The list below provides estimates of the number of species within the various animal groups. The largest living animal in the world is the blue whale (Balaenoptera musculus), a beast measuring upwards of 100 feet (30 meters) long. The remaining 86% of species that are estimated to exist have yet to be discovered. Mammal Species of the World (MSW), en français les Espèces de mammifères du monde, est une publication scientifique servant de référence dans le domaine de la zoologie, donnant la description et les données bibliographique des espèces connues de mammifères.Elle est publiée aux presses de l'université Johns-Hopkins par la société savante américaine American Society of Mammalogists. Our map highlights some of these fascinating exclusive creatures. The World Wildlife Fund estimates that on average the world has seen a 60 per cent decrease in the population size of mammals, birds, fish and amphibians due to … All maps, graphics, flags, photos and original descriptions © 2021 worldatlas.com. The Saola is one of the rarest large animals on Earth. Spread the love. The Saola’s environment is as unique as the species itself. In fact, after several centuries of documenting living things, scientists have only managed to document 14% of living species. But sadly, there are many species that are disappearing before our eyes. Of all invertebrates, the insects are by far the most numerous. Scientists have described well over over 1.7 million of the world's species of animals, plants, insects and algae. If we were to divide all the animals on earth into two groups, invertebrates and vertebrates, an estimated 97% of all species would be invertebrates. Blue Whale: “The Winged Whisperer of Ocean” Whales are one of the largest animals to be living on the face of Earth. It's not always easy, especially when supposed "species" are capable of cross-breeding. Madame Berthe’s mouse lemur takes the title of the world’s smallest primate, with an average body length of 92 millimeters and a weight of around 30 grams. Habitat can make counting animals difficult. These types of animals are most commonly found in more isolated parts of the globe, like islands, but they can be found in other places too. Scientists do not know the exact number of living species that exist in the world. 12 Rarest Animal Species in the World 1. The world contains about 8.7 million species, according to the latest estimate - and it could take more than 1,000 years to identify them all. For example, some models classify birds as reptiles, thus boosting the species count of reptiles by as much as 10,000. Everyone loves animals. The … According to WWF, there are 19 critically endangered species, 28 endangered species and 19 vulnerable species which … 69 Strange and Weird Animals. Scroll down to check them out. Belonging to the sole species of a genus of Bovids and came under the radius of science only in 1992. Our planet is full of amazing creatures that we don't even know about. The Wonderfully Weird! African Penguin. Ambiguities in terminology and scientific classification affect species counts. 8 of the Most Popular Animal Species in the Ancient World. plants or animals) that adversely affects the habitats it … Strauss, Bob. They come into new spaces and push out other animals and plants by generally wreaking havoc. Retrieved from https://www.thoughtco.com/how-many-animal-species-on-planet-130923. In order to categorize species, experts classify species into broad a classification known as a genus, which are then classified into a smaller group called a family. Let's take a look at the major groups of animals to see how many species fall within the various categories. The cyanobacterium is probably the first living organism to appear on earth and so is one of the oldest animal species. Cyanobacteria. However, not all megabats are big which is why we only focus on the largest ones today. Most of the Earth’s history has been uncovered through research into what is known as the fossil record. To date, researchers have been able to document around 1.2 million species in existence. This solitary nocturnal primate is endemic to Madagascar. https://www.thoughtco.com/how-many-animal-species-on-planet-130923 (accessed April 10, 2021). List Of 30 Rarest Animals In The World According to some researches, there are almost 8.7 different kinds of species that exist on this planet, Earth. "How Many Animal Species Are There?" He observed that 450 of these exhibited sexual intercourse, courtship, emotional bonds, partnership and even child-rearing behaviour between homosexual individuals. Organisms that inhabit the soil or parasitize other animals are likewise challenging to locate and therefore difficult to quantify. … Species counts are biased by our tendency to study certain organisms more than others. In many instances, the smaller species are more difficult to find and count. WWF conserves our planet, habitats, & species like the Panda & Tiger For the last 50 years our mission has been to stop the degradation of the planet's natural environment and to build a future in which humans live in harmony with nature. Extinction takes away key components of the classification chain, which means that scientists routinely can end up with unrelated species. It’s also called the forest giraffe or the zebra giraffe. However, the total number of species that are in existence is estimated to be somewhere around 8.7 million. Every classification of living organisms belongs to one Kingdom, of which there are five in total. Invertebrates, animals that lack backbones, include sponges, cnidarians, mollusks, platyhelminths, annelids, arthropods, and insects, among other animals. The enlisted animals featured in the article have not been arranged according to size. The classification continues until the living organism can no longer be grouped further. The remaining 86% of species that are estimated to exist have yet to be discovered. It is estimated that planet Earth has approximately 8.7 million species. Megabats are the superfamilies of the largest bats around the world with freakishly huge size. To show you exactly which animals are … How Many Animals Are There in the World? Among animals, the largest species are all marine mammals, specifically whales. So, it can be seen that saving one species has led to benefit many other species, which would have otherwise also gone into extinction. Nearly 21,000 monitored populations of mammals, fish, birds, reptiles and amphibians, encompassing almost 4,400 species around the world, have … For many ancient cultures, all living beings, be they large or small; feathered, scaled, or furry, were the repositories of magical powers. African Elephant. Animal size often complicates the detection and counting of species. 