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Temperate forest

Temperate forests swing through four distinct seasons. Many residents hibernate, cache food, or migrate to ride out the cold, leafless months.

69 animals in this habitat

Invertebrates LC Atlas Moth Attacus atlas The atlas moth is one of the largest insects on Earth, with a wingspan up to 30 cm. The adult has no mouth and never eats — it lives about a week on stored energy, purely to find a mate. Read the guide →
Reptiles NT Ball Python Python regius The ball python is a small, shy West African constrictor that curls into a ball when frightened. It is the world's most popular pet snake, bred into thousands of colour morphs. Read the guide →
Birds LC Barn Owl Tyto alba The barn owl hunts in total darkness by sound alone, guided by its heart-shaped face and lopsided ears. Learn how its silent flight works and why farmers put up nest boxes for it. Read the guide →
Mammals CR Bornean Orangutan Pongo pygmaeus The Bornean orangutan is the largest tree-living animal on Earth and the most solitary great ape. It maps hundreds of fruiting trees from memory and is Critically Endangered from forest loss. Read the guide →
Birds VU North Island Brown Kiwi Apteryx mantelli The kiwi is a chicken-sized flightless New Zealand bird that behaves like a mammal — it forages by smell at night, has whiskers and heavy bones, and lays a huge egg for its size. Read the guide →
Mammals VU Clouded Leopard Neofelis nebulosa The clouded leopard has the longest canine teeth relative to skull size of any living cat — like a modern sabre-tooth — and can climb down trees head-first and hang from a branch by one hind foot. Read the guide →
Amphibians LC Common Frog Rana temporaria The common frog is the familiar frog of European gardens and ponds — it can breathe through its skin, survive winter on the bottom of a pond, and returns each year to the pond it hatched in. Read the guide →
Birds LC Common Raven Corvus corax The common raven is one of the most intelligent animals on Earth — a large black bird that makes tools, plans for the future, holds grudges, plays in the wind, and solves problems that stump apes. Read the guide →
Mammals LC Cougar Puma concolor The cougar goes by more names than any other animal and roams from the Yukon to Patagonia. Learn why it isn't a "big cat", how far it can leap, and why it screams instead of roars. Read the guide →
Mammals LC Coyote Canis latrans The coyote has expanded across North America and into its cities faster than any other large predator, thriving under intense hunting pressure. Learn how it adapts, hunts, and outlasts persecution. Read the guide →
Mammals VU Dingo Canis dingo The dingo is Australia's largest land predator — an ancient free-living dog that arrived with seafarers about 3,500 years ago, can turn its head almost 180°, and is now hybridising with feral dogs. Read the guide →
Reptiles LC Eastern Coral Snake Micrurus fulvius The eastern coral snake has the second-strongest venom of any North American snake but rarely bites — it is secretive, small-mouthed, and spends most of its life underground. Read the guide →
Reptiles LC Eastern Diamondback Rattlesnake Crotalus adamanteus The eastern diamondback is the largest venomous snake in North America and the heaviest rattlesnake on Earth. It warns before it strikes, shelters in tortoise burrows, and is declining fast. Read the guide →
Mammals LC Eastern Gray Squirrel Sciurus carolinensis The eastern gray squirrel plants trees by burying nuts it never digs up, remembers cache sites, fakes burials when it thinks it is watched, and has turned much of Britain's woodland grey. Read the guide →
Amphibians LC Eastern Newt Notophthalmus viridescens The eastern newt of North America has a three-stage life — aquatic larva, land-dwelling orange "red eft," then aquatic adult — and its skin carries a nerve toxin that keeps predators away. Read the guide →
Mammals LC Echidna Tachyglossus aculeatus The echidna is a spine-covered, egg-laying mammal that has no teeth, senses prey by electric field, and can lower its body temperature almost to freezing. Learn how this ancient oddity survives. Read the guide →
