in crisis
Mammal
White Rhinoceros
The square-lipped giant of African grasslands
Mammal
Cheetah
The fastest land animal on Earth
Mammal
Zebra
The striped wild horse of the African plains
Fish
Thresher Shark
The whip-tailed hunter
Mammal
Bonobo
The peaceful ape of the Congo Basin
Fish
Coelacanth
Living-fossil lobe-finned fish
Mammal
Chimpanzee
Our closest living relative
Reptile
Black Mamba
Africa's fast and feared elapid snake
Mammal
Red Deer
The roaring stag of Eurasian woodlands
Bird
Flamingo
The pink filter-feeder that stands on one leg
Mammal
African Wild Dog
Africa's cooperative pack hunter
Reptile
Loggerhead Sea Turtle
The powerful-jawed sea turtle
Mammal
Wild Boar
The ancestor of the domestic pig
Bird
Osprey
The fish-hunting raptor of coasts and lakes
Mammal
Banded Mongoose
The cobra's agile rival
Mammal
Fin Whale
The sleek greyhound of the seas
Mammal
Fennec Fox
The tiny desert fox with enormous ears
Mammal
Wildebeest
The gnu of the great migration
Mammal
Domestic Pig
The intelligent farm mammal
Fish
Sand Tiger Shark
The toothy aquarium shark
Bird
Rooster
The crowing guardian of the barnyard flock
Mammal
Olive Baboon
Africa's adaptable monkey
Bird
Secretary Bird
Long-legged raptor that stamps snakes
Mammal
Aardvark
Africa's ant-eating oddity
Mammal
Ferret
The playful domestic mustelid
Mammal
Domestic Goat
The agile browser
Fish
Nurse Shark
The docile reef bottom-dweller
Bird
Peach-faced Lovebird
Africa's pocket parrot that bonds for life
Fish
Great Barracuda
Torpedo-shaped reef ambush predator
Reptile
Chameleon
The color-changing lizard with 360-degree eyes
Mammal
Water Buffalo
The wallowing bovine of Asia
Mammal
Domestic Sheep
Humanity's oldest livestock
Mammal
Caracal
The tufted hunter of Africa and Asia
Mammal
Serval
Africa's long-legged pounce specialist
Fish
Largemouth Bass
America's favourite freshwater game fish
Bird
Shoebill
Giant swamp bird with a shoe-shaped bill
Reptile
Puff Adder
Heavy African viper linked to many snakebites
Mammal
Hippopotamus
Africa's deadliest large land mammal
Mammal
Warthog
Africa's tusked savanna pig
Mammal
Dugong
The gentle sea cow of the Indo-Pacific
Bird
Canary
The singing island finch of parlours worldwide
Bird
Common Kestrel
Hovering falcon of fields and roadsides
Mammal
Fossa
Cat-like apex predator of Madagascar
Fish
Largetooth Sawfish
Giant ray with a toothed rostral saw
Reptile
Gaboon Viper
Heavy rainforest viper with huge fangs
Reptile
Ball Python
The gentle constrictor that curls into a ball
Mammal
Thomson's Gazelle
The small antelope of the Serengeti
Mammal
Golden Jackal
The adaptable wild dog of Europe and Asia
Reptile
Nile Monitor
Large African water monitor and egg predator
Bird
House Sparrow
Ubiquitous sparrow of towns and farms
Invertebrate
Tarantula
The large, hairy spider with a gentle reputation
Fish
Goblin Shark
Deep-sea shark with a protrusible jaw
Mammal
Meerkat
The cooperative sentinel of the Kalahari
Mammal
Ring-Tailed Lemur
Madagascar's striped-tailed, sun-bathing primate
Mammal
Springbok
South Africa's pronking antelope
Bird
White Stork
Europe's chimney-nesting messenger
Mammal
Minke Whale
The smallest and most abundant rorqual
Fish
Oarfish
World's longest bony fish
Bird
Great Spotted Woodpecker
Europe's drumming carpenter
Reptile
Boomslang
Arboreal African snake with potent venom
Bird
Barn Owl
The ghostly, heart-faced night hunter
Mammal
American Mink
The semi-aquatic mustelid
Bird
Grey Heron
The patient wetland hunter
Mammal
Donkey
The hardy working companion of arid lands
Bird
Blue Tit
Acrobatic garden tit of Europe
Insect
Bed Bug
The blood-feeding pest of mattresses worldwide
Bird
Barn Swallow
Fork-tailed aerial insectivore of farms
Bird
Ostrich
The largest and fastest bird on land
Bird
European Robin
Britain's beloved red-breasted garden bird
Mammal
Striped Hyena
Nocturnal scavenger of Africa and Asia
Bird
Nightingale
Famed nocturnal songster of European spring
Mammal
Aardwolf
Termite-eating hyena relative of African plains
Insect
Honey Bee
The pollinator that powers much of the food we eat
Mammal
Bat-eared Fox
Huge-eared fox that listens for insects
Bird
Magpie
The bold, brilliant problem-solver of the crow family
Insect
Ladybug
The spotted beetle gardeners love
Mammal
Kirk's Dik-dik
Tiny antelope that whistles when alarmed
Mammal
Otter
The playful, water-loving member of the weasel family
Mammal
Bat
