When it comes to the animal world of Australia, the kangaroo immediately comes to mind. This animal really is, in a way, a symbol of this mainland and is even present on the state emblem. But, in addition to a variety of kangaroos, the Australian fauna includes about 200,000 living creatures.
Since the mainland is relatively small and located far from the “mainland”, most animals, birds and insects are endemic. Arboreal and jumping animals, lizards and snakes are widely represented here. The bird world is also diverse.
mammals
Platypus
This is a mysterious mammal whose close relative is the echidna. You can meet him in Australia. Lives mainly in rivers and lakes, making narrow burrows with several entrances. Active mainly at night. Feeds on various molluscs, insects and crustaceans.
Echidna
An unusual animal that has some similarities with a porcupine and an anteater. Appearance is represented by a small head flowing into the body. The whole body is covered with rigid 5 cm needles. You can meet the echidna on the territory of the entire continent of Australia. Prefers rainforests and bushes as housing.
red kangaroo
It is the largest species of all marsupials. Some males can reach one and a half meters in body length with a weight of about 85 kilograms. It lives in almost all of Australia, with the exception of the fertile regions of the south and the tropics of the north. Able to live for a long time without water, as their habitat includes savannahs.
wallaby
Wallabies are a species of marsupials that belong to the kangaroo family. These are relatively small animals with a weight of 20 kilograms and a height of 70 centimeters. Wallabies are considered endemic to Australia. It is noteworthy that these animals can often be found as pets, as they are very friendly and easily tamed.
short-faced kangaroos
This representative lives in the sparse forests, savannahs and copses of Australia. Animals weigh about one and a half kilograms with a body length ranging from 25 to 45 centimeters. They have an outward resemblance to rat wide-mouthed kangaroos. The number of these representatives is extremely small and constantly declining, because they are in the Red Book and are strictly protected.
Three-toed rat kangaroos
In another way, these animals are also called three-toed potoroo. They have a lot of external similarities with rats, but they borrowed all the habits from kangaroos. Prefer to be nocturnal. They feed on various insects, fungi and herbs. The body size of these representatives ranges from 30 to 40 centimeters. They live in southwestern and eastern Australia.
Big rat kangaroo
Large rat kangaroos are small animals of the marsupial family. They are found in various savannas and forests. The largest population is in East Queensland and South Wales. Among other rat kangaroos, large rats are, respectively, the largest. Their body size reaches 50 centimeters with a weight of about 2 kilograms.
Quokka
This is a small marsupial that has spread throughout southwestern Australia. Represents a species of marsupial mammal wallaby. Has a hunched back and short legs. Body size ranges from 25 to 30 centimeters with a weight of about 3 kilograms. Quokkas prefer to live in wetlands and near fresh water.
Koala
Koalas are representatives of marsupials that settled in the east and south of Australia. You can meet them on the crowns of trees in eucalyptus forests. Activity comes at night. Koalas feed exclusively on eucalyptus leaves and shoots. Because of this diet, they are quite slow most of the time.
Wombat
The appearance of a wombat is similar to a miniature bear. Their body reaches a length of about 70-120 centimeters with a weight of no more than 45 kilograms. They live mainly in the south and east of Australia, as well as in New Wales and Tasmania. Animals differ in that they are the largest mammals that spend most of their lives underground.
marsupial flying squirrel
The appearance of the marsupial flying squirrel is very similar to squirrels. Animals have a small body covered with thick fur. Most often, marsupial flying squirrels are called possums. These animals spread in Australia and Papua New Guinea. They lead a predominantly arboreal lifestyle and practically do not descend to the ground. They can be found in various forests and gardens.
tasmanian devil
This name was given to the animal because of its huge mouth with sharp teeth, as well as the ominous screams that the Tasmanian devil makes at night. This predator is very gluttonous. Its diet contains various medium mammals, snakes, amphibians and some plants. You can meet him on the island of Tasmania.
Bandicoot
These are quite common Australian marsupials that live both in deserts and in tropical forests. Baniducts are also found at an altitude of about 2000 meters above the sea. Are endemic to Australia. However, the number of these animals has been greatly reduced in recent years. They feed mainly on small rodents and lizards.
Asian buffalo
This representative is on the verge of extinction. To solve this problem, Asian buffalo are artificially bred in various reserves. They are widely distributed in Cambodia, India, Nepal and Bhutan. In the northern region of Australia, small populations of these animals were artificially bred.
Camel
Camels are large mammals that belong to the camelid family. These animals are of great value to the peoples of Asia. They are well adapted to various climatic conditions. Camels were brought to Australia in the nineteenth century and currently have about 50 thousand representatives.