Mammals LC Eurasian Lynx Lynx lynx The Eurasian lynx is the largest lynx species and Europe's third-largest predator — a solitary forest cat that hunts roe deer, was wiped out across much of Europe, and is now being brought back. Read the guide →
Amphibians LC Fire Salamander Salamandra salamandra The fire salamander wears black-and-yellow warning colours, squirts a nerve toxin from glands behind its eyes, and in some populations gives birth to live young. Learn about this striking amphibian. Read the guide →
Invertebrates LC Firefly Photinus pyralis The firefly is a beetle that makes near-100%-efficient cold light in its abdomen to send coded flash signals for a mate. Some females mimic other species' codes to lure and eat the males that answer. Read the guide →
Reptiles LC Frilled Lizard Chlamydosaurus kingii The frilled lizard of Australia and New Guinea snaps open a huge skin collar around its head when threatened, hisses, and sprints away on its hind legs — a bluff that is almost pure theatre. Read the guide →
Reptiles LC Gaboon Viper Bitis gabonica The Gaboon viper has the longest fangs and one of the highest venom yields of any snake, yet it is placid and so well camouflaged in leaf litter that people walk right over it. Read the guide →
Reptiles VU Galápagos Tortoise Chelonoidis niger The Galápagos tortoise is the largest living tortoise and one of the longest-lived animals, with shell shapes that differ island to island — an observation that helped inspire evolutionary theory. Read the guide →
Amphibians LC Glass Frog Hyalinobatrachium fleischmanni The glass frog has translucent belly skin that shows its beating heart and gut, and it hides its own blood in its liver to become see-through while it sleeps. Learn how and why. Read the guide →
Birds LC Great Horned Owl Bubo virginianus The great horned owl is North America's most widespread owl and its fiercest — a powerful nocturnal hunter with a crushing grip, silent flight, and a taste for skunks and other owls. Read the guide →
Invertebrates NE Honeybee Apis mellifera The honeybee runs a colony of tens of thousands, navigates by the sun, and tells hivemates where to find flowers with a dance. Learn how the hive works and what's behind the decline in bee health. Read the guide →
Reptiles LC Indian Cobra Naja naja The Indian cobra is one of the "big four" snakes behind most of India's snakebite deaths. It spreads a spectacle-marked hood, and it is the snake of charmers' baskets and Hindu myth. Read the guide →
Birds LC Indian Peafowl Pavo cristatus The peacock's train is not its tail — it is up to 200 elongated back feathers that the bird fans, rattles, and vibrates 25 times a second in a display Darwin found so extravagant it "made him sick". Read the guide →
Birds CR Kakapo Strigops habroptilus The kākāpō is the world's only flightless parrot and the heaviest — a nocturnal, moss-scented New Zealand bird that booms for a mate and came within a few dozen individuals of extinction. Read the guide →
Birds EN Kea Nestor notabilis The kea is the world's only alpine parrot — an olive-green New Zealand bird known for tearing apart cars, solving puzzles in teams, and a "play" call that makes other kea act playful. Read the guide →
Mammals VU Koala Phascolarctos cinereus The koala is a marsupial — not a bear — that eats only toxic eucalyptus leaves and sleeps up to 22 hours a day. Learn how it survives that diet and why it's now Endangered in eastern Australia. Read the guide →
Mammals LC Moose Alces alces The moose is the largest deer on Earth, tall enough to wade chest-deep and dive for water plants. Learn about its two-metre antlers and why warming winters are killing it with ticks. Read the guide →
Mammals LC North American Beaver Castor canadensis The North American beaver is the continent's largest rodent and its most powerful ecosystem engineer, felling trees and damming streams to build the ponds it lives in. Learn how it works. Read the guide →
Mammals CR Pangolin Manis javanica The pangolin is the only mammal covered in scales, a nocturnal ant-and-termite eater that rolls into an armoured ball when threatened — and the most trafficked wild mammal in the world. Read the guide →
Reptiles LC Panther Chameleon Furcifer pardalis The panther chameleon of Madagascar is the most vividly coloured chameleon, with skin that shifts by moving nanocrystals, eyes that swivel independently, and a tongue longer than its body. Read the guide →
