Mammals

Mammals are warm-blooded vertebrates (animals with backbones) that nourish their young with milk. All mammals have hair at some stage of their life. Mammals have larger, more highly developed brains than other animals. There are more than 5,400 mammal species on earth.

Addax

Nomads of the Sahara Desert, addax live in one of the most inhospitable climates on earth.

African Painted Dog

Its scientific name means “painted wolf,” but this pack animal is neither a wolf nor a dog.

American Badger

These fierce predators are enthusiastic diggers who maintain large underground dens.

Asian Elephant

Asia’s largest land mammal is known for its intelligence and social behavior.

Babirusa

The babirusa is a wild, naked-looking pig that is native to the Indonesian archipelago.

Baird’s Tapir

The Baird’s tapir is the largest terrestrial mammal in Central America.

Binturong

The binturong is also known as a “bearcat” though it is neither a bear nor a cat.

Black Duiker

Black duikers are medium-sized forest antelope native to Africa.

Bongo

Shy and elusive, mountain bongos are among the largest forest antelopes.

Bornean Orangutan

The world’s largest arboreal mammals, these apes spend about 90 percent of their time in trees.

Buff-Cheeked Gibbon

Gibbons are small apes from Southeast Asia. They are famous for their loud calls.

Calamian Deer

The Calamian deer is sometimes known as the hog deer because of its stout body and short legs.

California Sea Lion

These agile swimmers use their long front flippers propel them through the water.

Chacoan Peccary

Chacoan peccaries are social animals that live in small herds of up to ten individuals.

Chimpanzee

The Los Angeles Zoo is home to one of the largest chimpanzee troops of any zoo in the country.

Chinese Goral

Gorals can navigate and survive in harsh, rocky, high altitude environments.

Desert Bighorn Sheep

The largest wild sheep in North America, bighorn are named for their majestic horns.

Fennec Fox

The fennec fox is one of the smallest and most social fox species.

Giant Anteater

The giant anteater’s long, sticky tongue allows this insectivore to slurp up ants and termites.

Giant Otter

As the name suggests, this is the world’s largest otter species.

Grevy’s Zebra

The stripe pattern of a Grevy’s zebra is as distinctive as human fingerprints.

Harbor Seal

Found off the coast of California, harbor seals are part of the true seal family.

Jaguar

The jaguar is the largest cat in the Americas and the world’s third largest cat.

Koala

Koalas are marsupials and belong to the same family as kangaroos and opossums.

Lowland Paca

Pacas are large rodents related to guinea pigs, capybaras, and agoutis.

Mandrill

Mandrills are the largest monkey species and one of the most colorful.
Maned Wolf at the LA Zoo

Maned Wolf

The maned wolf’s hind legs are slightly longer than its front legs, making it a talented uphill climber.

Masai Giraffe

Masai giraffes grow up to 18 feet tall, making them the lookout towers of the savannah.

Meerkat

Meerkats live in matriarchal groups of up to 30 individuals called mobs or gangs.

Mountain Tapir

Mountain tapirs live at high elevations, so their fur is thicker than that of other tapir species.

Ocelot

Ocelots rest in trees during the day and are nocturnal, hunting most of the night.

Okapi

The okapi is shy and secretive. Usually solitary, it follows a well-trodden network of trails.

Ring-Tailed Lemur

One of fifty different lemur species, ring-tailed lemurs use their tails to communicate.

Rock Hyrax

Though they are rodent-like in appearance, hyraxes are one of the elephant’s closest living relatives.
Small sand-colored fox with white markings and large ears.

Sand Fox

Also known as Rüppell’s fox, the sand fox inhabits sandy deserts in northern Africa and parts of Asia.

Serval

Servals are elusive predators that belong to the small cat family, Felinae.

Shetland Sheep

Humans brought sheep to the Shetland Islands off the coast of Scotland more than 1,000 years ago.

Short-Nosed Echidna

These egg-laying mammals resemble porcupines or hedgehogs, but they are not related.

Siamang

Siamangs belong to a family of smaller apes called gibbons that are native to Southeast Asia.

Sichuan Takin

The takin belongs to a family of animals known as antilocaprids (goat-antelopes).

Snow Leopard

Snow leopards can jump 30 to 50 feet between mountain ledges, using their tails to balance

Southern Gerenuk

Gerenuks often stand on their hind legs when eating leaves from tall trees.

Southern Pudu

The world’s smallest deer species, the pudu stands about two feet tall.

Speke’s Gazelle

This small, delicate antelope was named after the British explorer John Hanning Speke.

Sumatran Tiger

Tigers are the only big cats with stripes. These markings provide camouflage in dense cover.

Tadjik Markhor

These wild goats are expert mountain climbers, well suited to their Himalayan habitat.

Tammar Wallaby

Tammar wallabies are the smallest species of wallaby and are often preyed upon by dingoes.

Tufted Deer

Males tufted deer have small, unbranched antlers that are often hidden by a tuft of hair.

Western Gray Kangaroo

Kangaroos can reach speeds of more than 30 mph for short periods and can jump as high as five feet.