Habitat · 116 species
Animals of towns and farmland
Animals that share our farms, gardens and cities, from foxes and raccoons to swallows and barn owls.
Species profiles
American bullfrog
Lithobates catesbeianus
The American bullfrog is North America's largest true frog, up to 20 cm long and 500 g. Its size, deep call, diet, tadpoles, range and spread as an invasive.
American crow
Corvus brachyrhynchos
The American crow is a glossy black, highly intelligent bird found across North America. Facts on its size, calls, diet, family life, roosts and lifespan.
American goldfinch
Spinus tristis
The American goldfinch is a small North American finch that molts twice a year and eats almost only seeds. Facts on its size, colors, diet, nesting and range.
American robin
Turdus migratorius
The American robin is North America's most widespread thrush, known for its orange breast and blue eggs. Facts on its size, diet, nests, song and range.
American toad
Anaxyrus americanus
The American toad is the common warty toad of eastern North America: its size, colors, long musical trill, garden and woodland habitat, breeding and lifespan.
Arizona bark scorpion
Centruroides sculpturatus
The Arizona bark scorpion is a small, pale scorpion of the Sonoran Desert and the most venomous in the US. Size, climbing habits, young, venom and real risk.
Barn swallow
Hirundo rustica
The barn swallow is the world's most widespread swallow: a fork-tailed insect hunter that nests in barns and migrates between continents. Size, diet, lifespan.
Black-capped chickadee
Poecile atricapillus
The black-capped chickadee is a tiny, bold North American songbird with a black cap and bib, noted for its alarm calls, food caching and surviving hard winters.
Brown recluse
Loxosceles reclusa
The brown recluse is a shy, six-eyed spider of the south-central US with a violin mark and tissue-damaging venom. Its real range, habits, life cycle and bites.
Buff-tailed bumblebee
Bombus terrestris
The buff-tailed bumblebee is one of Europe's commonest bumblebees: an early-flying pollinator with a yearly colony, used in greenhouses and invasive abroad.
Canada goose
Branta canadensis
The Canada goose is a large black-necked goose native to North America and introduced to Europe. Facts on size, migration, diet, nesting, lifespan and status.
Cane toad
Rhinella marina
The cane toad is a huge, toxic toad native to the Americas that became a notorious invader in Australia, Florida and Pacific islands. Size, toxins, life cycle.
Carolina wolf spider
Hogna carolinensis
The Carolina wolf spider is North America's largest wolf spider, a burrowing night hunter with no web. Its size, range, eyeshine, egg sacs and real bite risk.
Common earthworm
Lumbricus terrestris
The common earthworm, or nightcrawler, is a large European worm that digs burrows up to 2 m deep. Facts on its body, ten hearts, diet, mating and role in soil.
Common eastern firefly
Photinus pyralis
The common eastern firefly is North America's best-known lightning bug, a beetle that draws J-shaped flashes at dusk. Facts on its light, larvae and lifespan.
Common frog
Rana temporaria
The common frog is Europe's most widespread frog, from Ireland to the Urals and beyond the Arctic Circle. Its colors, spawn, tadpoles, diet and winter habits.
Common garter snake
Thamnophis sirtalis
The common garter snake is a striped, harmless snake found across most of North America. Facts on its size, color forms, diet, live birth and winter dens.
Common harvestman
Phalangium opilio
The common harvestman is a long-legged arachnid, not a spider: one-piece body, two eyes, no silk, no venom. Size, diet, range, life cycle and detachable legs.
Common pill bug
Armadillidium vulgare
The common pill bug is a land crustacean, not an insect, that rolls into a ball and eats dead leaves. Facts on its looks, range, diet, breeding and lifespan.
Common pipistrelle
Pipistrellus pipistrellus
The common pipistrelle is a tiny European bat weighing 3.5–8.5 g that eats up to thousands of midges a night. Facts on its size, calls, roosts and protection.
Common swift
Apus apus
The common swift is a dark, sickle-winged bird that feeds, drinks and sleeps on the wing for most of the year. Size, diet, nesting, migration and decline.
Common toad
Bufo bufo
The common toad is Europe's familiar warty brown toad, up to 12 cm long. Its copper eyes, skin toxins, night hunting, spring migrations, spawn and lifespan.
Common vampire bat
Desmodus rotundus
The common vampire bat is a small Latin American bat that feeds only on blood, mostly from livestock. Facts on its size, heat-sensing nose, range and colonies.