Dingo
Dingo is an Australian dog that appeared on this continent around 8000 BC. For some time she was a pet, but then she became wild and became one of the predators in the ecosystem. Its habitat is not limited to Australia alone. It is also found in Asia, Thailand and New Guinea.
Bat-winged foxes
Flying foxes are also called “bats”. It is very important not to confuse them with familiar bats, as they differ significantly from them. The main differences are the lack of a “radar” that allows bats to move around in the dark. Bats navigate only by hearing and smell. You can meet these representatives in tropical forests.
Nambat
Nambat is a marsupial anteater, which is also known as an anteater. This Australian animal eats a huge number of termites and anteaters. Its specific feature is the presence of a tongue 10 centimeters long. At the moment, it lives only in the southwest of Western Australia and lives in dry woodlands or in eucalyptus forests.
red fox
The common fox belongs to the canine family and is widely distributed on many continents of the Earth, in particular, in Australia. Foxes are notable for the fact that they live in pairs or whole families. You can meet them in hilly areas or near forests. They spend the daytime in burrows, and with the onset of night they get out in search of prey.
marsupial mice
Marsupial mice are mammals of the family of carnivorous marsupials. This genus includes about 10 representatives, which are widely distributed in Australia, Tasmania and New Guinea. They live in various forests and feed on insects and small vertebrates. They are distinguished by the absence of a characteristic “bag”, which is inherent in most animals of the family.
Kuzu
This cute animal is the most studied of all possums. It belongs to the couscous family from the order of the two-bladed marsupials. It is noteworthy that the color of the coat of animals depends on the habitat. As a rule, kuzu are white-gray, brown and black. There are also albinos. You can meet kuzu in most of Australia and on the island of Tasmania.
Reptiles and snakes
snake-necked turtle
Serpent Lizards
tree lizard
fat tailed gecko
giant lizards
black snake
Viper death snake
narrow-nosed crocodile
frilled lizard
combed crocodile
taipan
Moloch
Bearded Agama
short-tailed skink
Rigid or ferocious snake
Insects
Rhino cockroaches
Huntsman
Danaida monarch
Red fire ant
Mosquitoes of the genus Biters
leucoweb spider
Australian cicadas
Australian centipede
neon cuckoo bee
blue wasp
Australian widow
Birds
Ostrich Emu
The largest bird on the mainland and the second largest in the world. Outwardly, it is very similar to another famous bird in Australia the cassowary, leads a nomadic life and is distributed almost throughout Australia. Can swim and loves to spend time in the water. Females and males do not differ visually only by the sounds they make.
shrub bigfoot
Fairly large bird (reaches up to 75 cm), with black plumage, red head and brightly colored (yellow or grayish-blue) larynx in males. It is distinguished by massive legs, and the main feature of this species is that it is the male who takes care of future offspring. It is he who monitors the eggs and regulates the temperature of the masonry.
australian duck
Blue-black medium-sized (up to 40 cm) duck with a remarkable bright blue beak in males. Lives in flocks, and during breeding (autumn-winter) tries not to catch the eye and be very inconspicuous. The species is endemic to Australia and only about 15 thousand individuals remain, which is associated with the drainage of land and a decrease in the area useful for birds.
Magellanic penguin
The Magellanic penguin is named after the famous navigator Magellan, who discovered it to the world. It lives mainly on the Patagonian coast of Australia and some individuals even made it to Brazil and Peru. A medium-sized bird (up to 6 kilograms) of the usual black and white color for penguins with black stripes on the neck.
Royal albatross
A sea bird with the most impressive wingspan of any known flying bird more than three meters. These “pilots” can reach speeds of up to 100 km/h. Lives to almost 60 years and almost 10 of them go to maturity. The egg incubates for 80 days, and for more than a month the chicks are helpless and are fed by their parents.
australian pelican
Lives all over Australia, except for the center, flies even to New Zealand. Medium-sized bird (up to 2.5 wingspan), up to 7 kilograms. The most remarkable thing about this species is the most unusual and long beak relative to body size (up to 50 cm) this record is recorded by the Guinness Book of Records. A pelican eats up to 9 kg of fish per day.
Bittern
The bird is quite large (up to 75 cm), distributed throughout Australia. Unremarkable in appearance, this nocturnal resident is rarely seen, but her remarkable and unique cry has been heard by many and cannot be confused with any other sound. Nests on the ground.
