Fauna Of The Western United States
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The fauna of the United States of America is all the animals living in the
Continental United States The contiguous United States (officially the conterminous United States) consists of the 48 adjoining U.S. states and the Federal District of the United States of America. The term excludes the only two non-contiguous states, Alaska and Hawaii ...
and its surrounding seas and islands, the
Hawaiian Archipelago The Hawaiian Islands ( haw, Nā Mokupuni o Hawai‘i) are an archipelago of eight major islands, several atolls, and numerous smaller islets in the North Pacific Ocean, extending some from the island of Hawaii in the south to northernmost Kur ...
,
Alaska Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S. ...
in the Arctic, and several island-territories in the Pacific and in the Caribbean. The U.S. has many
endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found else ...
species found nowhere else on Earth. With most of the North American continent, the U.S. lies in the
Nearctic The Nearctic realm is one of the eight biogeographic realms constituting the Earth's land surface. The Nearctic realm covers most of North America, including Greenland, Central Florida, and the highlands of Mexico. The parts of North America ...
,
Neotropic The Neotropical realm is one of the eight biogeographic realms constituting Earth's land surface. Physically, it includes the tropical terrestrial ecoregions of the Americas and the entire South American temperate zone. Definition In bioge ...
, and
Oceanic Oceanic may refer to: *Of or relating to the ocean *Of or relating to Oceania **Oceanic climate **Oceanic languages **Oceanic person or people, also called "Pacific Islander(s)" Places * Oceanic, British Columbia, a settlement on Smith Island, ...
faunistic realms, and shares a great deal of its flora and fauna with the rest of the American supercontinent. An estimated 432 species of mammals characterize the fauna of the continental U.S. There are more than 800 species of bird and more than 100,000 known species of insects. There are 311 known reptiles, 295 amphibians and 1154 known fish species in the U.S. Known animals that exist in all of the lower 48 states include
white-tailed deer The white-tailed deer (''Odocoileus virginianus''), also known as the whitetail or Virginia deer, is a medium-sized deer native to North America, Central America, and South America as far south as Peru and Bolivia. It has also been introduced t ...
, bobcat,
raccoon The raccoon ( or , ''Procyon lotor''), sometimes called the common raccoon to distinguish it from other species, is a mammal native to North America. It is the largest of the procyonid family, having a body length of , and a body weight of ...
, muskrat, striped skunk, barn owl,
American mink The American mink (''Neogale vison'') is a semiaquatic species of mustelid native to North America, though human intervention has expanded its range to many parts of Europe, Asia and South America. Because of range expansion, the American mink i ...
,
American beaver The North American beaver (''Castor canadensis'') is one of two extant beaver species, along with the Eurasian beaver (''Castor fiber''). It is native to North America and introduced in South America (Patagonia) and Europe (primarily Finland ...
,
North American river otter The North American river otter (''Lontra canadensis''), also known as the northern river otter and river otter, is a semiaquatic mammal that only lives on the North American continent, along its waterways and coasts. An adult North American rive ...
and red fox. The
red-tailed hawk The red-tailed hawk (''Buteo jamaicensis'') is a bird of prey that breeds throughout most of North America, from the interior of Alaska and northern Canada to as far south as Panama and the West Indies. It is one of the most common members wit ...
is one of the most widely distributed hawks not only in the U.S., but in the Americas. Huge parts of the country with the most distinctive indigenous wildlife are protected as national parks. In 2013, the U.S. had more than 6770 national parks or protected areas, all together more than 1,006,619 sq. miles (2,607,131 km2). The first national park was
Yellowstone National Park Yellowstone National Park is an American national park located in the western United States, largely in the northwest corner of Wyoming and extending into Montana and Idaho. It was established by the 42nd U.S. Congress with the Yellowst ...
in the state of Wyoming, established in 1872. Yellowstone National Park is widely considered to be the finest megafauna wildlife habitat in the U.S. There are 67 species of mammals in the park, including the gray wolf, the threatened lynx, and the grizzly bear.


Western United States

The ecoregions and ecology found in the
Western United States The Western United States (also called the American West, the Far West, and the West) is the region comprising the westernmost states of the United States. As American settlement in the U.S. expanded westward, the meaning of the term ''the We ...
are extremely varied. For instance, large areas of land are made up of everything from sand dunes in the
Central Basin and Range ecoregion The Great Basin Desert is part of the Great Basin between the Sierra Nevada (U.S.), Sierra Nevada and the Wasatch Range. The desert is a geographical region that largely overlaps the Great Basin shrub steppe defined by the World Wildlife Fund, a ...
, which makes up much of the
State of Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a state in the Western region of the United States. It is bordered by Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. Nevada is the 7th-most extensive, t ...
, to the
ecology of the North Cascades The Ecology of the North Cascades is heavily influenced by the high elevation and rain shadow effects of the mountain range. The North Cascades is a section of the Cascade Range from the South Fork of the Snoqualmie River in Washington, United S ...
in
Washington state Washington (), officially the State of Washington, is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. Named for George Washington—the first U.S. president—the state was formed from the western part of the Washington ...
, which has the largest concentration of active
alpine glacier A glacier (; ) is a persistent body of dense ice that is constantly moving under its own weight. A glacier forms where the accumulation of snow exceeds its ablation over many years, often centuries. It acquires distinguishing features, such as ...
s in the lower 48. The densely forested areas found in Northern California,
Oregon Oregon () is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of its eastern boundary with Idaho. T ...
, Washington,
Idaho Idaho ( ) is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. To the north, it shares a small portion of the Canada–United States border with the province of British Columbia. It borders the states of Montana and Wyomi ...
, and
Montana Montana () is a state in the Mountain West division of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North Dakota and South Dakota to the east, Wyoming to the south, and the Canadian provinces of Alberta, British Columb ...
have mostly species adapted to living in
temperate climate In geography, the temperate climates of Earth occur in the middle latitudes (23.5° to 66.5° N/S of Equator), which span between the tropics and the polar regions of Earth. These zones generally have wider temperature ranges throughout ...
s, while
Southern California Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and cultural region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. It includes the Los Angeles metropolitan area, the second most populous urban a ...
,
Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a state in the Western region of the United States. It is bordered by Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. Nevada is the 7th-most extensive, ...
,
Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...
, southern
Utah Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to it ...
, and
New Mexico ) , population_demonym = New Mexican ( es, Neomexicano, Neomejicano, Nuevo Mexicano) , seat = Santa Fe , LargestCity = Albuquerque , LargestMetro = Tiguex , OfficialLang = None , Languages = English, Spanish ( New Mexican), Navajo, Ke ...
have a fauna resembling its position in the dry deserts with temperature extremes. The western continental coast of the U.S., just as the East Coast, varies from a colder-to-warmer climate from north to south. Few species live throughout the entire West Coast, however, there are some, including the bald eagle that inhabits both the Alaskan
Aleutian Islands The Aleutian Islands (; ; ale, Unangam Tanangin,”Land of the Aleuts", possibly from Chukchi ''aliat'', "island"), also called the Aleut Islands or Aleutic Islands and known before 1867 as the Catherine Archipelago, are a chain of 14 large v ...
and the
California Channel Islands The Channel Islands () are an eight-island archipelago located within the Southern California Bight in the Pacific Ocean, off the coast of California. The four Northern Channel Islands are part of the Transverse Ranges geologic province, and ...
. In most of the contiguous Western U.S. are
mule deer The mule deer (''Odocoileus hemionus'') is a deer indigenous to western North America; it is named for its ears, which are large like those of the mule. Two subspecies of mule deer are grouped into the black-tailed deer. Unlike the related whi ...
,
white-tailed antelope squirrel The white-tailed antelope squirrel (''Ammospermophilus leucurus'') is a diurnal species of ground squirrel, scientifically classified in the order Rodentia and family Sciuridae, found in arid regions of the southwestern United States and the B ...
s, cougars,
American badger The American badger (''Taxidea taxus'') is a North American badger similar in appearance to the European badger, although not closely related. It is found in the western, central, and northeastern United States, northern Mexico, and south-cent ...
s, coyotes, hawks and several species of snakes and lizards are common. While the American black bear lives throughout the U.S., the
brown bear The brown bear (''Ursus arctos'') is a large bear species found across Eurasia and North America. In North America, the populations of brown bears are called grizzly bears, while the subspecies that inhabits the Kodiak Islands of Alaska is ...
s and grizzly bears are more common in the northwest and in Alaska. Along the West Coast there are several species of whales, sea otters,
California sea lions The California sea lion (''Zalophus californianus'') is a coastal eared seal native to western North America. It is one of six species of sea lions. Its natural habitat ranges from southeast Alaska to central Mexico, including the Gulf of Cali ...
,
eared seal An eared seal or otariid or otary is any member of the marine mammal family Otariidae, one of three groupings of pinnipeds. They comprise 15 extant species in seven genera (another species became extinct in the 1950s) and are commonly known eith ...
s and
northern elephant seal The northern elephant seal (''Mirounga angustirostris'') is one of two species of elephant seal (the other is the southern elephant seal). It is a member of the family Phocidae (true seals). Elephant seals derive their name from their great siz ...
s. In the dry, inland desert areas of states such as California, Nevada, Arizona and New Mexico there are some of the world's most venomous lizards, snakes and scorpions. The most notorious might be the
Gila monster The Gila monster (''Heloderma suspectum'', ) is a species of venomous lizard native to the Southwestern United States and the northwestern Mexican state of Sonora. It is a heavy, typically slow-moving reptile, up to long, and it is the only ve ...
and
Mohave rattlesnake ''Crotalus scutulatus'' (common names: Mojave rattlesnake,Crothier, B.I. ''et al''. 2003. Scientific and standard English names of amphibians and reptiles of North America north of Mexico: Update. ''Herpetological Review'' 34:196–203Robert C. ...
, both found in deserts in the
Southwest The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A compass rose is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west—each sepa ...
. The Sonoran Desert has eleven species of rattlesnakes - more than anywhere else in the world. Along the southwestern border there are
jaguars The jaguar (''Panthera onca'') is a large cat species and the only living member of the genus ''Panthera'' native to the Americas. With a body length of up to and a weight of up to , it is the largest cat species in the Americas and the thi ...
and
ocelots The ocelot (''Leopardus pardalis'') is a medium-sized spotted wild cat that reaches at the shoulders and weighs between on average. It was first described by Carl Linnaeus in 1758. Two subspecies are recognized. It is native to the southwe ...
. Other mammals include the
Virginia opossum The Virginia opossum (''Didelphis virginiana''), also known as the North American opossum, is the only opossum living north of Mexico, its range extending south into Central America. It is the northernmost marsupial in the world. In the United S ...
, which occurs throughout California and coastal areas in Oregon and Washington. The
North American beaver The North American beaver (''Castor canadensis'') is one of two extant beaver species, along with the Eurasian beaver (''Castor fiber''). It is native to North America and introduced in South America ( Patagonia) and Europe (primarily Finland ...
and
mountain beaver The mountain beaver (''Aplodontia rufa'')Other names include mountain boomer, ground bear, giant mole, gehalis, lesser sasquatch, sewellel, suwellel, showhurll, showtl, and showte, as well as a number of Chinookan and other Native American terms ...
live in forested areas of Washington, Oregon and Northern California. The
kit fox The kit fox (''Vulpes macrotis'') is a fox species that inhabits arid and semi-arid regions of the southwestern United States and northern and central Mexico. These foxes are the smallest of the four species of ''Vulpes'' occurring in North Amer ...
lives throughout Arizona, New Mexico and Utah, while the
gray fox The gray fox (''Urocyon cinereoargenteus''), or grey fox, is an omnivorous mammal of the family Canidae, widespread throughout North America and Central America. This species and its only congener, the diminutive island fox (''Urocyon littor ...
occurs throughout the Western U.S. The red fox occurs mostly in Oregon and Washington, while the
island fox The island fox (''Urocyon littoralis'') is a small fox that is endemic to six of the eight Channel Islands of California. There are six subspecies, each unique to the island it lives on, reflecting its evolutionary history. They are generally d ...
is a native to six of the eight
Channel Islands The Channel Islands ( nrf, Îles d'la Manche; french: îles Anglo-Normandes or ''îles de la Manche'') are an archipelago in the English Channel, off the French coast of Normandy. They include two Crown Dependencies: the Bailiwick of Jersey, ...
in Southern California. These islands are also famous for their marine life and endemic species such as the
Channel Islands spotted skunk The island spotted skunk (''Spilogale gracilis amphialus'') is an insular endemic carnivore and a subspecies of the western spotted skunk (''Spilogale gracilis''). Little is known about their exact variations from the mainland spotted skunk and v ...
,
Garibaldi Giuseppe Maria Garibaldi ( , ;In his native Ligurian language, he is known as ''Gioxeppe Gaibado''. In his particular Niçard dialect of Ligurian, he was known as ''Jousé'' or ''Josep''. 4 July 1807 – 2 June 1882) was an Italian general, pat ...
,
island fence lizard An island (or isle) is an isolated piece of habitat that is surrounded by a dramatically different habitat, such as water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, skerries, cays or keys. An island ...
,
island scrub jay The island scrub jay (''Aphelocoma insularis''), also known as the island jay or Santa Cruz jay, is a bird in the genus, '' Aphelocoma'', which is endemic to Santa Cruz Island off the coast of Southern California. Of the over 500 breeding bird sp ...
, bald eagle, and their non-native
Catalina Island bison herd The Catalina Island bison herd is a small group of introduced American bison living on Catalina Island off the coast of Southern California. In 1924, several bison were acquired and, before the end of 1925, brought to Catalina. The bison are no ...
. The
raccoon The raccoon ( or , ''Procyon lotor''), sometimes called the common raccoon to distinguish it from other species, is a mammal native to North America. It is the largest of the procyonid family, having a body length of , and a body weight of ...
and
spotted skunk The genus ''Spilogale'' includes all skunks commonly known as spotted skunks. Currently, there are four accepted extant species: ''S. gracilis'', ''S. putorius'', ''S. pygmaea'', and ''S. angustifrons''. New research, however, proposes that ther ...
occur throughout the Western U.S., while the
ring-tailed cat The ringtail (''Bassariscus astutus'') is a mammal of the raccoon family native to arid regions of North America. It is widely distributed and well adapted to disturbed areas. It has been legally trapped for its fur. It is listed as Least Co ...
occurs throughout Arizona, New Mexico, Western Texas, Utah, Colorado, and most of California. The American black bear occurs in most western states, including Washington, Oregon, California, Arizona and Colorado.