Common wasp
Vespula vulgaris
The common wasp is Europe's black-and-yellow yellowjacket. Facts on its size, paper nests, one-year colony cycle, diet, sting and spread to New Zealand.
Copperhead
Agkistrodon contortrix
The copperhead is a camouflaged pit viper of the eastern US. How to identify its hourglass bands, plus its size, range, diet, live young and real bite risk.
Corn snake
Pantherophis guttatus
The corn snake is a harmless orange-red rat snake of the southeastern US, usually 0.6–1.2 m long. Facts on its colors, range, habitat, diet, eggs and lifespan.
Eastern chipmunk
Tamias striatus
The eastern chipmunk is a small striped ground squirrel of eastern North America that hoards seeds in its burrow. Size, diet, pouches, winter torpor and calls.
Eastern coral snake
Micrurus fulvius
The eastern coral snake is a shy, venomous elapid of the southeastern US. Its red, yellow and black rings, size, range, snake-eating diet, eggs and real risk.
Eastern cottontail
Sylvilagus floridanus
The eastern cottontail is North America's most common wild rabbit. Facts on its cotton-ball tail, size, diet, grass nests, fast breeding, lifespan and enemies.
Eastern gray squirrel
Sciurus carolinensis
The eastern gray squirrel is the familiar park squirrel of eastern North America, invasive in Britain and Italy. Size, diet, nut caching, nests and lifespan.
Eastern subterranean termite
Reticulitermes flavipes
The eastern subterranean termite is North America's most widespread termite. Facts on its castes, swarmers, king and queen, colonies and its gut microbes.
Eurasian blue tit
Cyanistes caeruleus
The Eurasian blue tit is a tiny blue-and-yellow songbird of European woods and gardens, famous for acrobatic feeding and huge clutches. Size, diet, nesting.
Eurasian magpie
Pica pica
The Eurasian magpie is a long-tailed black-and-white crow of Europe and Asia. Facts on its size, diet, domed nests, intelligence, lifespan and famous myths.
European badger
Meles meles
The European badger is a stocky, black-and-white striped mammal that lives in family clans in underground setts and eats mostly earthworms. Size, diet, range.
European garden spider
Araneus diadematus
The European garden spider is a harmless orb weaver with a white cross on its back. Its size, webs, silk, autumn peak, risky courtship and life cycle explained.
European hare
Lepus europaeus
The European or brown hare is a fast, long-eared hare of open farmland. Facts on its size, speed, spring boxing, leverets, diet, lifespan and status.
European hedgehog
Erinaceus europaeus
The European hedgehog is a small spiny insect-eater of Europe's gardens and hedgerows. Facts on its spines, diet, hibernation, hoglets, lifespan and decline.
European hornet
Vespa crabro
The European hornet is Europe's largest social wasp, up to 35 mm long. Facts on its colors, hollow-tree nests, insect hunting, night flights and sting risk.
European rabbit
Oryctolagus cuniculus
The European rabbit is the wild ancestor of every domestic rabbit breed. Facts on its size, warrens, diet, breeding, lifespan and Endangered status in Iberia.
European robin
Erithacus rubecula
The European robin is a small orange-breasted songbird of Europe's gardens and woods. Facts on its size, song, fierce territories, nests, lifespan and range.
European stag beetle
Lucanus cervus
The European stag beetle is Europe's largest land beetle. Facts on the males' antler-like jaws, years of larval life in dead wood, brief adult life and decline.
European starling
Sturnus vulgaris
The European starling is a glossy, speckled songbird famous for mimicry and huge murmurations. Facts on its size, diet, nests, lifespan and spread to America.
Garden snail
Cornu aspersum
The garden snail is a brown land snail from the Mediterranean and western Europe, now found worldwide. Facts on its shell, diet, slime, mating and lifespan.
Giant house spider
Eratigena atrica
The giant house spider is a big, fast but harmless funnel weaver of European homes, also found in Canada and the US Northwest. Size, webs, speed and lifespan.
Grass snake
Natrix natrix
The grass snake is Europe's harmless, water-loving snake with a yellow collar. Its size, frog diet, compost-heap eggs, playing dead and the 2017 species split.
Great crested newt
Triturus cristatus
The great crested newt is Britain's largest newt, with warty dark skin, an orange belly and a jagged male crest. Its size, ponds, life cycle and legal status.