Australian brown hawk
A bird of prey that feeds not only on small birds, but also on reptiles, insects and mammals. A hawk with a gray head and a reddish body spotted with white markings. On average, it grows up to 55 cm, and in this species, females, as a rule, are much larger than males unlike them, they weigh up to 350 grams.
black cockatoo
A tropical rainforest parrot that grows up to a kilogram in weight. As the name implies a bird of black-coal color with a green tint, with a powerful beak (reaches up to 9 cm), also black. This species, at the same time, is one of the most ancient cockatoos on the mainland these birds were the first to inhabit the north of Australia.
gouldian finches
This weaver got its name from the British naturalist John Gould, who, in turn, named the bird after his wife, Lady Gould’s finches. It is an endangered species due to its amazingly beautiful plumage. Their color combines several bright colors: yellow, red and green with various variations.
helmeted cassowary
The most common of all cassowaries, the southern helmeted cassowary is a large bird one and a half meters high, and weighing even heavier than a person up to 80 kg. In his appearance, the most striking thing is the red hanging folds on his head in the form of a helmet. Its three-fingered paws are a fearsome weapon capable of inflicting serious damage.
kookaburra
A bird famous for its unusual voice, reminiscent of human laughter. This predatory laughing kingfisher is quite large, and even got the name giant kingfisher (grows up to 50 cm). It nests in hollows of eucalyptus, and feeds on reptiles (snakes), insects, rodents and even small birds.
Black Swan
A fairly large and serious bird (up to 140 cm) with a long, graceful neck (32 vertebrae), which allows it to feed in deep waters. A bright red beak with a white spot at the edge, and a black color the swan is really impressive. It is not a predator and feeds only on plant foods (algae, aquatic plants, cereals).
Bowerbird
The bowerbird, which lives in Australia, not only has an interesting appearance (the male has a strong beak, bluish-black color and bright blue eyes). They also received the nickname “designers”, because during mating games, males attract females with huts of bizarre shape and unusual design, for which not only natural materials are used, but also plastic.
Lyre bird or lyrebird
These passerines attract attention not only for their appearance as the name implies, they have a huge and unusual tail with which they entertain females. During mating games, they also dance and sing amazingly during courtship, for which they even build a special “stage”. And they sing up to four hours a day!
Bluebearing Olush
Blue Olusha is a bird whose blue color is crucial in marriage games. Blue legs of Olushi with bright blue membranes are the main signs of a real male-and females choose only birds with bright legs. Olusha herself a small bird, weighs up to 1.5 kg and eats exclusively sea fish.
Red Flamingo
Those who saw this bird will never forget it red flamingos have a memorable specific coloring. Despite the long legs, the bird is not so and large only a few kilos (up to 3 kg). Flamingo live in large colonies in laguna and lakes with salt water. They live to an advanced age about 40 years.
Bird Paradise Bird Victoria
Paradise of birds is the prerogative of Australia, its endemics. These small birds (about 25 cm) settled on the Atherton Plateau (Queensland), and feed on small insects that are found in the middle of logs, preying on them with their hooked beak. The bird got its interesting name in honor of Queen Victoria.
ibis scarlet
Bright and very colorful, the scarlet ibis is a fairly large bird (up to 70 cm). Ibis lives in large groups and nests on mangrove islands. Red plumage appears in an ibis only at the time of growing up in the second year of life, and they live on average about 20 years. Birds feed on fish and shellfish.
Fish
drop fish
Bumpy Carpet Shark
handfish
rag-picker
fish knight
Pegasus
bull shark
Great white shark
sea wasp
Irukandji
flying fish
Horntooth or barramunda
telescope fish
moonfish
Napoleon fish
Brazilian glowing shark
Ofiura
Fish without a face
sipunculida
Craboid
sea spider
Bioluminescent Malacost
Conclusion
The world of Australian animals is diverse and unusual. Despite the prominent groups, the total number of animals here is still large. This is due to the fact that in one group there are several diverse representatives connected by a certain common feature.
A good example is marsupials, which are extremely widespread in Australia. In addition to the usual kangaroo, a wallaby, marsupial mouse, marsupial devil and many other animals have a bag for carrying a cub. Regardless of size and lifestyle, the bag is used for the life of the baby in the first few months after birth, as well as for his nutrition.
Another large group is a variety of arboreal animals, such as the koala. The basis of their nutrition is the leaves and bark of trees, while activity, as a rule, occurs exclusively in the dark.
Australia’s bird life is also diverse. There are several types of parrots, eagles, emu and many others. There are also species of birds that live on other continents. First of all, this is a crowned dove, which differs from its many “brothers” in its beautiful blue plumage and feather “crown” on its head.