Channel Islands

The
Channel Islands National Park Channel Islands National Park consists of five of the eight Channel Islands off the Pacific coast of the U.S. state of California. Although the islands are close to the shore of the densely populated state, they have been relatively undevelope ...
consists of five out of the eight
California Channel Islands The Channel Islands () are an eight-island archipelago located within the Southern California Bight in the Pacific Ocean, off the coast of California. The four Northern Channel Islands are part of the Transverse Ranges geologic province, and ...
. The Channel Islands are part of one of the richest marine biospheres of the world. Many unique species of plants and animals are
endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found else ...
to the Channel Islands, including fauna such as the
island fox The island fox (''Urocyon littoralis'') is a small fox that is endemic to six of the eight Channel Islands of California. There are six subspecies, each unique to the island it lives on, reflecting its evolutionary history. They are generally d ...
,
Channel Islands spotted skunk The island spotted skunk (''Spilogale gracilis amphialus'') is an insular endemic carnivore and a subspecies of the western spotted skunk (''Spilogale gracilis''). Little is known about their exact variations from the mainland spotted skunk and v ...
,
island scrub jay The island scrub jay (''Aphelocoma insularis''), also known as the island jay or Santa Cruz jay, is a bird in the genus, '' Aphelocoma'', which is endemic to Santa Cruz Island off the coast of Southern California. Of the over 500 breeding bird sp ...
,
ashy storm-petrel The ashy storm petrel (''Hydrobates homochroa'') is a small, scarce seabird of the storm petrel family Hydrobatidae. It breeds colonially on islands off the coasts of California and Mexico, and is one of six species of storm petrel that live a ...
,
island fence lizard An island (or isle) is an isolated piece of habitat that is surrounded by a dramatically different habitat, such as water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, skerries, cays or keys. An island ...
,
island night lizard The island night lizard (''Xantusia riversiana'') is a species of night lizard native to three of the Channel Islands of California: San Nicolas Island, Santa Barbara Island, and San Clemente Island. A small number of island night lizards also ...
,
Channel Islands slender salamander The Channel Islands slender salamander (''Batrachoseps pacificus'') is a species of salamander in the family Plethodontidae. Distribution and habitat It is endemic to chaparral and woodlands, temperate forests, temperate shrubland, and temperat ...
, Santa Cruz sheep,
San Clemente loggerhead shrike The San Clemente loggerhead shrike (''Lanius ludovicianus mearnsi'') or San Clemente Island loggerhead shrike is a subspecies of the loggerhead shrike that is endemic to San Clemente Island, California. Description The San Clemente loggerhead ...
and San Clemente sage sparrow. Other animals in the islands include the
California sea lion The California sea lion (''Zalophus californianus'') is a coastal eared seal native to western North America. It is one of six species of sea lions. Its natural habitat ranges from southeast Alaska to central Mexico, including the Gulf of C ...
,
California moray The California moray (''Gymnothorax mordax'') is a moray eel of the family Muraenidae, found in the eastern Pacific from just north of Santa Barbara to Santa Maria Bay in Baja California. They are the only species of moray eel found off Californ ...
, bald eagle,
Channel Islands spotted skunk The island spotted skunk (''Spilogale gracilis amphialus'') is an insular endemic carnivore and a subspecies of the western spotted skunk (''Spilogale gracilis''). Little is known about their exact variations from the mainland spotted skunk and v ...
and the non-native
Catalina Island bison herd The Catalina Island bison herd is a small group of introduced American bison living on Catalina Island off the coast of Southern California. In 1924, several bison were acquired and, before the end of 1925, brought to Catalina. The bison are no ...
.


Southern United States

The South has a large variety of habitats that range from the
Mississippi River The Mississippi River is the second-longest river and chief river of the second-largest drainage system in North America, second only to the Hudson Bay drainage system. From its traditional source of Lake Itasca in northern Minnesota, it fl ...
basin in
Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the O ...
and
Mississippi Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Miss ...
to the Southern Appalachian Mountains. As far north as the hills of
Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...
and
Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...
, all the way down to the
Everglades The Everglades is a natural region of tropical wetlands in the southern portion of the U.S. state of Florida, comprising the southern half of a large drainage basin within the Neotropical realm. The system begins near Orlando with the Kissim ...
in the southern end of
Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...
. From the eastern-most point on the
Outer Banks The Outer Banks (frequently abbreviated OBX) are a string of barrier islands and spits off the coast of North Carolina and southeastern Virginia, on the east coast of the United States. They line most of the North Carolina coastline, separating ...
of
North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and ...
, as far west as the deserts and prairies of
West Texas West Texas is a loosely defined region in the U.S. state of Texas, generally encompassing the arid and semiarid lands west of a line drawn between the cities of Wichita Falls, Abilene, and Del Rio. No consensus exists on the boundary betwee ...
and Oklahoma. The warmer climate allows for rich biodiversity ranging from cypress swamps in
Louisiana Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-smallest by area and the 25th most populous of the 50 U.S. states. Louisiana is borde ...
to the thick bays and the
longleaf pine The longleaf pine (''Pinus palustris'') is a pine species native to the Southeastern United States, found along the coastal plain from East Texas to southern Virginia, extending into northern and central Florida. In this area it is also known as ...
biome of the
South Carolina Lowcountry The Lowcountry (sometimes Low Country or just low country) is a geographic and cultural region along South Carolina's coast, including the Sea Islands. The region includes significant salt marshes and other coastal waterways, making it an impor ...
. It is riddled along the way with countless salt marshes in every coastal state from the Carolinas, through
Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...
to
Texas Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...
, including the Mobile Delta that lies in the borders of
Alabama (We dare defend our rights) , anthem = "Alabama" , image_map = Alabama in United States.svg , seat = Montgomery , LargestCity = Huntsville , LargestCounty = Baldwin County , LargestMetro = Greater Birmingham , area_total_km2 = 135,765 ...
. The Southern United States is home to a multitude of reptiles and amphibians. The
American alligator The American alligator (''Alligator mississippiensis''), sometimes referred to colloquially as a gator or common alligator, is a large crocodilian reptile native to the Southeastern United States. It is one of the two extant species in the gen ...
lives in much of the South - including every coastal state from North Carolina to Texas, along with the inland states of Arkansas and Tennessee- while the less widespread
American crocodile The American crocodile (''Crocodylus acutus'') is a species of crocodilian found in the Neotropics. It is the most widespread of the four extant species of crocodiles from the Americas, with populations present from South Florida and the coasts ...
is only found in southern Florida. The Alligator snapping turtle and more than forty other species of turtle are found in the southern U.S. including the
eastern box turtle The eastern box turtle (''Terrapene carolina carolina'') is a subspecies within a group of hinge-shelled turtles normally called box turtles. ''T. c. carolina'' is native to the eastern part of the United States. The eastern box turtl ...
,
red-eared slider The red-eared slider or red-eared terrapin (''Trachemys scripta elegans'') is a subspecies of the pond slider (''Trachemys scripta''), a semiaquatic turtle belonging to the family Emydidae. It is the most popular pet turtle in the United States, ...
, and the
softshell turtle The Trionychidae are a taxonomic family of a number of turtle genera, commonly known as softshell turtles. The family was erected by Leopold Fitzinger in 1826. Softshells include some of the world's largest freshwater turtles, though many can a ...
. Snakes in the region include the
eastern copperhead The eastern copperhead (''Agkistrodon contortrix''), also known as the copperhead, is a species of venomous snake, a pit viper, endemic to eastern North America; it is a member of the subfamily Crotalinae in the family Viperidae. The eastern ...
,
eastern diamondback rattlesnake The eastern diamondback rattlesnake (''Crotalus adamanteus'') is a species of pit viper in the family Viperidae. The species is endemic to the Southeastern United States. It is one of the heaviest venomous snakes in the Americas and the largest r ...
,
timber rattlesnake The timber rattlesnake, canebrake rattlesnake, or banded rattlesnake (''Crotalus horridus'') Wright AH, Wright AA (1957). ''Handbook of Snakes of the United States and Canada''. Ithaca and London: Comstock Publishing Associates, a division of ...
, pigmy rattlesnake,
cottonmouth ''Agkistrodon piscivorus'' is a species of pit viper in the subfamily Crotalinae of the family Viperidae. It is one of the world's few semiaquatic vipers (along with the Florida cottonmouth), and is native to the southeastern United States. As ...
, and eastern coral snake, all of which are venomous. Some of the other reptiles and amphibians thriving in the South include the Carolina anole, razor-backed musk turtle,
broad-headed skink The broad-headed skink or broadhead skink (''Plestiodon laticeps'') is species of lizard, endemic to the southeastern United States. The broadhead skink occurs in sympatry with the five-lined skink (''Plestiodon fasciatus'') and Southeastern f ...
, American bullfrog,
southern toad The southern toad (''Anaxyrus terrestris'') is a true toad native to the southeastern United States, from eastern Louisiana and southeastern Virginia south to Florida. It often lives in areas with sandy soils. It is nocturnal and spends the day i ...
,
spring peeper The spring peeper (''Pseudacris crucifer'') is a small chorus frog widespread throughout the eastern United States and Canada. They prefer permanent ponds due to their advantage in avoiding predation; however, they are very adaptable with respect ...
and the
coal skink ''Plestiodon anthracinus'', the coal skink, is a species of lizard which is endemic to North America. Description It grows to in total length with a maximum snout to vent length (SVL) of . It is a four-lined skink whose light stripes extend ...
. Mammals of the region include the
elk The elk (''Cervus canadensis''), also known as the wapiti, is one of the largest species within the deer family, Cervidae, and one of the largest terrestrial mammals in its native range of North America and Central and East Asia. The common ...
, the largest of which that was wiped out in the 1800s, but has been reintroduced and is making promising recoveries in Virginia, North Carolina, Tennessee, and Arkansas. There still remain resident populations in parts of Texas and Oklahoma. The American black bear is native to much of the South, but are prevalent in Virginia, the Carolinas, Tennessee, Georgia, Florida, Arkansas, and Oklahoma. The Florida panther is the largest feline in the South and is exclusive to the wetlands of South Florida.
White-tailed deer The white-tailed deer (''Odocoileus virginianus''), also known as the whitetail or Virginia deer, is a medium-sized deer native to North America, Central America, and South America as far south as Peru and Bolivia. It has also been introduced t ...
, bobcat, coyote,
wild boar The wild boar (''Sus scrofa''), also known as the wild swine, common wild pig, Eurasian wild pig, or simply wild pig, is a suid native to much of Eurasia and North Africa, and has been introduced to the Americas and Oceania. The species is ...
,
red Red is the color at the long wavelength end of the visible spectrum of light, next to orange and opposite violet. It has a dominant wavelength of approximately 625–740 nanometres. It is a primary color in the RGB color model and a secondar ...
and grey fox are other mammals that inhabit parts of every state in the region. Wild horses roam parts of the South in small groups, which are remnants of horses brought by settlers in the 1400s and 1500s. These are mostly in coastal habitats. Many water-dwelling mammals inhabit the South including the
American beaver The North American beaver (''Castor canadensis'') is one of two extant beaver species, along with the Eurasian beaver (''Castor fiber''). It is native to North America and introduced in South America (Patagonia) and Europe (primarily Finland ...
, muskrat, river otter, and
nutria The nutria (''Myocastor coypus''), also known as the coypu, is a large, herbivorous, semiaquatic rodent. Classified for a long time as the only member of the family Myocastoridae, ''Myocastor'' is now included within Echimyidae, the family of ...
, which is an invasive species and has decimated plant life in the swamps of Louisiana.
Weasels Weasels are mammals of the genus ''Mustela'' of the family Mustelidae. The genus ''Mustela'' includes the least weasels, polecats, stoats, ferrets and European mink. Members of this genus are small, active predators, with long and slender b ...
and mink also prefer being near water. Rabbits are common in the South; the
eastern cottontail The eastern cottontail (''Sylvilagus floridanus'') is a New World cottontail rabbit, a member of the family Leporidae. It is the most common rabbit species in North America. Distribution The eastern cottontail can be found in meadows and shrubb ...
is found throughout the region, while the
desert cottontail The desert cottontail (''Sylvilagus audubonii''), also known as Audubon's cottontail, is a New World cottontail rabbit, and a member of the family Leporidae. Unlike the European rabbit (''Oryctolagus cuniculus''), they do not form social burrow s ...
and
black-tailed jackrabbit The black-tailed jackrabbit (''Lepus californicus''), also known as the American desert hare, is a common hare of the western United States and Mexico, where it is found at elevations from sea level up to . Reaching a length around , and a ...
is primarily found in Texas, and Oklahoma. The swamp rabbit is found in wetlands of states like Mississippi, Alabama, Louisiana and Arkansas, while the
marsh rabbit The marsh rabbit (''Sylvilagus palustris'') is a small cottontail rabbit found in marshes and swamps of coastal regions of the Eastern and Southern United States. It is a strong swimmer and found only near regions of water. It is similar in app ...
resides along the coastal regions of the Carolinas, Georgia, Florida, and Alabama. Squirrels are also abundant. The
eastern grey squirrel The eastern gray squirrel (''Sciurus carolinensis''), also known, particularly outside of North America, as simply the grey squirrel, is a tree squirrel in the genus ''Sciurus''. It is native to eastern North America, where it is the most prodi ...
and
eastern fox squirrel The fox squirrel (''Sciurus niger''), also known as the eastern fox squirrel or Bryant's fox squirrel, is the largest species of tree squirrel native to North America. Despite the differences in size and coloration, it is sometimes mistaken for ...
can both be found in every southern state. The southern range of the American red squirrel dips into the higher elevations of Virginia and North Carolina. Other common mammals are the
Virginia opossum The Virginia opossum (''Didelphis virginiana''), also known as the North American opossum, is the only opossum living north of Mexico, its range extending south into Central America. It is the northernmost marsupial in the world. In the United S ...
,
raccoon The raccoon ( or , ''Procyon lotor''), sometimes called the common raccoon to distinguish it from other species, is a mammal native to North America. It is the largest of the procyonid family, having a body length of , and a body weight of ...
striped and
spotted skunk The genus ''Spilogale'' includes all skunks commonly known as spotted skunks. Currently, there are four accepted extant species: ''S. gracilis'', ''S. putorius'', ''S. pygmaea'', and ''S. angustifrons''. New research, however, proposes that ther ...
,
groundhog The groundhog (''Marmota monax''), also known as a woodchuck, is a rodent of the family Sciuridae, belonging to the group of large ground squirrels known as marmots. The groundhog is a lowland creature of North America; it is found through mu ...
and in parts of the South, the
nine-banded armadillo The nine-banded armadillo (''Dasypus novemcinctus''), also known as the nine-banded long-nosed armadillo or common long-nosed armadillo, is a mammal found in North, Central, and South America, making it the most widespread of the armadillos. ...
. There are over 1,100 species of bird in the Southern U.S. ranging from upland birds, to waterfowl. The South is home to many coastal birds including
gulls Gulls, or colloquially seagulls, are seabirds of the family Laridae in the suborder Lari (bird), Lari. They are most closely related to the terns and Skimmer (bird), skimmers and only distantly related to auks, and even more distantly to waders ...
,
rails Rail or rails may refer to: Rail transport *Rail transport and related matters *Rail (rail transport) or railway lines, the running surface of a railway Arts and media Film * ''Rails'' (film), a 1929 Italian film by Mario Camerini * ''Rail'' ( ...
, gallinules, skimmers, grebes,
sandpipers Sandpipers are a large family, Scolopacidae, of waders. They include many species called sandpipers, as well as those called by names such as curlew and snipe. The majority of these species eat small invertebrates picked out of the mud or soil. ...
, cranes, and
herons The herons are long-legged, long-necked, freshwater and coastal birds in the family Ardeidae, with 72 recognised species, some of which are referred to as egrets or bitterns rather than herons. Members of the genera ''Botaurus'' and ''Ixobrychus ...
. Upland birds include
wild turkey The wild turkey (''Meleagris gallopavo'') is an upland ground bird native to North America, one of two extant species of turkey and the heaviest member of the order Galliformes. It is the ancestor to the domestic turkey, which was originally d ...
and
ruffed grouse The ruffed grouse (''Bonasa umbellus'') is a medium-sized grouse occurring in forests from the Appalachian Mountains across Canada to Alaska. It is the most widely distributed game bird in North America. It is non-migratory. It is the only specie ...
. Various game bird species such as the
bobwhite quail The northern bobwhite (''Colinus virginianus''), also known as the Virginia quail or (in its home range) bobwhite quail, is a ground-dwelling bird native to Canada, the United States, Mexico, and Cuba, with introduced populations elsewhere in t ...
and the
woodcock The woodcocks are a group of seven or eight very similar living species of wading birds in the genus ''Scolopax''. The genus name is Latin for a snipe or woodcock, and until around 1800 was used to refer to a variety of waders. The English name ...
. The
eastern whip-poor-will The eastern whip-poor-will (''Antrostomus vociferus'') is a medium-sized (22–27 cm; 8.7-10.6 ins.) bird within the nightjar family, Caprimulgidae, from North America. The whip-poor-will is commonly heard within its range, but less o ...
and the
Chuck-will's-widow The chuck-will's-widow (''Antrostomus carolinensis'') is a nocturnal bird of the nightjar family Caprimulgidae. It is mostly found in the southeastern United States (with disjunct populations in Long Island, New York, Ontario, Canada and Cape C ...
belong to the
nighthawk The nighthawk is a nocturnal bird of the subfamily Chordeilinae, within the nightjar family, Caprimulgidae, native to the western hemisphere. The term "nighthawk", first recorded in the King James Bible of 1611, was originally a local name in ...
family and are found in every southern state. Songbirds make up the largest portion of birds found in this region.