Birds LC Pileated Woodpecker Dryocopus pileatus The pileated woodpecker is a crow-sized red-crested bird that hammers rectangular holes deep into dead trees to reach carpenter ants, and its abandoned cavities house dozens of other forest species. Read the guide →
Invertebrates NE Praying Mantis Mantis religiosa The praying mantis is an ambush hunter that strikes in under 70 milliseconds, turns its head 180 degrees, and hears bats with a single ear. Learn how it hunts and the truth about sexual cannibalism. Read the guide →
Mammals EN Red Panda Ailurus fulgens The red panda is not a panda and not a raccoon — it is the sole survivor of its own family, a cat-sized bamboo eater with a false thumb. Learn how it lives in the Himalaya and why it is Endangered. Read the guide →
Mammals EN Ring-Tailed Lemur Lemur catta The ring-tailed lemur is the most recognisable of Madagascar's lemurs — a ground-loving primate that sunbathes in a lotus pose, is led by females, and holds "stink fights" with its scented tail. Read the guide →
Birds LC Ruby-Throated Hummingbird Archilochus colubris The ruby-throated hummingbird weighs about as much as a penny, beats its wings 50 times a second, and crosses the Gulf of Mexico non-stop — a 800-kilometre flight over open water. Read the guide →
Mammals VU Sloth Bear Melursus ursinus The sloth bear is a shaggy, termite-slurping bear of the Indian subcontinent that carries its cubs on its back — and is responsible for more human maulings than any other bear. Learn how and why. Read the guide →
Birds LC Southern Cassowary Casuarius casuarius The southern cassowary is a huge flightless rainforest bird with a bony head casque and dagger-clawed feet. It is the only animal that can spread some large rainforest seeds. Read the guide →
Amphibians LC Spotted Salamander Ambystoma maculatum The spotted salamander lives underground most of the year, emerges on a few rainy spring nights to breed in vernal pools, and hosts algae inside its own cells — unique among vertebrates. Read the guide →
Mammals VU Sun Bear Helarctos malayanus The sun bear is the smallest bear on Earth, with a 25-centimetre tongue for raiding beehives and a chest patch shaped like a rising sun. Learn how this tree-climbing forest bear lives. Read the guide →
Mammals EN Tasmanian Devil Sarcophilus harrisii The Tasmanian devil is the world's largest carnivorous marsupial — a bone-crushing scavenger fighting a contagious cancer that has killed most of the wild population. Learn how it's being saved. Read the guide →
Amphibians LC Tiger Salamander Ambystoma tigrinum The tiger salamander is one of the largest land salamanders in the world — a burrowing predator that spends most of its life underground and can, in some populations, skip metamorphosis for life. Read the guide →
Birds LC Toco Toucan Ramphastos toco The toco toucan has the largest bill relative to body size of any bird — a lightweight, honeycombed structure it uses as a fruit-picker, a weapon reach-extender, and a radiator that dumps body heat. Read the guide →
Reptiles LC Tokay Gecko Gekko gecko The tokay gecko is a large, loud, blue-and-orange-spotted lizard whose barking "to-kay" call gave it its name. Read the guide →
Reptiles LC Tuatara Sphenodon punctatus The tuatara of New Zealand looks like a lizard but is the last survivor of an order of reptiles older than the dinosaurs. It has a working third eye, keeps growing for decades, and may live past 100. Read the guide →
Birds LC Turkey Vulture Cathartes aura The turkey vulture is a wide-ranging American scavenger that finds carcasses by smell — a rare skill among birds — soars for hours without flapping, and defends itself by projectile vomiting. Read the guide →
Mammals LC Wild Boar Sus scrofa The wild boar is the ancestor of the domestic pig, one of the most widespread mammals on Earth, and — as feral hogs — one of the most destructive invasive animals. Learn how it lives and spreads. Read the guide →
Mammals LC Wolverine Gulo gulo The wolverine is a 15-kilogram member of the weasel family that drives bears off carcasses and hunts prey in deep snow. Learn how it survives the far north and why warm winters threaten it. Read the guide →