The only mammals capable of true flight
Bird
Pigeon
The city bird with an extraordinary sense of direction
Insect
Ant
The tireless team-working insect
Mammal
Camel
The desert traveler that thrives without water
Reptile
Nile Crocodile
Africa's largest and most formidable predator of the rivers
Bird
African Grey Parrot
One of the most intelligent talking birds
Bird
Blackbird
The glossy garden thrush with a golden song
Bird
Common Chaffinch
Pink-breasted songbird of European woods
Bird
Common Starling
Speckled invader of global cityscapes
Bird
Common Swift
Screaming aerialist of summer rooftops
Mammal
Guereza Colobus
Black-and-white leaf monkey of African canopy
Mammal
Vervet Monkey
Alarm-calling savanna primate of Africa
Mammal
Verreaux's Sifaka
Dancing lemur of Madagascar's spiny forest
Mammal
Klipspringer
Rubber-hoofed dancer of African kopjes
Reptile
Panther Chameleon
Locale-coloured chameleon of Madagascar
Amphibian
Golden Mantella
Critically Endangered orange gem of Madagascar
Fish
Megamouth Shark
Deep-sea filter ghost discovered in 1976
Fish
Lemon Shark
Yellow coastal shark of mangrove nurseries
Fish
Oceanic Whitetip Shark
Critically Endangered lord of the open ocean
Fish
Porbeagle
Warm-blooded hunter of cold Atlantic seas
Fish
Cookiecutter Shark
Bioluminescent plug-biter of the deep
Fish
Lanternfish
Bioluminescent commuter of the twilight zone
Fish
Viperfish
Fang-faced ambusher of the abyss
Fish
Gulper Eel
Pelican-jawed phantom of the abyss
Fish
Common Guitarfish
Critically Endangered shovel ray of sandy coasts
Fish
Common Torpedo
Mediterranean voltage trap of the sandy seabed
Invertebrate
Brittle Star
Arm-dropping filter feeder of Atlantic gravel
Invertebrate
Vampire Squid
Detritus-eating cape of the oxygen minimum zone
Invertebrate
Water Bear
Near-indestructible moss dweller under the microscope
Invertebrate
Velvet Worm
Slime-shooting living fossil of leaf litter
Invertebrate
Crown-of-thorns Starfish
Spiny coral scourge of Indo-Pacific reefs
Insect
Mosquito
The tiny insect with an outsized impact
Insect
Bumblebee
The fuzzy, hard-working pollinator of meadows and gardens
Mammal
Spotted Hyena
The social, powerful hunter of the African savanna
Fish
European Eel
The 100-year reproductive mystery that baffled scientists from Aristotle to the 21st century
Insect
Firefly
The glowing beetle of warm summer nights
Insect
Cicada
The loud summer singer with a long underground youth
Invertebrate
Jumping Spider
The big-eyed spider that pounces on its prey
Amphibian
Common Toad
The warty garden toad of Europe
Bird
Peregrine Falcon
The fastest animal on the planet
Insect
Praying Mantis
The patient ambush predator with folded arms
Insect
Termite
The colony-building recycler of dead wood
Insect
Housefly
The familiar fly found wherever people live
Invertebrate
Centipede
The fast, venomous predator with many legs
Bird
Golden Eagle
One of the largest and fastest birds of prey
Insect
Dung Beetle
The strong beetle that rolls balls of dung
Invertebrate
Millipede
The slow, many-legged recycler of the forest floor
Bird
Common Kingfisher
A jewel-colored diver of rivers and streams
Insect
Dragonfly
The agile aerial hunter of ponds and streams
Insect
Flea
The wingless parasite famous for jumping
Amphibian
African Clawed Frog
The fully aquatic lab and pet frog
Amphibian
Tomato Frog
The plump, bright-red frog of Madagascar
Bird
Common Raven
One of the world's most intelligent birds
Invertebrate
Emperor Scorpion
The large, glowing arachnid with a stinging tail
Bird
Mallard
The familiar wild duck found around the world
Insect
Grasshopper
The jumping insect of fields and meadows
Amphibian
Caecilian
The limbless, burrowing amphibians
Insect
Rhinoceros Beetle
One of the strongest animals for its size
Invertebrate
Garden Snail
The slow, shell-carrying garden mollusk
Amphibian
Goliath Frog
The largest frog on Earth
Insect
Cockroach
The hardy survivor that lives almost anywhere
Mammal
Impala
The acrobatic leaper of the African savanna
Insect
Cricket
The chirping insect of warm evenings
Invertebrate
Earthworm
The soil engineer that enriches the earth
Bird
Vulture
Nature's clean-up crew on broad soaring wings
Bird
Quail
The small, secretive ground bird of fields and grassland
Bird
Ibis
The long-billed wading bird of marsh and river
Mammal
Xerus
The African ground squirrel that shades itself with its tail