Central United States

In the
prairie Prairies are ecosystems considered part of the temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biome by ecologists, based on similar temperate climates, moderate rainfall, and a composition of grasses, herbs, and shrubs, rather than trees, as the ...
in the
Central United States The Central United States is sometimes conceived as between the Eastern and Western as part of a three-region model, roughly coincident with the U.S. Census' definition of the Midwestern United States plus the western and central portions o ...
lives mostly animals adapted for living in grasslands. Indigenous mammals include the
American bison The American bison (''Bison bison'') is a species of bison native to North America. Sometimes colloquially referred to as American buffalo or simply Bubalina, buffalo (a different clade of bovine), it is one of two extant species of bison, alongs ...
,
eastern cottontail The eastern cottontail (''Sylvilagus floridanus'') is a New World cottontail rabbit, a member of the family Leporidae. It is the most common rabbit species in North America. Distribution The eastern cottontail can be found in meadows and shrubb ...
,
black-tailed jackrabbit The black-tailed jackrabbit (''Lepus californicus''), also known as the American desert hare, is a common hare of the western United States and Mexico, where it is found at elevations from sea level up to . Reaching a length around , and a ...
,
plains coyote The coyote (''Canis latrans'') is a species of canine native to North America. It is smaller than its close relative, the wolf, and slightly smaller than the closely related eastern wolf and red wolf. It fills much of the same ecological ni ...
,
black-tailed prairie dog The black-tailed prairie dog (''Cynomys ludovicianus'') is a rodent of the family Sciuridae found in the Great Plains of North America from about the United States-Canada border to the United States-Mexico border. Unlike some other prairie dogs, ...
, muskrat, opossum,
raccoon The raccoon ( or , ''Procyon lotor''), sometimes called the common raccoon to distinguish it from other species, is a mammal native to North America. It is the largest of the procyonid family, having a body length of , and a body weight of ...
,
prairie chicken ''Tympanuchus'' is a small genus of birds in the grouse family. They are commonly referred to as prairie chickens. Taxonomy The genus ''Tympanuchus'' was introduced in 1841 by the German zoologist Constantin Wilhelm Lambert Gloger for the grea ...
,
wild turkey The wild turkey (''Meleagris gallopavo'') is an upland ground bird native to North America, one of two extant species of turkey and the heaviest member of the order Galliformes. It is the ancestor to the domestic turkey, which was originally d ...
,
white-tailed deer The white-tailed deer (''Odocoileus virginianus''), also known as the whitetail or Virginia deer, is a medium-sized deer native to North America, Central America, and South America as far south as Peru and Bolivia. It has also been introduced t ...
,
swift fox The swift fox (''Vulpes velox'') is a small light orange-tan fox around the size of a domestic cat found in the western grasslands of North America, such as Montana, Colorado, New Mexico, Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas. It also lives in southern M ...
es,
pronghorn antelope The pronghorn (, ) (''Antilocapra americana'') is a species of artiodactyl (even-toed, hoofed) mammal indigenous to interior western and central North America. Though not an antelope, it is known colloquially in North America as the American ante ...
, the
Franklin's ground squirrel Franklin's ground squirrel (''Poliocitellus franklinii'') is a species of squirrel native to North America, and the only member of the genus ''Poliocitellus''. Due to the destruction of prairie, the populations of Franklin's ground squirrel have ...
and several other species of ground squirrels. Reptiles include
bullsnake The bullsnake (''Pituophis catenifer sayi)'' is a large, nonvenomous, colubrid snake. It is a subspecies of the gopher snake (''Pituophis catenifer''). The bullsnake is one of the largest/longest snakes of North America and the United States, re ...
s, common collared lizard, common snapping turtle, musk turtles,
yellow mud turtle The yellow mud turtle (''Kinosternon flavescens''), also commonly known as the yellow-necked mud turtle, is a species of mud turtle in the family Kinosternidae. The species is endemic to the Central United States and Mexico. Distribution *North ...
, painted turtle,
western diamondback rattlesnake The western diamondback rattlesnake or Texas diamond-backWright AH, Wright AA. (1957). ''Handbook of Snakes''. Comstock Publishing Associates. (7th printing, 1985). . (''Crotalus atrox'') is a rattlesnake species and member of the viper family, ...
and the
prairie rattlesnake Prairie rattlesnake may refer to: * '' Crotalus viridis'', a.k.a. the plains rattlesnake, a venomous pitviper species native to the western United States, southwestern Canada, and northern Mexico. * ''Sistrurus catenatus The massasauga (''Sistr ...
. Some of the typical amphibians found in the region are the three-toed amphiuma, green toad, Oklahoma salamander,
lesser siren The lesser siren (''Siren intermedia'') is a species of aquatic salamander native to the eastern United States and northern Mexico. They are referred to by numerous common names, including two-legged eel, dwarf siren, and mud eel. The specific ep ...
and the
plains spadefoot toad The plains spadefoot toad (''Spea bombifrons'') is a species of American spadefoot toad which ranges from southwestern Canada, throughout the Great Plains of the western United States, and into northern Mexico. Like other species of spadefoot toa ...
. In the
Rocky Mountains The Rocky Mountains, also known as the Rockies, are a major mountain range and the largest mountain system in North America. The Rocky Mountains stretch in straight-line distance from the northernmost part of western Canada, to New Mexico ...
and other mountainous areas of the inland is where the bald eagle is most observed, even though its habitat includes all of the Lower 48, as well as Alaska. Rabbits live throughout the Great Plains and neighboring areas; the
black-tailed jackrabbit The black-tailed jackrabbit (''Lepus californicus''), also known as the American desert hare, is a common hare of the western United States and Mexico, where it is found at elevations from sea level up to . Reaching a length around , and a ...
is found in Texas, Oklahoma, Nebraska and Kansas, the
white-tailed jackrabbit The white-tailed jackrabbit (''Lepus townsendii''), also known as the prairie hare and the white jack, is a species of hare found in western North America. Like all hares and rabbits, it is a member of the family Leporidae of order Lagomorpha ...
in the Dakotas, Minnesota and Wisconsin, the swamp rabbit in swampland in Texas, and the
eastern cottontail The eastern cottontail (''Sylvilagus floridanus'') is a New World cottontail rabbit, a member of the family Leporidae. It is the most common rabbit species in North America. Distribution The eastern cottontail can be found in meadows and shrubb ...
is found in Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Nebraska, the Dakotas, and every state in the Eastern U.S. The
groundhog The groundhog (''Marmota monax''), also known as a woodchuck, is a rodent of the family Sciuridae, belonging to the group of large ground squirrels known as marmots. The groundhog is a lowland creature of North America; it is found through mu ...
is widespread throughout Illinois, Iowa, Missouri, and Minnesota.
Virginia opossum The Virginia opossum (''Didelphis virginiana''), also known as the North American opossum, is the only opossum living north of Mexico, its range extending south into Central America. It is the northernmost marsupial in the world. In the United S ...
is found is states such as Missouri, Indiana, Iowa, Oklahoma, Nebraska and Kansas. The
nine-banded armadillo The nine-banded armadillo (''Dasypus novemcinctus''), also known as the nine-banded long-nosed armadillo or common long-nosed armadillo, is a mammal found in North, Central, and South America, making it the most widespread of the armadillos. ...
is found throughout the South and states such as Missouri, Kansas and Oklahoma. The muskrat is found throughout the Central U.S., excluding Texas, while the
American beaver The North American beaver (''Castor canadensis'') is one of two extant beaver species, along with the Eurasian beaver (''Castor fiber''). It is native to North America and introduced in South America (Patagonia) and Europe (primarily Finland ...
is found in every central state. Maybe the most iconic animal of the American prairie, the
American buffalo American Buffalo may refer to: *American Buffalo (play), ''American Buffalo'' (play), a play by David Mamet *American Buffalo (film), ''American Buffalo'' (film), a 1996 film of Mamet's play directed by Michael Corrente *American Buffalo (coin), a ...
, once roamed throughout the central plains. Bison once covered the Great Plains and were critically important to Native-American societies in the Central U.S. They became nearly extinct in the 19th century, but have made a recent resurgence in the Great Plains. Today, bison numbers have rebounded to about 200,000; these bison live on preserves and ranches. Some of the species that occupy every central state include the red fox, bobcat,
white-tailed deer The white-tailed deer (''Odocoileus virginianus''), also known as the whitetail or Virginia deer, is a medium-sized deer native to North America, Central America, and South America as far south as Peru and Bolivia. It has also been introduced t ...
,
raccoon The raccoon ( or , ''Procyon lotor''), sometimes called the common raccoon to distinguish it from other species, is a mammal native to North America. It is the largest of the procyonid family, having a body length of , and a body weight of ...
,
eastern spotted skunk The eastern spotted skunk (''Spilogale putorius'') is a small, relatively slender skunk found in North America, throughout the eastern United States and in small areas of Canada and Mexico. This small skunk is more weasel-like in body shape tha ...
, striped skunk,
long-tailed weasel The long-tailed weasel (''Neogale frenata''), also known as the bridled weasel, masked ermine, or big stoat, is a species of mustelid distributed from southern Canada throughout all the United States and Mexico, southward through all of Central A ...
, and the
American badger The American badger (''Taxidea taxus'') is a North American badger similar in appearance to the European badger, although not closely related. It is found in the western, central, and northeastern United States, northern Mexico, and south-cent ...
and beaver. The
wild boar The wild boar (''Sus scrofa''), also known as the wild swine, common wild pig, Eurasian wild pig, or simply wild pig, is a suid native to much of Eurasia and North Africa, and has been introduced to the Americas and Oceania. The species is ...
is common in the South, while the
American mink The American mink (''Neogale vison'') is a semiaquatic species of mustelid native to North America, though human intervention has expanded its range to many parts of Europe, Asia and South America. Because of range expansion, the American mink i ...
lives in every central state with the exception of Texas. The least weasel is found around the
Great Lakes The Great Lakes, also called the Great Lakes of North America, are a series of large interconnected freshwater lakes in the mid-east region of North America that connect to the Atlantic Ocean via the Saint Lawrence River. There are five lak ...
as well as states such as Nebraska, the Dakotas, Minnesota, Iowa, Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin. The
gray fox The gray fox (''Urocyon cinereoargenteus''), or grey fox, is an omnivorous mammal of the family Canidae, widespread throughout North America and Central America. This species and its only congener, the diminutive island fox (''Urocyon littor ...
is found in Iowa, Missouri, Oklahoma, Texas and also around the Great Lakes region. The
ring-tailed cat The ringtail (''Bassariscus astutus'') is a mammal of the raccoon family native to arid regions of North America. It is widely distributed and well adapted to disturbed areas. It has been legally trapped for its fur. It is listed as Least Co ...
is found in the southern region, including in Texas, Missouri, and Oklahoma. There are many species of squirrels in the central parts of the U.S., including the
fox squirrel The fox squirrel (''Sciurus niger''), also known as the eastern fox squirrel or Bryant's fox squirrel, is the largest species of tree squirrel native to North America. Despite the differences in size and coloration, it is sometimes mistaken for A ...
,
eastern gray squirrel The eastern gray squirrel (''Sciurus carolinensis''), also known, particularly outside of North America, as simply the grey squirrel, is a tree squirrel in the genus ''Sciurus''. It is native to eastern North America, where it is the most prodi ...
,
Franklin's ground squirrel Franklin's ground squirrel (''Poliocitellus franklinii'') is a species of squirrel native to North America, and the only member of the genus ''Poliocitellus''. Due to the destruction of prairie, the populations of Franklin's ground squirrel have ...
,
southern flying squirrel The southern flying squirrel or the assapan (''Glaucomys volans'') is one of three species of the genus '' Glaucomys'' and one of three flying squirrel species found in North America. It is found in deciduous and mixed woods in the eastern half o ...
, and the
thirteen-lined ground squirrel The thirteen-lined ground squirrel (''Ictidomys tridecemlineatus''), also known as the striped gopher, leopard ground squirrel, squinney, (formerly known as the leopard-spermophile in the age of Audubon), is a ground squirrel that is widely dis ...
. Voles include the
prairie vole The prairie vole (''Microtus ochrogaster'') is a small vole found in central North America. The vole has long, coarse grayish-brown fur on the upper portion of the body and yellowish fur on the lower portion of the body. It has short ears and a ...
,
woodland vole The woodland vole (''Microtus pinetorum'') is a small vole found in eastern North America. It is also known as the pine vole. Characteristics The woodland vole has a head and body length ranging between with a short tail. Its weight ranges be ...
and the
meadow vole The eastern meadow vole (''Microtus pennsylvanicus''), sometimes called the field mouse or meadow mouse, is a North American vole found in eastern Canada and the United States. Its range extends farther south along the Atlantic coast. The west ...
. The
plains pocket gopher The plains pocket gopher (''Geomys bursarius'') is one of 35 species of pocket gophers, so named in reference to their externally located, fur-lined cheek pouches. They are burrowing animals, found in grasslands and agricultural land across the ...
lives throughout the Great Plains. Shrews include the
cinereus shrew The cinereus shrew or masked shrew (''Sorex cinereus'') is a small shrew found in Alaska, Canada, and the northern United States. This is the most widely distributed shrew in North America, where it is also known as the common shrew. Descriptio ...
,
southeastern shrew The southeastern shrew (''Sorex longirostris'') is a species of mammal in the family Soricidae. It is found in the southeastern United States. Description The southeastern shrew (''Sorex longirostris'') is reddish-brown above on its back, hea ...
,
North American least shrew The North American least shrew (''Cryptotis parvus'') is one of the smallest mammals, growing to be only up to 3 inches long. It has a long pointed snout and a tail never more than twice the length of its hind foot. The dense fur coat is e ...
, and the
Elliot's short-tailed shrew Elliot's short-tailed shrew (''Blarina hylophaga'') is a small, slate grey, short-tailed species of shrew. Its common name comes from Daniel Giraud Elliot, who first described the species in 1899. Description Elliot's short-tailed shrew is simil ...
.