Great horned owl
Bubo virginianus
The great horned owl is a big, tufted owl found from Alaska to Central America. Facts on its size, deep hoots, strong grip, skunk-eating diet and winter nests.
Greater roadrunner
Geococcyx californianus
The greater roadrunner is a fast-running ground cuckoo of the US Southwest and Mexico. Facts on its speed, size, diet of lizards and snakes, nesting and status.
Green iguana
Iguana iguana
The green iguana is a large, plant-eating tree lizard of Central and South America that can top 1.5 m. Size, colors, diet, swimming, nesting and lifespan.
Herring gull
Larus argentatus
The herring gull is the large gray-backed seagull of European coasts and towns. Facts on its size, plumage, diet, rooftop nests, chicks, lifespan and decline.
House centipede
Scutigera coleoptrata
The house centipede has 15 pairs of long legs, runs about 0.4 m (1.3 ft) per second and hunts insects in homes. Its size, eyes, venom, range and lifespan.
House cricket
Acheta domesticus
The house cricket is a small brown cricket that lives around homes worldwide. Facts on how males chirp, ears on the legs, diet, life cycle and farming as food.
House sparrow
Passer domesticus
The house sparrow is a small, chirpy seed-eater that lives alongside people on every inhabited continent. Facts on its size, plumage, diet, nesting and decline.
Indian peafowl
Pavo cristatus
The Indian peafowl is the peacock of India and Sri Lanka, famous for the male's eyespot train. Facts on its size, calls, diet, breeding, lifespan and range.
Large flying fox
Pteropus vampyrus
The large flying fox is one of the world's biggest bats, with wings up to 1.5 m (5 ft) across. Facts on its fruit and nectar diet, eyesight, roosts and threats.
Laughing kookaburra
Dacelo novaeguineae
The laughing kookaburra is a giant Australian kingfisher famous for its laughing call. Facts on its size, family groups, diet of snakes and lizards, and range.
Leafcutter ant
Atta cephalotes
The leafcutter ant Atta cephalotes farms fungus on chewed leaves in giant underground nests. Facts on its castes, colonies, range, fungus gardens and role.
Least weasel
Mustela nivalis
The least weasel is the world's smallest carnivoran, weighing as little as 25 g. Its size, vole hunting, white winter coat, breeding, range and status.
Leopard slug
Limax maximus
The leopard slug is a large spotted land slug of Europe, now also in North America. Facts on its size, hidden shell, diet, mating on a slime rope and lifespan.
Little brown bat
Myotis lucifugus
The little brown bat is a small North American insect-eating bat that can live over 30 years. Size, echolocation, colonies, hibernation and white-nose syndrome.
Monarch butterfly
Danaus plexippus
The monarch is an orange-and-black milkweed butterfly famous for flying up to 4,800 km to winter in Mexico. Its looks, size, life cycle, toxins and status.
Mourning dove
Zenaida macroura
The mourning dove is a slender gray-brown North American dove known for its soft, sad cooing and whistling wings. Facts on size, diet, nests and lifespan.
Nine-banded armadillo
Dasypus novemcinctus
The nine-banded armadillo is an armored, insect-eating mammal and the only armadillo in the US. Its shell, size, diet, quadruplet births and spread north.
North Island brown kiwi
Apteryx mantelli
The North Island brown kiwi is New Zealand's most common kiwi: a flightless, nocturnal bird with nostrils at its bill tip, a giant egg and Vulnerable status.
Northern cardinal
Cardinalis cardinalis
The northern cardinal is a crested red songbird of eastern North America and the state bird of seven US states. Facts on its size, song, diet, nests and range.
Northern giant hornet
Vespa mandarinia
The northern giant hornet, or Asian giant hornet, is the world's largest hornet. Facts on its size, range, sting, honey bee raids and stay in North America.
Northern mockingbird
Mimus polyglottos
The northern mockingbird is a gray songbird famous for copying other sounds. Facts on its size, songs, night singing, nest defense, range and lifespan.
Painted lady
Vanessa cardui
The painted lady is the most widespread butterfly on Earth, found on every continent except Antarctica. Its looks, host plants, life cycle and migration.
Panther chameleon
Furcifer pardalis
The panther chameleon is Madagascar's most colorful chameleon. Facts on its color forms, rival displays, tongue, eyes, size, short wild life and breeding.