Mammals LC Wombat Vombatus ursinus The wombat is a burrowing Australian marsupial with a backward-facing pouch, a bum made of armour, and — uniquely in the animal kingdom — cube-shaped droppings. Learn how and why. Read the guide →
Amphibians LC Wood Frog Lithobates sylvaticus The wood frog survives being frozen solid every winter — heart stopped, most of its body water ice — then thaws back to life in spring. It ranges farther north than any other American frog. Read the guide →
Mammals EN African Elephant Loxodonta africana The African elephant is the largest land animal alive, with a 40,000-muscle trunk and a 22-month pregnancy. Learn how herds are led by matriarchs and why ivory poaching still threatens them. Read the guide →
Birds LC Bald Eagle Haliaeetus leucocephalus The bald eagle is a fish-hunting sea eagle and a rare conservation success — back from near-extinction in the US. Learn about its huge nests, its eyesight, and why it isn't actually bald. Read the guide →
Mammals LC Brown Bear Ursus arctos The brown bear is the most widespread bear on Earth, from Spain to Alaska, and includes the grizzly and the giant Kodiak. Learn how it hibernates, what it eats, and how a cub is born mid-sleep. Read the guide →
Mammals EN Chimpanzee Pan troglodytes The chimpanzee is one of our two closest living relatives, sharing about 98.8% of our DNA. Learn how chimp societies work, how they use tools and hunt, and why they're Endangered. Read the guide →
Mammals LC Gray Wolf Canis lupus The gray wolf is a cooperative pack hunter and the wild ancestor of every domestic dog. Learn how packs work, why wolves howl, and how they reshape whole ecosystems. Read the guide →
Mammals NT Jaguar Panthera onca The jaguar is the biggest cat in the Americas and has the strongest bite of any big cat for its size — it kills by piercing the skull. Learn how it hunts in water and why it's Near Threatened. Read the guide →
Reptiles VU King Cobra Ophiophagus hannah The king cobra is the world's longest venomous snake and the only one that builds a nest for its eggs. Learn how it hunts other snakes, why it rears up, and what its venom does. Read the guide →
Reptiles EN Komodo Dragon Varanus komodoensis The Komodo dragon is the largest lizard alive, a venomous ambush predator found on just a few Indonesian islands. Learn how it hunts prey many times its size and why it's now Endangered. Read the guide →
Mammals VU Leopard Panthera pardus The leopard is the most adaptable big cat — a solitary, night-hunting climber that hauls its kills into trees. Learn how it survives almost anywhere and why it's still Vulnerable. Read the guide →
Invertebrates VU Monarch Butterfly Danaus plexippus The monarch butterfly makes a 4,000 km migration that takes several generations, guided by a sun compass. Learn how milkweed makes it toxic and why monarch numbers have crashed. Read the guide →
Mammals LC Red Fox Vulpes vulpes The red fox is the most widespread wild carnivore on Earth, at home in forests, deserts, and city centres alike. Learn how it hunts by the Earth's magnetic field and why it thrives around people. Read the guide →
Reptiles LC Reticulated Python Malayopython reticulatus The reticulated python is the longest snake in the world, a non-venomous constrictor that swims between islands and lives alongside people across Southeast Asia. Learn how it hunts and breeds. Read the guide →
Mammals LC Sloth Bradypus variegatus The sloth is the slowest mammal on Earth, moving and digesting so slowly that algae grows in its fur. Learn why it only comes down from the canopy once a week — and why that trip is so dangerous. Read the guide →
Mammals EN Tiger Panthera tigris The tiger is the largest cat on Earth and a solitary ambush hunter. Learn how it stalks prey, why every tiger's stripes are unique, and why fewer than 5,600 remain wild. Read the guide →
Mammals CR Western Gorilla Gorilla gorilla The western gorilla is the largest primate and shares about 98% of its DNA with humans. Learn how silverback-led troops live, what gorillas eat, and why the species is Critically Endangered. Read the guide →
Mammals VU Giant Panda Ailuropoda melanoleuca The giant panda is a bear that eats almost nothing but bamboo. Learn how it survives on a low-energy diet, why cubs are so tiny, and how it went from Endangered to Vulnerable. Read the guide →