Eastern United States

In the
Appalachian Mountains The Appalachian Mountains, often called the Appalachians, (french: Appalaches), are a system of mountains in eastern to northeastern North America. The Appalachians first formed roughly 480 million years ago during the Ordovician Period. They ...
and the Eastern United States are many animals that live in forested habitats. They include
deer Deer or true deer are hoofed ruminant mammals forming the family Cervidae. The two main groups of deer are the Cervinae, including the muntjac, the elk (wapiti), the red deer, and the fallow deer; and the Capreolinae, including the re ...
, rabbits,
rodent Rodents (from Latin , 'to gnaw') are mammals of the order Rodentia (), which are characterized by a single pair of continuously growing incisors in each of the upper and lower jaws. About 40% of all mammal species are rodents. They are n ...
s, squirrels, hares,
woodpecker Woodpeckers are part of the bird family Picidae, which also includes the piculets, wrynecks, and sapsuckers. Members of this family are found worldwide, except for Australia, New Guinea, New Zealand, Madagascar, and the extreme polar regions. ...
s,
owl Owls are birds from the order Strigiformes (), which includes over 200 species of mostly solitary and nocturnal birds of prey typified by an upright stance, a large, broad head, binocular vision, binaural hearing, sharp talons, and feathers a ...
s,
fox Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush''). Twelve sp ...
es and bears. The New England region is particularly famous for its crab and the American lobster living along most of the Atlantic Coast. The bobcat,
raccoon The raccoon ( or , ''Procyon lotor''), sometimes called the common raccoon to distinguish it from other species, is a mammal native to North America. It is the largest of the procyonid family, having a body length of , and a body weight of ...
and striped skunk live in every eastern state, while the
American alligator The American alligator (''Alligator mississippiensis''), sometimes referred to colloquially as a gator or common alligator, is a large crocodilian reptile native to the Southeastern United States. It is one of the two extant species in the gen ...
lives in every coastal state between North Carolina and Texas. Some species of mammals found throughout the Eastern U.S. includes the red fox and
gray fox The gray fox (''Urocyon cinereoargenteus''), or grey fox, is an omnivorous mammal of the family Canidae, widespread throughout North America and Central America. This species and its only congener, the diminutive island fox (''Urocyon littor ...
, the
North American beaver The North American beaver (''Castor canadensis'') is one of two extant beaver species, along with the Eurasian beaver (''Castor fiber''). It is native to North America and introduced in South America ( Patagonia) and Europe (primarily Finland ...
,
North American porcupine The North American porcupine (''Erethizon dorsatum''), also known as the Canadian porcupine, is a large quill-covered rodent in the New World porcupine family. It is the second largest rodent in North America, after the North American beaver ('' ...
,
Virginia opossum The Virginia opossum (''Didelphis virginiana''), also known as the North American opossum, is the only opossum living north of Mexico, its range extending south into Central America. It is the northernmost marsupial in the world. In the United S ...
,
eastern mole The Eastern Mole or Common Mole (''Scalopus aquaticus'') is a medium-sized North American mole. It is the only member of genus ''Scalopus''. It is found in forested and open areas with moist sandy soils in northern Mexico, the eastern Unite ...
, coyote,
white-tailed deer The white-tailed deer (''Odocoileus virginianus''), also known as the whitetail or Virginia deer, is a medium-sized deer native to North America, Central America, and South America as far south as Peru and Bolivia. It has also been introduced t ...
,
American mink The American mink (''Neogale vison'') is a semiaquatic species of mustelid native to North America, though human intervention has expanded its range to many parts of Europe, Asia and South America. Because of range expansion, the American mink i ...
,
North American river otter The North American river otter (''Lontra canadensis''), also known as the northern river otter and river otter, is a semiaquatic mammal that only lives on the North American continent, along its waterways and coasts. An adult North American rive ...
, and
long-tailed weasel The long-tailed weasel (''Neogale frenata''), also known as the bridled weasel, masked ermine, or big stoat, is a species of mustelid distributed from southern Canada throughout all the United States and Mexico, southward through all of Central A ...
. The American black bear lives throughout most of New England, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, the Virginias, and parts of the Carolinas and Florida. Shrews are common: the
cinereus shrew The cinereus shrew or masked shrew (''Sorex cinereus'') is a small shrew found in Alaska, Canada, and the northern United States. This is the most widely distributed shrew in North America, where it is also known as the common shrew. Descriptio ...
,
long-tailed shrew The long-tailed shrew or rock shrew (''Sorex dispar'') is a small shrew found in Atlantic Canada and the Northeastern United States. This shrew is slate grey in color with a pointed snout, a long tail, and lighter underparts. It is found on ro ...
and American water shrew are widespread in the New England region, while the
North American least shrew The North American least shrew (''Cryptotis parvus'') is one of the smallest mammals, growing to be only up to 3 inches long. It has a long pointed snout and a tail never more than twice the length of its hind foot. The dense fur coat is e ...
and
southeastern shrew The southeastern shrew (''Sorex longirostris'') is a species of mammal in the family Soricidae. It is found in the southeastern United States. Description The southeastern shrew (''Sorex longirostris'') is reddish-brown above on its back, hea ...
are common in the southeastern states. The
American pygmy shrew The American pygmy shrew (''Sorex hoyi'') is a small shrew found in Northern Alaska, Canada, and the northern United States, south through the Appalachian Mountains. It was first discovered in 1831 by naturalist William Cane in Georgian Bay, Parr ...
,
smoky shrew The smoky shrew (''Sorex fumeus'') is a medium-sized North American shrew found in eastern Canada and the northeastern United States and extends further south along the Appalachian Mountains The Appalachian Mountains, often called the Appal ...
, and
northern short-tailed shrew The northern short-tailed shrew (''Blarina brevicauda'') is the largest shrew in the genus ''Blarina'', and occurs in the northeastern region of North America. It is a semifossorial, highly active, and voracious insectivore and is present in a v ...
are found from the Appalachian Mountains to New England. The
star-nosed mole The star-nosed mole (''Condylura cristata'') is a small semiaquatic mole found in moist, low areas in the northern parts of North America. It is the only extant member of the tribe Condylurini and genus ''Condylura'', and it has more than 25, ...
lives throughout the Eastern U.S., while the
hairy-tailed mole The hairy-tailed mole (''Parascalops breweri''), also known as Brewer's mole, is a medium-sized North American mole. It is the only member of the genus ''Parascalops''. The species epithet ''breweri'' refers to Thomas Mayo Brewer, an American ...
is more common from the Appalachians to New England in the north. Hares are also common: the
snowshoe hare The snowshoe hare (''Lepus americanus''), also called the varying hare or snowshoe rabbit, is a species of hare found in North America. It has the name "snowshoe" because of the large size of its hind feet. The animal's feet prevent it from sin ...
thrives from the Appalachians to New England, the
Appalachian cottontail The Appalachian cottontail (''Sylvilagus obscurus'') is a species of cottontail rabbit in the family Leporidae. It is a rare species found in the upland areas of the eastern United States. Taxonomy The species was only recognized as separate f ...
is only found in the Appalachians, the
New England cottontail The New England cottontail (''Sylvilagus transitionalis''), also called the gray rabbit, brush rabbit, wood hare, wood rabbit, or cooney, is a species of cottontail rabbit represented by fragmented populations in areas of New England, specificall ...
is only found in New England, while the
eastern cottontail The eastern cottontail (''Sylvilagus floridanus'') is a New World cottontail rabbit, a member of the family Leporidae. It is the most common rabbit species in North America. Distribution The eastern cottontail can be found in meadows and shrubb ...
is widespread throughout the east. While the
white-footed mouse The white-footed mouse (''Peromyscus leucopus'') is a rodent native to North America from Ontario, Quebec, Labrador, and the Maritime Provinces (excluding the island of Newfoundland) to the southwestern United States and Mexico. In the Maritimes, ...
and muskrat are common throughout the east, with the exception of Florida, the
meadow vole The eastern meadow vole (''Microtus pennsylvanicus''), sometimes called the field mouse or meadow mouse, is a North American vole found in eastern Canada and the United States. Its range extends farther south along the Atlantic coast. The west ...
is found from the Appalachians to New England and the southern red-backed vole is found in New England. The
brown rat The brown rat (''Rattus norvegicus''), also known as the common rat, street rat, sewer rat, wharf rat, Hanover rat, Norway rat, Norwegian rat and Parisian rat, is a widespread species of common rat. One of the largest muroids, it is a brown o ...
and the house mouse were both introduced and their habitat range throughout the Eastern U.S. Weasels such as the
fisher Fisher is an archaic term for a fisherman, revived as gender-neutral. Fisher, Fishers or The Fisher may also refer to: Places Australia *Division of Fisher, an electoral district in the Australian House of Representatives, in Queensland *Elect ...
and short-tailed weasel are found in the northeast. The
eastern chipmunk The eastern chipmunk (''Tamias striatus'') is a chipmunk species found in eastern North America. It is the only living member of the chipmunk genus ''Tamias''. Etymology The name "chipmunk" comes from the Ojibwe word ''ajidamoo'' (or possibl ...
,
fox squirrel The fox squirrel (''Sciurus niger''), also known as the eastern fox squirrel or Bryant's fox squirrel, is the largest species of tree squirrel native to North America. Despite the differences in size and coloration, it is sometimes mistaken for A ...
,
eastern gray squirrel The eastern gray squirrel (''Sciurus carolinensis''), also known, particularly outside of North America, as simply the grey squirrel, is a tree squirrel in the genus ''Sciurus''. It is native to eastern North America, where it is the most prodi ...
and the
woodchuck The groundhog (''Marmota monax''), also known as a woodchuck, is a rodent of the family Sciuridae, belonging to the group of large ground squirrels known as marmots. The groundhog is a lowland creature of North America; it is found through m ...
are found throughout the region, while the
southern flying squirrel The southern flying squirrel or the assapan (''Glaucomys volans'') is one of three species of the genus '' Glaucomys'' and one of three flying squirrel species found in North America. It is found in deciduous and mixed woods in the eastern half o ...
and
northern flying squirrel The northern flying squirrel (''Glaucomys sabrinus'') is one of three species of the genus '' Glaucomys'', the only flying squirrels found in North America.Walker EP, Paradiso JL. 1975. ''Mammals of the World''. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins Universit ...
are more common in the southeast, the American red squirrel is more common in the northeast. The least weasel is native to the Appalachian Mountains. The
wild boar The wild boar (''Sus scrofa''), also known as the wild swine, common wild pig, Eurasian wild pig, or simply wild pig, is a suid native to much of Eurasia and North Africa, and has been introduced to the Americas and Oceania. The species is ...
is the wild ancestor of the domestic pig and has spread through much of the southeastern region as an invasive species. The
Canada lynx The Canada lynx (''Lynx canadensis''), or Canadian lynx, is a medium-sized North American lynx that ranges across Alaska, Canada, and northern areas of the contiguous United States. It is characterized by its long, dense fur, triangular ears ...
is found in parts of New England. Species of bats found throughout the east includes the
eastern pipistrelle The tricolored bat (''Perimyotis subflavus'') is a species of microbat native to eastern North America. Formerly known as the eastern pipistrelle, based on the incorrect belief that it was closely related to European ''Pipistrellus'' species, th ...
,
silver-haired bat The silver-haired bat (''Lasionycteris noctivagans'') is a solitary migratory species of vesper bat in the family Vespertilionidae and the only member of the genus ''Lasionycteris''. Etymology The species name translates as night-wandering, ref ...
,
eastern red bat The eastern red bat (''Lasiurus borealis'') is a species of microbat in the family Vespertilionidae. Eastern red bats are widespread across eastern North America, with additional records in Bermuda. Taxonomy and etymology It was described in 1 ...
,
hoary bat The hoary bat (''Lasiurus cinereus'') is a species of bat in the vesper bat family, Vespertilionidae. It lives throughout most of North America (possibly including Hawaii, although this is disputed). Taxonomy The hoary bat was described as a ...
,
big brown bat The big brown bat (''Eptesicus fuscus'') is a species of vesper bat distributed widely throughout North America, the Caribbean, and the northern portion of South America. It was first described as a species in 1796. Compared to other microbat ...
,
little brown bat The little brown bat or little brown myotis (''Myotis lucifugus'') is an endangered species of mouse-eared microbat found in North America. It has a small body size and glossy brown fur. It is similar in appearance to several other mouse-ea ...
, northern long-eared myotis, and in most regions the
eastern small-footed myotis The eastern small-footed bat (''Myotis leibii'') is a species of vesper bat. It can be found in southern Ontario and Quebec in Canada and in mountainous portions of the eastern United States from New England to northern Georgia, and westward to n ...
, gray bat and
Indiana bat The Indiana bat (''Myotis sodalis'') is a medium-sized mouse-eared bat native to North America. It lives primarily in Southern and Midwestern U.S. states and is listed as an endangered species. The Indiana bat is grey, black, or chestnut in colo ...
.Whitaker, John O. and William John Hamilton. 1998. Mammals of the Eastern United States. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press. .Feldhamer, George A., Bruce C. Thompson and Joseph A. Chapman. 2003. Wild Mammals of North America: Biology, Management, and Conservation. Baltimore, MD: JHU Press. . Of the marine life, the
harbor seal The harbor (or harbour) seal (''Phoca vitulina''), also known as the common seal, is a true seal found along temperate and Arctic marine coastlines of the Northern Hemisphere. The most widely distributed species of pinniped (walruses, eared se ...
is the most widely distributed species of seal and found along the east coast, while the
hooded seal The hooded seal (''Cystophora cristata'') is a large phocid found only in the central and western North Atlantic, ranging from Svalbard in the east to the Gulf of St. Lawrence in the west. The seals are typically silver-grey or white in color, w ...
, bearded seal,
grey seal The grey seal (''Halichoerus grypus'') is found on both shores of the North Atlantic Ocean. In Latin Halichoerus grypus means "hook-nosed sea pig". It is a large seal of the family Phocidae, which are commonly referred to as "true seals" or " ...
,
ringed seal The ringed seal (''Pusa hispida'') is an earless seal inhabiting the Arctic and sub-Arctic regions. The ringed seal is a relatively small seal, rarely greater than 1.5 m in length, with a distinctive patterning of dark spots surrounded by light ...
, and
harp seal The harp seal (''Pagophilus groenlandicus''), also known as Saddleback Seal or Greenland Seal, is a species of earless seal, or true seal, native to the northernmost Atlantic Ocean and Arctic Ocean. Originally in the genus ''Phoca'' with a numbe ...
are found in the northwest. Whales are common along Atlantic coastline. Whale species found along the entire coastline includes the
Gervais' beaked whale Gervais's beaked whale (''Mesoplodon europaeus''), sometimes known as the Antillean beaked whale, Gulf Stream beaked whale, or European beaked whale (from which its scientific name is derived) is the most frequently stranding type of mesoplodont ...
,
common minke whale The common minke whale or northern minke whale (''Balaenoptera acutorostrata'') is a species of minke whale within the suborder of baleen whales. It is the smallest species of the rorquals and the second smallest species of baleen whale. Althoug ...
,
fin whale The fin whale (''Balaenoptera physalus''), also known as finback whale or common rorqual and formerly known as herring whale or razorback whale, is a cetacean belonging to the parvorder of baleen whales. It is the second-longest species of ce ...
, sei whale,
blue whale The blue whale (''Balaenoptera musculus'') is a marine mammal and a baleen whale. Reaching a maximum confirmed length of and weighing up to , it is the largest animal known to have ever existed. The blue whale's long and slender body can ...
,
humpback whale The humpback whale (''Megaptera novaeangliae'') is a species of baleen whale. It is a rorqual (a member of the family Balaenopteridae) and is the only species in the genus ''Megaptera''. Adults range in length from and weigh up to . The hu ...
, sperm whale,
dwarf sperm whale The dwarf sperm whale (''Kogia sima'') is a sperm whale that inhabits temperate and tropical oceans worldwide, in particular continental shelves and slopes. It was first described by biologist Richard Owen in 1866, based on illustrations by n ...
,
pygmy sperm whale The pygmy sperm whale (''Kogia breviceps'') is one of two extant species in the family Kogiidae in the sperm whale superfamily. They are not often sighted at sea, and most of what is known about them comes from the examination of stranded speci ...
,
killer whale The orca or killer whale (''Orcinus orca'') is a toothed whale belonging to the oceanic dolphin family, of which it is the largest member. It is the only extant species in the genus ''Orcinus'' and is recognizable by its black-and-white ...
,
