Tools · Learn
Animal Types
Break down the animal kingdom into clear types — mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, fish, insects, and more. Built for students learning science and for anyone studying how animals move (great for drawing and animation).
Meet Individual Animals: Animal Education → · Keeper Guides: Animal Care →
Quick Map
All Animal Types
No matches — try a different search.
Mammals
Warm-blooded · milk for babies · hair or fur
Mammals are animals that usually have hair or fur, are warm-blooded, and feed their babies milk. Humans are mammals too!
Birds
Winged wonders with feathers galore!
Animals with feathers, beaks, and wings (most can fly)
Reptiles
Scaly friends with a special temperature trick!
Animals that have scales or scutes, breathe air, and often don't regulate their own body heat.
Amphibians
Hopping between water and land!
Animals that live part in water, part on land. They breathe air but keep their skin moist.
Fish
Swimming wonders of the ocean and lakes!
A fish is an animal that lives in water, breathes through gills, and moves with fins.
Insects
The tiny creatures that rule the planet!
A group of animals with six legs, a hard outer shell called an exoskeleton, and usually wings.
Arachnids
Crawling wonders with eight special legs!
Animals with eight legs, no antennae, and a special body plan that helps them crawl and spin webs.
Mollusks
Soft bodies with secret protection
Animals with soft, squishy bodies and often hard outer shells.
Jellyfish & Corals
Stinging cells · ocean drifters & reef builders
Jellyfish, sea anemones, and corals belong to a group called cnidarians. They have soft bodies and special stinging cells.
Invertebrates (overview)
No backbone · most animals on Earth
Invertebrates are animals without a backbone. Insects, spiders, worms, mollusks, and jellyfish are all invertebrates. Over 95% of animal species are invertebrates!
Vertebrates (overview)
Animals with backbones
Vertebrates are animals with a backbone (spine). The five classic vertebrate groups students learn are: fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals.
Crustaceans
Hard shells and pinchy claws
A group of animals with hard outer shells that protect their soft bodies, often living in water.
Echinoderms
The slow-moving, spiny explorers of the ocean floor
Animals with five-part bodies and special feet that help them crawl across the sand
Annelids
Segmented Wonders Under Your Feet
Animals with repeating body parts, no backbone needed!
Marsupials
The special sleepers with pouches!
A group of mammals that carry their babies in a special pocket on their belly.
Primates
The intelligent climbers
A group of mammals with flexible hands and big brains, including humans, apes, and monkeys.
Rodents
The tooth-tastic group!
Animals with special teeth that never stop growing.
Carnivores
Sharp teeth for protein-packed meals
A group of mammals with special meat-eating features, from fierce predators to skilled scavengers
Birds of Prey
Sharp claws and hooked beaks make them masters of the sky
Animals that fly with wings, have feathers, lay eggs, and primarily eat meat
Waterfowl
Feathers that float, feet that glide
Birds with webbed feet that live in or near water
Cetaceans
The ocean's singing stars!
Cetaceans are mammals that live in the water. They breathe air through their blowholes and give birth to babies like all mammals.
Pinnipeds
Flippered friends of the ocean
A group of semi-aquatic marine mammals that live in oceans around the world.
Snakes
Slithery, scaly, and super flexible!
A legless reptile with a long, slender body that moves by slithering.
Lizards
Scaly explorers of sun and stone
A type of reptile with a bony tail, usually four legs, and skin that's dry and scaly.
Turtles and Tortoises
Slow-moving friends with amazing shells!
A type of reptile that carries its home on its back - a protective shell!
Crocodilians
Stealthy water hunters with armor-plated skin
A group of large reptiles that live in or near water, breathing air but laying eggs.
Frogs and Toads
Jumping friends with sticky feet!
Animals that live part-time in water, breathing through skin and lungs.
Salamanders
Slimy friends with a hidden secret!
A type of amphibian that lives on land but needs water to grow.
Gastropods
The slowest movers in the animal kingdom!
Gastropods are a type of mollusk with soft bodies that often live on land. They're known for their single shell (snails) or no shell at all (slugs).
Cephalopods
Eight arms, big brains!
A group of soft-bodied ocean animals with tentacles and suckers. They're related to snails but live in the water.
Bivalves
The shell-ebration of two halves!
Animals with two hinged shells that open and close to find food or hide.
Sponges
The simplest animals in the ocean!
A sponge is an animal that lives attached to one place, like a rock or coral reef. It doesn't have muscles or move around.
Big Cats
The mighty roarers and gentle purrs of the wild
A group of large, meat-eating mammals with distinctive roars or purrs