Peregrine falcon
Falco peregrinus
The peregrine falcon is the fastest animal on Earth, diving at over 300 km/h. Facts on its size, bird diet, worldwide range, city nests and recovery from DDT.
Periodical cicada
Magicicada septendecim
Magicicada septendecim, the 17-year periodical cicada, lives underground for 17 years, then emerges by the millions in the eastern US. Broods, song, life cycle.
Praying mantis
Mantis religiosa
The praying mantis is a green or brown ambush hunter 5–8 cm long with spiny grasping forelegs. How it hunts, sees in 3D, mates and survives winter as an egg.
Red squirrel
Sciurus vulgaris
The red squirrel is Eurasia's native tree squirrel, with ear tufts and a red to near-black coat. Size, diet, nests, lifespan and why it declined in Britain.
Red-tailed hawk
Buteo jamaicensis
The red-tailed hawk is North America's most common large hawk. How to identify it, plus facts on its size, rodent diet, nests, migration, scream and lifespan.
Reticulated python
Malayopython reticulatus
The reticulated python of Southeast Asia is the world's longest snake, measured at almost 7 m in the wild. Facts on its size, net-like pattern, diet and range.
Rock pigeon
Columba livia
The rock pigeon is the wild cliff bird behind every city pigeon and homing pigeon. Facts on its size, range, nests, crop milk, intelligence and history.
Ruby-throated hummingbird
Archilochus colubris
The ruby-throated hummingbird is the only hummingbird that breeds in eastern North America. Facts on its size, wingbeats, diet, nest, migration and lifespan.
Sandhill crane
Antigone canadensis
The sandhill crane is the most numerous crane on Earth: a tall gray bird with a red crown and bugling call. Facts on its size, dances, diet, migration and life.
Seven-spot ladybug
Coccinella septempunctata
The seven-spot ladybug is a red beetle 5–8 mm long with seven black spots that hunts aphids. Its life cycle, defenses, winter clusters and spread to America.
Southern black widow
Latrodectus mactans
The southern black widow is a shy, glossy black spider of the southeastern US with a red hourglass and potent venom. Its size, web, life cycle and real risk.
Strawberry poison dart frog
Oophaga pumilio
The strawberry poison dart frog is a tiny red-and-blue frog of Central American rainforests. Facts on its color morphs, toxins, calls and tadpole care.
Striped skunk
Mephitis mephitis
The striped skunk is North America's familiar black-and-white skunk. Facts on its warning display, spray, size, omnivorous diet, dens, predators and lifespan.
Sunda pangolin
Manis javanica
The Sunda pangolin is a scaly, ant-eating mammal of Southeast Asia that rolls into a ball when threatened. Facts on its scales, diet, young and illegal trade.
Tasmanian devil
Sarcophilus harrisii
The Tasmanian devil is the largest living carnivorous marsupial, a noisy scavenger found only in Tasmania. Size, bite, diet, young and facial tumor disease.
Turkey vulture
Cathartes aura
The turkey vulture is the most widespread vulture in the Americas. Facts on its bare red head, wobbly soaring, keen sense of smell, diet, range and lifespan.
Veiled chameleon
Chamaeleo calyptratus
The veiled chameleon is a large, casque-headed chameleon from Yemen and Saudi Arabia. Facts on its casque, colors, tongue, eyes, eggs, lifespan and range.
Virginia opossum
Didelphis virginiana
The Virginia opossum is North America's only marsupial north of Mexico. Size, 50 teeth, prehensile tail, playing possum, diet, babies on the back and lifespan.
Western honey bee
Apis mellifera
The western honey bee is a social bee that lives in colonies of up to 80,000. Facts on its queen, workers and drones, comb, waggle dance, honey and spread.
White stork
Ciconia ciconia
The white stork is a tall black-and-white bird that nests on rooftops and migrates from Europe to Africa. Facts on its size, diet, bill-clattering and comeback.
White-tailed deer
Odocoileus virginianus
The white-tailed deer is the most widespread deer in the Americas, named for the white tail it flashes when alarmed. Size, antlers, fawns, diet, rut and range.
Wild turkey
Meleagris gallopavo
The wild turkey is North America's largest game bird and ancestor of the farm turkey. Facts on its size, snood and beard, gobbling, flight, diet and comeback.
Zebra jumping spider
Salticus scenicus
The zebra jumping spider is a small black-and-white hunter of sunny walls in Europe and North America, with big eyes, sharp vision and accurate leaps.