Cuvier's beaked whale The Cuvier's beaked whale, goose-beaked whale, or ziphius (''Ziphius cavirostris'') is the most widely distributed of all beaked whales in the family Ziphiidae. It is smaller than most baleen whales yet large among beaked whales. Cuvier's beaked ...
,
True's beaked whale True's beaked whale (''Mesoplodon mirus'') is a medium-sized whale in the genus ''Mesoplodon''. It is native to the northern Atlantic Ocean. The common name is in reference to Frederick W. True, a curator at the United States National Museum (no ...
, and the Blainville's beaked whale. The
northern bottlenose whale The northern bottlenose whale (''Hyperoodon ampullatus'') is a species of beaked whale in the ziphiid family, being one of two members of the genus ''Hyperoodon''. The northern bottlenose whale was hunted heavily by Norway and Britain in the 19 ...
and the
long-finned pilot whale The long-finned pilot whale (''Globicephala melas'') is a large species of oceanic dolphin. It shares the genus '' Globicephala'' with the short-finned pilot whale (''Globicephala macrorhynchus''). Long-finned pilot whales are known as such bec ...
are also common along the New England coast. Dolphins are common; species found along the entire coastline includes the
Risso's dolphin Risso's dolphin (''Grampus griseus'') is a dolphin, the only species of the genus ''Grampus''. Some of the closest related species to these dolphins include: pilot whales (''Globicephala'' spp.), pygmy killer whales (''Feresa attenuata''), melon ...
,
short-beaked common dolphin The common dolphin (''Delphinus delphis'') is the most abundant cetacean in the world, with a global population of about six million. Despite this fact and its vernacular name, the common dolphin is not thought of as the archetypal dolphin, with ...
,
striped dolphin The striped dolphin (''Stenella coeruleoalba'') is an extensively studied dolphin found in temperate and tropical waters of all the world's oceans. It is a member of the oceanic dolphin family, Delphinidae. Taxonomy The striped dolphin is one o ...
,
Atlantic spotted dolphin The Atlantic spotted dolphin (''Stenella frontalis'') is a dolphin found in warm temperate and tropical waters of the Atlantic Ocean. Older members of the species have a very distinctive spotted coloration all over their bodies. Taxonomy The Atl ...
and the
common bottlenose dolphin The common bottlenose dolphin or Atlantic bottlenose dolphin (''Tursiops truncatus'') is a wide-ranging marine mammal of the family Delphinidae. The common bottlenose dolphin is a very familiar dolphin due to the wide exposure it gets in captiv ...
. Dolphin species found in New England include
white-beaked dolphin The white-beaked dolphin (''Lagenorhynchus albirostris'') is a marine mammal belonging to the family Delphinidae (oceanic dolphins) in the suborder Odontoceti (toothed whales). Taxonomy The species was first described by the British taxonomist ...
and
Atlantic white-sided dolphin The Atlantic white-sided dolphin (''Lagenorhynchus acutus'') is a distinctively coloured dolphin found in the cool to temperate waters of the North Atlantic Ocean. Description The dolphin is slightly larger than most other oceanic dolphins. It ...
, while species roaming the southeastern parts of the coastline include the
Fraser's dolphin Fraser's dolphin or the Sarawak dolphin (''Lagenodelphis hosei'') is a cetacean in the family Delphinidae found in deep waters in the Pacific Ocean and to a lesser extent in the Indian and Atlantic Oceans. Taxonomy ''Lagenodelphis hosei'' is spe ...
,
pantropical spotted dolphin The pantropical spotted dolphin (''Stenella attenuata'') is a species of dolphin found in all the world's temperate and tropical oceans. The species was beginning to come under threat due to the killing of millions of individuals in tuna purse s ...
,
Clymene dolphin The Clymene dolphin (''Stenella clymene''), in older texts known as the short-snouted spinner dolphin, is a dolphin endemic to the Atlantic Ocean. It is the only confirmed case of hybrid speciation in marine mammals, descending from the spinner ...
,
spinner dolphin The spinner dolphin (''Stenella longirostris'') is a small dolphin found in off-shore tropical waters around the world. It is famous for its acrobatic displays in which it rotates around its longitudinal axis as it leaps through the air. It is a ...
, and the
rough-toothed dolphin The rough-toothed dolphin (''Steno bredanensis'') is a species of dolphin that can be found in deep warm and tropical waters around the world. The species was first described by Georges Cuvier in 1823. The genus name ''Steno'', of which this spe ...
. Several sea turtles live along the Atlantic coast, including the hawksbill sea turtle,
Kemp's ridley sea turtle Kemp's ridley sea turtle (''Lepidochelys kempii''), also called the Atlantic ridley sea turtle, is the rarest species of sea turtle and is the world's most endangered species of sea turtle. It is one of two living species in the genus '' Lepido ...
, and
loggerhead sea turtle The loggerhead sea turtle (''Caretta caretta'') is a species of oceanic turtle distributed throughout the world. It is a marine reptile, belonging to the family Cheloniidae. The average loggerhead measures around in carapace length when fully ...
. The green sea turtle and
leatherback sea turtle The leatherback sea turtle (''Dermochelys coriacea''), sometimes called the lute turtle or leathery turtle or simply the luth, is the largest of all living turtles and the heaviest non-crocodilian reptile, reaching lengths of up to and weight ...
are more common species along the southeastern coastline. Land turtles and tortoises found throughout most of the Eastern United States are the common snapping turtle, painted turtle,
spotted turtle The spotted turtle (''Clemmys guttata''), the only species of the genus ''Clemmys'', is a small, semi-aquatic turtle that reaches a carapace length of upon adulthood. Their broad, smooth, low dark-colored upper shell, or carapace, ranges in its ...
,
diamondback terrapin The diamondback terrapin or simply terrapin (''Malaclemys terrapin'') is a species of turtle native to the brackish coastal tidal marshes of the Northeastern and southern United States, and in Bermuda. It belongs to the monotypic genus ''Mal ...
,
spiny softshell turtle The spiny softshell turtle (''Apalone spinifera'') is a species of softshell turtle, one of the largest freshwater turtle species in North America. Both the common name, spiny softshell, and the specific name, ''spinifera'' (spine-bearing), r ...
, eastern mud turtle,
northern red-bellied cooter The northern red-bellied turtle (''Pseudemys rubriventris'') or American red-bellied turtle is a species of turtle in the Pseudemys (cooter) genus of the family Emydidae. Description A fairly large river turtle, it averages about in length and ...
, common musk turtle,
eastern box turtle The eastern box turtle (''Terrapene carolina carolina'') is a subspecies within a group of hinge-shelled turtles normally called box turtles. ''T. c. carolina'' is native to the eastern part of the United States. The eastern box turtl ...
, and the
yellow Yellow is the color between green and orange on the spectrum of light. It is evoked by light with a dominant wavelength of roughly 575585 nm. It is a primary color in subtractive color systems, used in painting or color printing. In the ...
- and
red-eared slider The red-eared slider or red-eared terrapin (''Trachemys scripta elegans'') is a subspecies of the pond slider (''Trachemys scripta''), a semiaquatic turtle belonging to the family Emydidae. It is the most popular pet turtle in the United States, ...
. While common species in the northeast include
Blanding's turtle Blanding's turtle (''Emydoidea blandingii'') is a semi-aquatic turtle of the family Emydidae. This species is native to central and eastern parts of Canada and the United States. It is considered to be an endangered species throughout much of ...
,
wood turtle The wood turtle (''Glyptemys insculpta'') is a species of turtle endemic to North America. It is in the genus ''Glyptemys'', a genus which contains only one other species of turtle: the bog turtle (''Glyptemys muhlenbergii'' ). The wood turtle ...
, and
bog turtle The bog turtle (''Glyptemys muhlenbergii'') is a critically endangered species of semiaquatic turtle in the family Emydidae. The species is endemic to the eastern United States. It was first scientifically described in 1801 after an 18th-century ...
, common species in the southeastern U.S. include
gopher tortoise The gopher tortoise (''Gopherus polyphemus'') is a species of tortoise in the family Testudinidae. The species is native to the southeastern United States. The gopher tortoise is seen as a keystone species because it digs burrows that provide ...
,
pond slider The pond slider (''Trachemys scripta'') is a species of common, medium-sized, semiaquatic turtle. Three subspecies are described, the most recognizable of which is the red-eared slider (''T. s. elegans''), which is popular in the pet trade and h ...
,
Escambia map turtle The Escambia map turtle (''Graptemys ernsti)'', also known Common name, commonly as Ernst's map turtle, is a species of turtle in the Family (biology), family Emydidae. The species is Endemism, endemic to the United States. Geographic range ''G. ...
,
Barbour's map turtle Barbour's map turtle (''Graptemys barbouri'') is a species of turtle in the family Emydidae. The species is native to the southeastern United States. Geographic range ''G. barbouri'' is found in rivers located in southeastern Alabama, the west ...
, eastern river cooter, striped mud turtle, loggerhead musk turtle, and the Florida softshell turtle. The
smooth softshell turtle The smooth softshell turtle (''Apalone mutica'') is a species of softshell turtle of the family Trionychidae. The species is endemic to North America. Geographic range ''A. mutica'' is native to North America. It is distributed throughout the ...
is for instance found in the Ohio River and the Allegheny River in Pennsylvania. Some of the snake species found in much of the Eastern U.S. includes the
eastern racer The eastern racer (''Coluber constrictor'') is a species of nonvenomous snake in the Family (biology), family Colubridae. The species is Endemism, endemic to North America and Central America. Eleven subspecies, including the nominotypical subspe ...
, De Kay's snake,
northern copperhead Northern copperhead may refer to: * '' Agkistrodon contortrix contortrix'', a.k.a. the eastern copperhead, a venomous pitviper subspecies found in the United States in the lower Mississippi Valley and the states bordering the Gulf of Mexico, from e ...
, ringneck snake,
timber rattlesnake The timber rattlesnake, canebrake rattlesnake, or banded rattlesnake (''Crotalus horridus'') Wright AH, Wright AA (1957). ''Handbook of Snakes of the United States and Canada''. Ithaca and London: Comstock Publishing Associates, a division of ...
, eastern hog-nosed snake,
milk snake The milk snake or milksnake (''Lampropeltis triangulum''), is a species of kingsnake; 24 subspecies are currently recognized. ''Lampropeltis elapsoides'', the scarlet kingsnake, was formerly classified as a 25th subspecies (''L. t. elapsoides'') ...
,
northern water snake The common watersnake (''Nerodia sipedon'') is a species of large, nonvenomous, common snake in the family Colubridae. The species is native to North America. It is frequently mistaken for the venomous cottonmouth (''Agkistrodon piscivorus''). ...
,
western rat snake ''Pantherophis obsoletus'', also known commonly as the western rat snake, black rat snake, pilot black snake, or simply black snake, is a nonvenomous species of snake in the family Colubridae. The species is native to central North America. Th ...
,
northern redbelly snake The northern redbelly snake (''Storeria occipitomaculata occipitomaculata'') is a nonvenomous snake in the family Colubridae, a subspecies of '' Storeria occipitomaculata''. It is sometimes referred to as a fire snake. It is endemic, North Ame ...
, plainbelly water snake, midland water snake,
scarlet kingsnake The scarlet kingsnake or scarlet milk snake (''Lampropeltis elapsoides'') is a species of kingsnake found in the southeastern and eastern portions of the United States. Like all kingsnakes, they are nonvenomous. They are found in pine flatwoods, ...
, common kingsnake,
queen snake The queen snake (''Regina septemvittata'') is a species of nonvenomous semiaquatic snake, a member of the subfamily Natricinae of the family Colubridae. The species is endemic to North America. Common names ''R. septemvittata'' is known by man ...
, smooth earth snake, ribbon snake, and the
common garter snake The common garter snake (''Thamnophis sirtalis'') is a species of thamnophis snake, in the natricine subfamily, which is indigenous to North America and found widely across the continent. Most common garter snakes have a pattern of yellow strip ...
. Snake species mostly found in the northeast includes the
smooth green snake The smooth green snake (''Opheodrys vernalis'') is a species of North American nonvenomous snake in the family Colubridae. The species is also referred to as the grass snake. It is a slender, "small medium" snake that measures as an adult. It g ...
, northern ribbon snake, and the eastern worm snake. Snakes limited to the southeast includes the southeastern crown snake, pinesnake,
eastern diamondback rattlesnake The eastern diamondback rattlesnake (''Crotalus adamanteus'') is a species of pit viper in the family Viperidae. The species is endemic to the Southeastern United States. It is one of the heaviest venomous snakes in the Americas and the largest r ...
,
coral snake Coral snakes are a large group of elapid snakes that can be divided into two distinct groups, the Old World coral snakes and New World coral snakes. There are 16 species of Old World coral snakes, in three genera (''Calliophis'', '' Hemibungar ...
,
pygmy rattlesnake :''Common names: pygmy rattlesnake, eastern pygmy rattlesnake, ground rattlesnake, leaf rattler, death rattler, more.'' Wright AH, Wright AA (1957). ''Handbook of Snakes of the United States and Canada''. Ithaca and London: Comstock Publishing A ...
, southern copperhead,
water moccasin ''Agkistrodon piscivorus'' is a species of pit viper in the subfamily Crotalinae of the family Viperidae. It is one of the world's few semiaquatic vipers (along with the Florida cottonmouth), and is native to the southeastern United States. A ...
, eastern coral snake,
eastern indigo snake The eastern indigo snake (''Drymarchon couperi'') is a species of large, non-venomous snake in the family Colubridae. Native to the southeastern region of the United States, it is the longest native snake species in North America. Taxonomy an ...
,
southern hognose snake ''Heterodon simus'', commonly known as the southern hog-nosed snake, is a harmless snake species Endemism, endemic to the southeastern United States. No subspecies are currently recognized. Description Adults are 35.5–61 cm (14-24 inches ...
,
coachwhip snake ''Masticophis flagellum'' is a species of nonvenomous colubrid snake, commonly referred to as the coachwhip or the whip snake, which is endemic to the United States and Mexico. Six subspecies are recognized, including the nominotypical subspecie ...
,
banded water snake The banded water snake or southern water snake (''Nerodia fasciata'') is a species of mostly aquatic, nonvenomous, colubrid snakes endemic to the Midwest and Southeastern United States. Geographic range ''N. fasciata'' is natively found from ...
,
brown water snake The brown water snake (''Nerodia taxispilota'') is a large species of nonvenomous natricine snake endemic to the southeastern United States. This snake is often one of the most abundant species of snakes found in rivers and streams of the southea ...
,
green water snake The green water snake (''Nerodia cyclopion'') is a common species of nonvenomous natricine snake endemic to the southeastern United States. Geographic range ''N. cyclopion'' is distributed from the Florida panhandle westward to Louisiana, and n ...
, ''
Nerodia clarkii clarkii ''Nerodia clarkii clarkii'', the Gulf salt marsh snake, is a subspecies of '' N. clarkii'' that is indigenous to the south-eastern United States. It is a nonvenomous, colubrid snake that inhabits coastal salt marshes and brackish estuaries along ...
'', salt marsh snake, mole kingsnake,
pine woods snake The pine woods snake (''Rhadinaea flavilata''), also commonly known as the yellow-lipped snake or the brown-headed snake, is a species of secretive colubrid found in scattered locations across the south-eastern United States. ''Rhadinaea flavila ...
, glossy crayfish snake, striped crayfish snake, short-tailed snake, swamp snake, rim rock crown snake, rough earth snake, southern black racer,
rough green snake ''Opheodrys aestivus'', commonly known as the rough green snake, is a nonvenomous North American colubrid. It is sometimes called grass snake or green grass snake, but these names are more commonly applied to the smooth green snake (''Opheodrys ...
,
western rat snake ''Pantherophis obsoletus'', also known commonly as the western rat snake, black rat snake, pilot black snake, or simply black snake, is a nonvenomous species of snake in the family Colubridae. The species is native to central North America. Th ...
, eel moccasin, and the mud and corn snakes. The
eastern fence lizard The eastern fence lizard (''Sceloporus undulatus'') is a medium-sized species of lizard in the family Phrynosomatidae. The species is found along forest edges, rock piles, and rotting logs or stumps in the eastern United States. It is sometimes ref ...
is common throughout the Eastern United States, with the exception of New York and New England. The gray wolf once roamed the Eastern U.S., but is now extinct from this region. The eastern cougar as well was once as widespread as the cougar in the western parts of the country, but was deemed extinct by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in 2011.
Eastern elk The eastern elk (''Cervus canadensis canadensis'') is an extinct subspecies or distinct population of elk that inhabited the northern and eastern United States, and southern Canada. The last eastern elk was shot in Pennsylvania on September 1, 18 ...
once lived throughout the east, but was extirpated in the 19th century and declared as extinct by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in 1880.
Moose The moose (in North America) or elk (in Eurasia) (''Alces alces'') is a member of the New World deer subfamily and is the only species in the genus ''Alces''. It is the largest and heaviest extant species in the deer family. Most adult ma ...
as well once roamed throughout the east, but is currently only found in northern New England. Due to its highly prized fur, the
sea mink The sea mink (''Neogale macrodon'') is a recently extinct species of mink that lived on the eastern coast of North America around the Gulf of Maine on the New England seaboard. It was most closely related to the American mink (''Neogale vison' ...
was hunted to extinction in 1903.


Hawaiian Islands

Much of the fauna in
Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only state ...
has developed special adaptations to their home and evolved into new species. Today, nearly 90% percent of the fauna in
Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only state ...
are
endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found else ...
, meaning that they exist nowhere else on Earth. Kauaʻi is home to the largest number of tropical birds, as it is the only island free of
mongooses A mongoose is a small terrestrial carnivorous mammal belonging to the family Herpestidae. This family is currently split into two subfamilies, the Herpestinae and the Mungotinae. The Herpestinae comprises 23 living species that are native to ...
. The
Javan mongoose The Javan mongoose (''Urva javanica'') is a mongoose species native to Southeast Asia. Taxonomy ''Ichneumon javanicus'' was the scientific name proposed by Étienne Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire in 1818. It was later classified in the genus ''Herpestes' ...
is widespread throughout the archipelago, except on the islands of
Lanaʻi Lanai ( haw, Lānai, , , also ,) is the sixth-largest of the Hawaiian Islands and the smallest publicly accessible inhabited island in the chain. It is colloquially known as the Pineapple Island because of its past as an island-wide pineapple p ...
and Kauaʻi. Famous birds include
ʻiʻiwi The iiwi (''Drepanis coccinea'', pronounced , ''ee-EE-vee'') or scarlet honeycreeper is a species of Hawaiian honeycreeper. The iiwi is a highly recognizable symbol of Hawaii. The iiwi is the third most common native land bird in the Hawaiian Is ...
, nukupuʻu,
Kauaʻi ʻamakihi The Kauaʻi ʻamakihi (''Chlorodrepanis stejnegeri'') is a species of Hawaiian honeycreepers endemic to Kauaʻi in the family Fringillidae. The species Hawaiian name is associated with is Kihikihi, or kihi, which stems from the word amakihi. Kihik ...
and ʻōʻū. Unfortunaly, most of these birds and now extinct. The
hoary bat The hoary bat (''Lasiurus cinereus'') is a species of bat in the vesper bat family, Vespertilionidae. It lives throughout most of North America (possibly including Hawaii, although this is disputed). Taxonomy The hoary bat was described as a ...
is found in the
Kōkeʻe State Park Kōkee State Park is located in northwestern Kauai in the Hawaiian Islands. It includes the Kōkeʻe Museum at the marker on State Road 550, which focuses on the weather, vegetation, and bird life; a lodge which serves food and sells gifts; cab ...
on Kauaʻi, wild horses live in the
Waipio Valley Waipio Valley is a valley located in the Hamakua District of the Big Island of Hawaii. "Waipio" means "curved water" in the Hawaiian language. The valley was the capital and permanent residence of many early Hawaiian Aliʻi (chiefs/kings) up ...
, wild cattle by the Mauna Kea and the Australian
brush-tailed rock-wallaby The brush-tailed rock-wallaby or small-eared rock-wallaby (''Petrogale penicillata'') is a kind of wallaby, one of several rock-wallabies in the genus '' Petrogale''. It inhabits rock piles and cliff lines along the Great Dividing Range from ab ...
live by the Kalihi Valley on Oʻahu. The
Hawaiian monk seal The Hawaiian monk seal (''Neomonachus schauinslandi'') is an endangered species of earless seal in the family Phocidae that is endemic to the Hawaiian Islands. The Hawaiian monk seal is one of two extant monk seal species; the other is the ...
, wild goats, sheep and
pigs The pig (''Sus domesticus''), often called swine, hog, or domestic pig when distinguishing from other members of the genus '' Sus'', is an omnivorous, domesticated, even-toed, hoofed mammal. It is variously considered a subspecies of ''Sus ...
live throughout most of the archipelago. In
Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only state ...
, three species of sea turtles are considered native: honu, honu’ea and the
leatherback sea turtle The leatherback sea turtle (''Dermochelys coriacea''), sometimes called the lute turtle or leathery turtle or simply the luth, is the largest of all living turtles and the heaviest non-crocodilian reptile, reaching lengths of up to and weight ...
. Two other species, the
loggerhead sea turtle The loggerhead sea turtle (''Caretta caretta'') is a species of oceanic turtle distributed throughout the world. It is a marine reptile, belonging to the family Cheloniidae. The average loggerhead measures around in carapace length when fully ...
and the
olive ridley sea turtle The olive ridley sea turtle (''Lepidochelys olivacea''), also known commonly as the Pacific ridley sea turtle, is a species of turtle in the family Cheloniidae. The species is the second-smallest and most abundant of all sea turtles found in ...
, are sometimes observed in Hawaiian waters. The
Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only state ...
an green sea turtle is the most common sea turtle in
Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only state ...
an waters. As well as turtles, the sea life consist of more than forty species of shark and the Hawaiian spinner dolphin is widespread.
Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only state ...
's coral reefs are home to over 5000 species, and 25 percent of these are found nowhere else in the world.


Alaska

The
wildlife of Alaska The wildlife of Alaska is both diverse and abundant. The Alaskan Peninsula provides an important habitat for fish, mammals, reptiles, and birds. At the top of the food chain are the bears. Alaska contains about 70% of the total North American br ...
is abundant, extremely diverse and includes for instance
polar bears The polar bear (''Ursus maritimus'') is a hypercarnivorous bear whose native range lies largely within the Arctic Circle, encompassing the Arctic Ocean, its surrounding seas and surrounding land masses. It is the largest extant bear specie ...
, puffins,
moose The moose (in North America) or elk (in Eurasia) (''Alces alces'') is a member of the New World deer subfamily and is the only species in the genus ''Alces''. It is the largest and heaviest extant species in the deer family. Most adult ma ...
, bald eagles,
Arctic fox The Arctic fox (''Vulpes lagopus''), also known as the white fox, polar fox, or snow fox, is a small fox native to the Arctic regions of the Northern Hemisphere and common throughout the Arctic tundra biome. It is well adapted to living in ...
es,
wolves The wolf (''Canis lupus''; : wolves), also known as the gray wolf or grey wolf, is a large canine native to Eurasia and North America. More than thirty subspecies of ''Canis lupus'' have been recognized, and gray wolves, as popularly un ...
,
Canadian lynx The Canada lynx (''Lynx canadensis''), or Canadian lynx, is a medium-sized North American lynx that ranges across Alaska, Canada, and northern areas of the contiguous United States. It is characterized by its long, dense fur, triangular ears w ...
,
muskox The muskox (''Ovibos moschatus'', in Latin "musky sheep-ox"), also spelled musk ox and musk-ox, plural muskoxen or musk oxen (in iu, ᐅᒥᖕᒪᒃ, umingmak; in Woods Cree: ), is a hoofed mammal of the family Bovidae. Native to the Arctic, ...
,
snowshoe hare The snowshoe hare (''Lepus americanus''), also called the varying hare or snowshoe rabbit, is a species of hare found in North America. It has the name "snowshoe" because of the large size of its hind feet. The animal's feet prevent it from sin ...
, mountain goats,
walrus The walrus (''Odobenus rosmarus'') is a large flippered marine mammal with a discontinuous distribution about the North Pole in the Arctic Ocean and subarctic seas of the Northern Hemisphere. The walrus is the only living species in the fami ...
and caribou. Life zones in
Alaska Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S. ...
range from grasslands, mountains, tundra to thick forests, which leads to a huge diversity in terrain and geology throughout the state.
Alaska Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S. ...
has also over 430 species of birds and the largest population of bald eagles in the nation. From pygmy shrews that weigh less than a penny to gray whales that weigh 45 tons,
Alaska Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S. ...
is the "Last Frontier" for animals as well as people. Many species endangered elsewhere are still abundant in
Alaska Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S. ...
.


Aleutian Islands

The
Aleutian Islands The Aleutian Islands (; ; ale, Unangam Tanangin,”Land of the Aleuts", possibly from Chukchi ''aliat'', "island"), also called the Aleut Islands or Aleutic Islands and known before 1867 as the Catherine Archipelago, are a chain of 14 large v ...
are home to an abundance of large bird colonies; more than 240 bird species inhabit in Alaska's
Aleutian Archipelago The Aleutian Islands (; ; ale, Unangam Tanangin,”Land of the Aleuts", possibly from Chukchi ''aliat'', "island"), also called the Aleut Islands or Aleutic Islands and known before 1867 as the Catherine Archipelago, are a chain of 14 large vo ...
. Large seabird colonies are present on islands like Buldir Island, which has 21 breeding seabird species, including the Bering Sea-endemic
red-legged kittiwake The red-legged kittiwake (''Rissa brevirostris'') is a seabird species in the gull family Laridae. It breeds in the Pribilof Islands, Bogoslof Island and Buldir Island in the Bering Sea off the coast of Alaska, and the Commander Islands, Russia ...
. Large seabird colonies are also present on
Kiska Island Kiska ( ale, Qisxa, russian: Кыска) is one of the Rat Islands, a group of the Aleutian Islands of Alaska. It is about long and varies in width from . It is part of Aleutian Islands Wilderness and as such, special permission is require ...
,
Gareloi Island Gareloi (russian: Горелый) or Anangusook ( ale, Anangusix̂) is a volcanic island in the Delarof Islands of the Aleutian Islands of Alaska. It is located between the Tanaga Pass and the Amchitka Pass Amchitka Pass is a strait in Alask ...
,
Semisopochnoi Island Semisopochnoi Island or Unyak Island (obsolete russian: Семисопочной, modern russian: Семисопочный Semisopochny "having seven hills"; ale, Unyax̂) is part of the Rat Islands group in the western Aleutian Islands of Alaska ...
, Bogoslof Island, and several others. The islands are also frequented by vagrant Asiatic birds, including the
common rosefinch The common rosefinch (''Carpodacus erythrinus'') or scarlet rosefinch is the most widespread and common rosefinch of Asia and Europe. Taxonomy In a molecular phylogenetic study of the finch family published in 2012, Zuccon and colleagues found t ...
, Siberian rubythroat,
bluethroat The bluethroat (''Luscinia svecica'') is a small passerine bird that was formerly classed as a member of the thrush family Turdidae, but is now more generally considered to be an Old World flycatcher, Muscicapidae. It, and similar small Europea ...
, lanceolated warbler, and the first North American record of the
intermediate egret The intermediate egret, median egret, smaller egret, or yellow-billed egret (''Ardea intermedia'') is a medium-sized heron. Some taxonomists put the species in the genus '' Egretta'' or ''Mesophoyx''. It is a resident breeder from east Africa a ...
. Other animals in the Aleutian Chain include the
Arctic fox The Arctic fox (''Vulpes lagopus''), also known as the white fox, polar fox, or snow fox, is a small fox native to the Arctic regions of the Northern Hemisphere and common throughout the Arctic tundra biome. It is well adapted to living in ...
,
American mink The American mink (''Neogale vison'') is a semiaquatic species of mustelid native to North America, though human intervention has expanded its range to many parts of Europe, Asia and South America. Because of range expansion, the American mink i ...
,
Porcupine caribou The Porcupine caribou ''(Rangifer tarandus groenlandicus'') is a herd or ecotype of barren-ground caribou, the subspecies of the reindeer or caribou found in Alaska, United States, and Yukon and the Northwest Territories, Canada. A recent revisio ...
,
northern sea otter Northern may refer to the following: Geography * North, a point in direction * Northern Europe, the northern part or region of Europe * Northern Highland, a region of Wisconsin, United States * Northern Province, Sri Lanka * Northern Range, a ...
, horned puffin,
tufted puffin The tufted puffin (''Fratercula cirrhata''), also known as crested puffin, is a relatively abundant medium-sized pelagic seabird in the auk family (Alcidae) found throughout the North Pacific Ocean. It is one of three species of puffin that make ...
, Steller sea lion,
spotted seal The spotted seal (''Phoca largha''), also known as the larga seal or largha seal, is a member of the family Phocidae, and is considered a "true seal". It inhabits ice floes and waters of the north Pacific Ocean and adjacent seas. It is primaril ...
,
ringed seal The ringed seal (''Pusa hispida'') is an earless seal inhabiting the Arctic and sub-Arctic regions. The ringed seal is a relatively small seal, rarely greater than 1.5 m in length, with a distinctive patterning of dark spots surrounded by light ...
,
northern fur seal The northern fur seal (''Callorhinus ursinus'') is an eared seal found along the north Pacific Ocean, the Bering Sea, and the Sea of Okhotsk. It is the largest member of the fur seal subfamily (Arctocephalinae) and the only living species in t ...
and many more.


Territories


American Samoa

Because of its remote location, diversity among the terrestrial species is low. The archipelago has a huge variety in animals and more than 9,000 acres is a national park:
National Park of American Samoa The National Park of American Samoa is a national park in the United States territory of American Samoa, distributed across three islands: Tutuila, Ofu, and Ta‘ū. The park preserves and protects coral reefs, tropical rainforests, fruit bats ...
. The park stretches over three of the six islands in the archipelago:
Tutuila Tutuila is the main island of American Samoa (and its largest), and is part of the archipelago of Samoan Islands. It is the third largest island in the Samoan Islands chain of the Central Pacific. It is located roughly northeast of Brisbane, A ...
,
Ofu-Olosega Ofu and Olosega are parts of a volcanic doublet in the Manuʻa Islands, which is a part of American Samoa in the Samoan Islands. These twin islands, formed from shield volcanoes, have a combined length of 6 km and a combined area of . Together ...
and Ta‘ū. Eight mammal species have been recorded at American Samoa, of which none of them are critically endangered. The mammals include several species of native bats, including the
Samoa flying fox The Samoa flying fox or Samoan flying fox (''Pteropus samoensis'') is a species of flying fox in the family Pteropodidae. It is found in American Samoa, Fiji, and Samoa (where it is known as ''pe'a'' and ''pe'a vao''). Its natural habitat is sub ...
and
insular flying fox The insular flying fox or Pacific flying fox (''Pteropus tonganus'') is a species of flying fox in the family Pteropodidae. It is geographically widespread, the most widespread flying fox in the Pacific: it is found in American Samoa, the Cook I ...
. The avifauna includes 65 species of bird where the more unusual distinctive ones are the
blue-crowned lorikeet The blue-crowned lorikeet (''Vini australis''), also known as the blue-crowned lory, blue-crested lory, Solomon lory or Samoan lory, is a parrot found throughout the Lau Islands (Fiji), Tonga, Samoa, Niue and adjacent islands, including: ʻAlofi ...
, the
spotless crake The spotless crake (''Zapornia tabuensis'') is a species of bird in the rail family, Rallidae. It is widely distributed species occurring from the Philippines, New Guinea and Australia, across the southern Pacific Ocean to the Marquesas Islands a ...
, the
many-colored fruit dove The many-colored fruit dove (''Ptilinopus perousii''), also known as ''manuma'' in the Samoan language, is a species of bird in the family Columbidae. It occurs on islands in the south-west Pacific Ocean where it is found in Fiji, the Samoan Isla ...
, the
wattled honeyeater The wattled honeyeaters make up a genus (''Foulehaio'') of birds in the family Meliphagidae. It contains the following species: Foulehaio, * Birds of the Pacific Ocean,   Taxa named by Ludwig Reichenbach {{Meliphagidae-stub ...
, tropical pigeons, the
samoan starling The Samoan starling (''Aplonis atrifusca'') is a large starling of the family Sturnidae. It is found in the Samoan Islands. The species has a dark brown, glossy appearance, with a long bill. Its natural habitat is tropical moist forest on volcan ...
,
white tern The white tern or common white tern (''Gygis alba'') is a small seabird found across the tropical oceans of the world. It is sometimes known as the fairy tern, although this name is potentially confusing as it is also the common name of '' Sternu ...
,
black noddy The black noddy or white-capped noddy (''Anous minutus'') is a seabird from the family Laridae. It is a medium-sized species of tern with black plumage and a white cap. It closely resembles the lesser noddy (''Anous tenuirostris'') with which it ...
and the red-tailed tropicbird. There are many reptiles in the islands, including five species of geckos, eight species of skinks and two species of snakes: the Pacific boa and the Australoasian blindsnake. The marine life is magnificent and much concentrated around the colorful coral reefs. The Samoan ocean is a home to sea turtles as hawksbill sea turtle,
olive ridley sea turtle The olive ridley sea turtle (''Lepidochelys olivacea''), also known commonly as the Pacific ridley sea turtle, is a species of turtle in the family Cheloniidae. The species is the second-smallest and most abundant of all sea turtles found in ...
,
leatherback sea turtle The leatherback sea turtle (''Dermochelys coriacea''), sometimes called the lute turtle or leathery turtle or simply the luth, is the largest of all living turtles and the heaviest non-crocodilian reptile, reaching lengths of up to and weight ...
and the green sea turtle. Five species of dolphins live in the area:
spinner dolphin The spinner dolphin (''Stenella longirostris'') is a small dolphin found in off-shore tropical waters around the world. It is famous for its acrobatic displays in which it rotates around its longitudinal axis as it leaps through the air. It is a ...
,
rough-toothed dolphin The rough-toothed dolphin (''Steno bredanensis'') is a species of dolphin that can be found in deep warm and tropical waters around the world. The species was first described by Georges Cuvier in 1823. The genus name ''Steno'', of which this spe ...
, bottlenose dolphin,
pantropical spotted dolphin The pantropical spotted dolphin (''Stenella attenuata'') is a species of dolphin found in all the world's temperate and tropical oceans. The species was beginning to come under threat due to the killing of millions of individuals in tuna purse s ...
and
striped dolphin The striped dolphin (''Stenella coeruleoalba'') is an extensively studied dolphin found in temperate and tropical waters of all the world's oceans. It is a member of the oceanic dolphin family, Delphinidae. Taxonomy The striped dolphin is one o ...
.


Guam

Shortly after World War II, the
brown tree snake The brown tree snake (''Boiga irregularis''), also known as the brown catsnake, is an arboreal rear-fanged colubrid snake native to eastern and northern coastal Australia, eastern Indonesia (Sulawesi to Papua), Papua New Guinea, and many islands ...
was introduced to the island of Guam and caused much of the endemic wildlife to become extinct. Due to an abundance of prey species and lack of predators, the brown tree snake's population exploded and reached nearly 13,000 snakes per square mile at most. Ten out of twelve endemic bird species, ten lizards and two bats all became extinct as a result of the introduction of the brown tree snake. In recent years, a lot has been done by the U.S. government to decrease the number of brown tree snakes on the island. For instance in 2013, a $1 million program by the
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service The United States Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS or FWS) is an agency within the United States Department of the Interior dedicated to the management of fish, wildlife, and natural habitats. The mission of the agency is "working with othe ...
dropped more than 2000 mice filled with poison on the island. In 2013, more than two million brown tree snakes were estimated to be on the island. Other introduced species include the
Philippine deer The Philippine deer (''Rusa marianna''), also known as the Philippine sambar or Philippine brown deer, is a vulnerable deer species endemic to the Philippines. It was first described from introduced populations in the Mariana Islands, hence t ...
, the
Asiatic water buffalo The water buffalo (''Bubalus bubalis''), also called the domestic water buffalo or Asian water buffalo, is a large bovid originating in the Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia. Today, it is also found in Europe, Australia, North America, So ...
, the marine toad and the
giant African land snail Giant African land snail is the common name of several species within the family Achatinidae, a family of unusually large African terrestrial snails: * ''Achatina achatina'', also known as the agate snail or Ghana tiger snail * ''Lissachatina fulic ...
. Several native species of skinks, geckos and a monitor lizard are still found on the island.


Northern Mariana Islands

The Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands is home to 40 indigenous and introduced bird species. Some endemic bird species are the Mariana fruit dove, the
Mariana swiftlet The Mariana swiftlet or Guam swiftlet (''Aerodramus bartschi'') is a species of swiftlet in the family Apodidae. Taxonomy It was formerly lumped with the island swiftlet (''Aerodramus inquietus''). Description The swiftlet is about 11 cm ...
, the Rota white-eye, the Tinian monarch, the
bridled white-eye The bridled white-eye (''Zosterops conspicillatus'') (Chamorro name: ''nosa'') was a species of bird in the family Zosteropidae. It was endemic to the island of Guam in the Mariana Islands. The species' natural habitat was subtropical or tropica ...
and the
golden white-eye The golden white-eye (''Cleptornis marchei'') is a species of bird in the white-eye family, Zosteropidae. It is the only species within the genus ''Cleptornis''. The golden white-eye was once considered to be a honeyeater in the family Melipha ...
. Other common, but introduced species, include the
collared kingfisher The collared kingfisher (''Todiramphus chloris'') is a medium-sized kingfisher belonging to the subfamily Halcyoninae, the tree kingfishers. It is also known as the white-collared kingfisher, black-masked kingfisher or mangrove kingfisher. It has ...
, the
rufous fantail The rufous fantail (''Rhipidura rufifrons'') is a small passerine bird, most commonly known also as the black-breasted rufous-fantail or rufous-fronted fantail, which can be found in Australia, Indonesia, Micronesia, New Guinea and the Solomon I ...
, the
fairy tern The fairy tern (''Sternula nereis'') is a small tern which is native to the southwestern Pacific. It is listed as " Vulnerable" by the IUCN and the New Zealand subspecies is " Critically Endangered". There are three subspecies: * Australian fai ...
and the uniform swiftlet. The
Mariana fruit bat The Mariana fruit bat (''Pteropus mariannus''), also known as the Mariana flying fox, and the ''fanihi'' in Chamorro, is a megabat found only in the Mariana Islands and Ulithi (an atoll in the Caroline Islands). Habitat loss has driven it to enda ...
is endemic to both Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands. The sambar deer is the largest mammal and lives on several of the islands. The
Mariana monitor ''Varanus tsukamotoi'', the Mariana monitor or Saipan monitor, is a species of lizard of the Varanidae family. It is endemic to the Northern Mariana Islands and Guam, and has been introduced to Japtan in the Marshall Islands. Etymology It was ...
, ranging up to 3 feet long, is also present on the island of Rota. The oceans are home to more than a thousand species of marine life, including for instance the
coconut crabs The coconut crab (''Birgus latro'') is a species of terrestrial hermit crab, also known as the robber crab or palm thief. It is the largest terrestrial arthropod in the world, with a weight of up to . It can grow to up to in width from the tip ...
, the
mahi-mahi The mahi-mahi () or common dolphinfish (''Coryphaena hippurus'') is a surface-dwelling ray-finned fish found in off-shore temperate, tropical, and subtropical waters worldwide. Also widely called dorado (not to be confused with ''Salminus brasi ...
, the
barracuda A barracuda, or cuda for short, is a large, predatory, ray-finned fish known for its fearsome appearance and ferocious behaviour. The barracuda is a saltwater fish of the genus ''Sphyraena'', the only genus in the family Sphyraenidae, which was ...
,
tridacna ''Tridacna'' is a genus of large saltwater clams, marine bivalve molluscs in the subfamily Tridacninae, the giant clams. They have heavy shells, fluted with 4 to 6 folds. The mantle is brightly coloured. They inhabit shallow waters of coral ...
,
marlin Marlins are fish from the family Istiophoridae, which includes about 10 species. A marlin has an elongated body, a spear-like snout or bill, and a long, rigid dorsal fin which extends forward to form a crest. Its common name is thought to deri ...
and
tuna A tuna is a saltwater fish that belongs to the tribe Thunnini, a subgrouping of the Scombridae ( mackerel) family. The Thunnini comprise 15 species across five genera, the sizes of which vary greatly, ranging from the bullet tuna (max len ...
.


Puerto Rico

Puerto Rico has 349 bird species, 83 mammals, 25 amphibians, 61 reptiles and 677 species of fish. Birds found nowhere else on earth include for instance the
Puerto Rican owl The Puerto Rican owl (''Gymnasio nudipes'') or ''múcaro común'' (Spanish via Taino), formerly known as the Puerto Rican screech owl, is a mid-sized "true owl" in the subfamily Striginae. It is endemic to the island of Puerto Rico, though it ...
, the
Puerto Rican woodpecker The Puerto Rican woodpecker (''Melanerpes portoricensis'') is the only woodpecker endemic to the archipelago of Puerto Rico and is one of the five species of the genus ''Melanerpes'' that occur in the Antilles. Furthermore, it is the only reside ...
, the
Puerto Rican tody The Puerto Rican tody (''Todus mexicanus'') is a bird endemic to Puerto Rico. It is locally known in Spanish as "San Pedrito" ("little Saint Peter") and "medio peso" ("half-dollar bird"). Taxonomy Todies are the closest relative to the motmots ...
, the
green mango The green mango (''Anthracothorax viridis'') is a large species of hummingbird in the subfamily Polytminae. It is endemic to the main island of Puerto Rico.HBW and BirdLife International (2020) ''Handbook of the Birds of the World and BirdLi ...
, the Puerto Rican emerald, the Puerto Rican lizard cuckoo, the
Puerto Rican nightjar The Puerto Rican nightjar or Puerto Rican Whip-poor-will (''Antrostomus noctitherus'') is a bird in the nightjar family found in the coastal dry scrub forests in localized areas of southwestern Puerto Rico. It was described in 1916 from bones fo ...
and many more. All current endemic 13 land mammals are bats, which includes for instance the
greater bulldog bat The greater bulldog bat or fisherman bat (''Noctilio leporinus'') is a species of fishing bat native to Latin America (Spanish: ''murciélago pescador''; Portuguese: ''morcego-pescador''). The bat uses echolocation to detect water ripples made ...
, the
Antillean ghost-faced bat The Antillean ghost-faced bat (''Mormoops blainvillei'') is a species of bat in the family Mormoopidae. It is found in Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Haiti, Jamaica, and Puerto Rico. Description These bats range in color from a pale cinnamon to ...
and the
Parnell's mustached bat Parnell's mustached bat (''Pteronotus parnellii'') is an insectivorous bat native to the Americas. It ranges from southern Sonora, Mexico, south to Brazil. It has a wider historical range; fossil specimens have been collected on the island of Ne ...
. Extinct native mammals include the plate-toothed giant hutia and the Puerto Rican cave rat. Reptiles unique to Puerto Rico include the Puerto Rican boa, the guanica blindsnake, the Mona Island iguana, the
Puerto Rican worm lizard ''Amphisbaena caeca'', commonly known as the Puerto Rican worm lizard or blind worm lizard, is a species of worm lizard endemic to Puerto Rico. These animals are vermicular reptiles that live under logs, rocks, and dirt. Other species of Amphisb ...
, the Puerto Rican galliwasp and the Nichols’ dwarf gecko. Amphibians native to the island include the
Puerto Rican crested toad The Puerto Rican crested toad (''Peltophryne lemur''), or simply Puerto Rican toad, is a species of toad found only in Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. It is the only species of toad native to Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. The species fo ...
, the
common coqui Common may refer to: Places * Common, a townland in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland * Boston Common, a central public park in Boston, Massachusetts * Cambridge Common, common land area in Cambridge, Massachusetts * Clapham Common, originally com ...
, the
locust coqui The locust coqui (''Eleutherodactylus locustus'') is a species of frog in the family Eleutherodactylidae endemic to Puerto Rico. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests and subtropical or tropical moist montane for ...
, the wrinkled coqui, the forest coqui, the elfin coqui and the bronze coqui. Endemic fish include the Puerto Rican snake eel and the Puerto Rico coralbrotula.


Virgin Islands

The
Virgin Islands National Park The Virgin Islands National Park is an American national park preserving about 60% of the land area of Saint John in the United States Virgin Islands, as well as more than of adjacent ocean, and nearly all of Hassel Island, just off the Char ...
covers approximately 60% of the Island of St. John and nearly all of
Hassel Island Hassel Island (also sometimes Hassell Island) is a small island of the U.S. Virgin Islands, a United States territory located in the Caribbean Sea. Hassel Island lies in the Charlotte Amalie harbor just south of Saint Thomas and east of Wate ...
. The national park has more than 140 species of birds, 302 species of fish, 7 species of amphibians and 22 species of mammals. The tropical Virgin Islands are home to a huge variety of wildlife, including many unique species
endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found else ...
to the
archipelago An archipelago ( ), sometimes called an island group or island chain, is a chain, cluster, or collection of islands, or sometimes a sea containing a small number of scattered islands. Examples of archipelagos include: the Indonesian Arc ...
. There are three species of sea turtles in the USVI that inhabit the local waters and utilize beaches for nesting: the green sea turtle, the hawksbill sea turtle and the leatherback sea turtle. Several species of sharks, manatees and dolphins roam the seas.


Articles by area

* Fauna of Alabama *
Fauna of Alaska The wildlife of Alaska is both diverse and abundant. The Alaskan Peninsula provides an important habitat for fish, mammals, reptiles, and birds. At the top of the food chain are the bears. Alaska contains about 70% of the total North American br ...
* Fauna of Arizona * Fauna of Arkansas * Fauna of California * Fauna of Colorado * Fauna of Connecticut * Fauna of Delaware * Fauna of the District of Columbia *
Fauna of Florida Florida hosts many types of fauna. From coral reefs of the Florida Keys to the cypress swamps of the Panhandle, the state's diverse habitats are home to a variety of wildlife. Florida is among the top five states in terms of endemic species. The ...
* Fauna of Georgia *
Fauna of Hawaii The fauna of the United States of America is all the animals living in the Continental United States and its surrounding seas and islands, the Hawaiian Archipelago, Alaska in the Arctic, and several island-territories in the Pacific and in the ...
* Fauna of Idaho * Fauna of Illinois * Fauna of Indiana * Fauna of Iowa * Fauna of Kansas * Fauna of Kentucky *
Fauna of Louisiana The fauna of Louisiana is characterized by the region's low swamplands, bayous, creeks, woodlands, coastal marshlands and beaches, and barrier islands covering an estimated , corresponding to 40 percent of Louisiana's total land area. Southern Lo ...
*
Fauna of Maine The fauna of Maine include several diverse land and aquatic animal species, especially those common to the North Atlantic Ocean and deciduous forests of North America. Some of these creatures' habitats has been reduced or fully removed. Mammals ...
* Fauna of Maryland * Fauna of Massachusetts * Fauna of Michigan * Fauna of Minnesota * Fauna of Mississippi * Fauna of Missouri * Fauna of Montana * Fauna of Nebraska *
Fauna of Nevada The fauna of the U.S. State of Nevada is mostly species adapted to desert, temperature extremes and to lack of moisture. With an average annual rainfall of only about , Nevada is the driest – and has the largest percentage of its total area class ...
* Fauna of New Hampshire * Fauna of New Jersey * Fauna of New Mexico * Fauna of New York * Fauna of North Carolina * Fauna of North Dakota * Fauna of Ohio * Fauna of Oklahoma * Fauna of Oregon * Fauna of Pennsylvania * Fauna of Rhode Island * Fauna of South Carolina * Fauna of South Dakota * Fauna of Tennessee * Fauna of Texas * Fauna of Utah * Fauna of Vermont * Fauna of Virginia * Fauna of Washington * Fauna of West Virginia * Fauna of Wisconsin * Fauna of Wyoming


Insular areas

* Fauna of American Samoa *
Fauna of Guam Fauna is all of the animal life present in a particular region or time. The corresponding term for plants is ''flora'', and for fungi, it is '' funga''. Flora, fauna, funga and other forms of life are collectively referred to as '' biota''. Zoo ...
*
Fauna of the Northern Mariana Islands The fauna of the United States of America is all the animals living in the Continental United States and its surrounding seas and islands, the Hawaiian Archipelago, Alaska in the Arctic, and several island-territories in the Pacific and in the ...
*
Fauna of Puerto Rico The fauna of Puerto Rico is similar to other island archipelago faunas, with high endemism, and low, skewed taxonomic diversity. Bats are the only extant native terrestrial mammals in Puerto Rico. All other terrestrial mammals in the area were i ...
*
Fauna of the United States Virgin Islands The fauna of the United States Virgin Islands consists of 144 species of birds, 22 species of mammals, 302 species of fish and 7 species of amphibians. The wildlife of the U.S.V.I. includes numerous endemic species of tropical birds, fish, and land ...


See also

*
Animal welfare in the United States Animal welfare in the United States relates to the treatment of non-human animals in fields such as agriculture, hunting, medical testing and the domestic ownership of animals. It is distinct from animal conservation. History 1641–1900 ...
*
Flora of the United States The native flora of the United States includes about 17,000 species of vascular plants, plus tens of thousands of additional species of other plants and plant-like organisms such as algae, lichens and other fungi, and mosses. About 3,800 addi ...
*
Invasive species in the United States Invasive species are a significant threat to many native habitats and species of the United States and a significant cost to agriculture, forestry, and recreation. The term "invasive species" can refer to introduced/naturalized species, feral sp ...


Notes


References

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