69. Animals: estimated 3-30 million species||--Invertebrates: 97% of all known species|   |--Sponges: 10,000 species|        |--Cnidarians: 8,000-9,000 species|        |--Mollusks: 100,000 species|        |--Platyhelminths: 13,000 species|        |--Nematodes: 20,000+ species|        |--Echinoderms: 6,000 species|        |--Annelida: 12,000 species|        |--Arthropods|            |--Crustaceans: 40,000 species|                 |--Insects: 1-30 million+ species|                 |--Arachnids: 75,500 species||--Vertebrates: 3% of all known species|--Reptiles: 7,984 species|--Amphibians: 5,400 species|--Birds: 9,000-10,000 species|--Mammals: 4,475-5,000 species|--Ray-Finned Fishes: 23,500 species, Bob Strauss is a science writer and the author of several books, including "The Big Book of What, How and Why" and "A Field Guide to the Dinosaurs of North America. Animals; 10 Oldest Species in the World; Animals . The estimated number of animal species on our planet falls somewhere in the vast range of three to 30 million. Amur Leopards. As the rate of extinction has increased, thousands of living species are going extinct without being documented, and their existence will never be known to humans. There are so many insect species, at least 10 million, that scientists have yet to discover them all, let alone name or count them. If you add in the world's species that aren't plants or animals, such as lichens, mushrooms … Bats are probably one of the animals that spark interest amongst many people this year. African Lions. It is a photosynthesizing animal that lives in large colonies and produces … The process is time consuming and at times turns up as inconclusive. There are lots of species of animals in the world. Addax. Strauss, Bob. As of March 2018, the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species listed thousands of species as threatened or vulnerable, which means that the further ability to classify species may be in jeopardy. Intelligence is one of the defining features of being human and it comes in various forms. Another giant of the amphibian world is the North American hellbender (Cryptobranchus alleganiensis), which can measure up to 0.76 m (2.5 ft). Keep in mind that the sub-levels in this list reflect the taxonomic relationships between organisms. The Maned Wolf 5. Even though they are called Asian unicorn; they have two parallel horns with sharp ends. African Forest Elephant. On the other hand, nematodes, also known as roundworms, are a little-studied group of invertebrates and consequently, we have little grasp of how diverse they may be. Human encroachment on nature has resulted in loss of habitat of lots of animals. Science Daily.com defines an invasive species as a non-indigenous species (e.g. Beavers now have willow branches to eat, and beaver dams create marshland habitat for otters, mink, and ducks. Everyone wants hard figures, but the fact is that estimating the number of animal species that inhabit our planet is an exercise in educated guesswork. Fossa 6. 68. What is animal intelligence? This means, for example, that the number of invertebrates species includes all the groups below it in the hierarchy (sponges, cnidarians, etc). The center of information for all animal lovers. The numbers most accurately represent all living species of mammals, birds and coniferous plants. Blobfish. That's why I've compiled this “master list” of some of the most amazing and weird animals in the world. How Many McDonalds Locations Are There in the World. Okapi3. Even terrestrial habitats, like the Amazon rainforest, can present insurmountable obstacles to a species census. 10 Oldest Species in the World . In the 1990s, the red-vented cockatoo had a wild population of no more than 4,000 birds, but by 2008 the number was less than 1,000, making it one of the most endangered birds on the planet. With an estimated 10-14 million species in the world it’s not surprising there are a large number of rare animals you probably haven’t heard of. Animals far outnumber us on the planet. Here is a list of the oldest animal species that are still found in the world. In fact, after several centuries of documenting living things, scientists have only managed to document 14% of living species. Another benefit of conserving endangered animals is their contribution to the field of medicine. Many of the species are lost in the process of evolution. Learn about your favourite animals, Here you will see complete database of animal facts and information Below you'll find a list that gives the number of species known in the world for each major category of living creatures and organisms. Text size Aa Aa. But enough about the whale. ", Rough Estimates of Animal Species Numbers. It’s usually the rarest animals that are also the most endangered species , at most at risk of becoming extinct. 30 Biggest Animals In The World 1. ThoughtCo, Feb. 16, 2021, thoughtco.com/how-many-animal-species-on-planet-130923. World Wildlife Mammals | Birds | Other Animals Animals are interesting, no matter what species they are. Animals that live out in the wild, I think, are the most intriguing. Adelie Penguin. Vertebrate animals, including fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals, represent a puny 3% of all living species. Due to various factors like pollution, shrinking habitats, climate change, and poaching, some animals have become completely extinct in the wild. Researchers must match the specimens to available samples, analyze their anatomy and DNA, and find their classification lineage. Scientists do not know the exact number of living species that exist in the world. The okapi … 10 Of The Coolest Animal Species In The World :1. Since not all groups are listed below, the number of a parent group is not necessarily the sum of child groups. Unfortunately, due to extinction, we may never be able to document every species. Additionally, different approaches to classification influence species counts. ThoughtCo. Animals that live in the deep sea are not easy to access, so naturalists have less understanding of their diversity. This means that we may never have an exact species count. ... about half the normal life of a banteng which is an endangered species. The IUCN lists 416 birds as endangered species as of September 2016, and one of these avian animals is the red-vented cockatoo, which is found on many of the smaller islands in the Philippines. ... and 36 kg (79 lb) have never been verified for this species. Each living thing contains a unique reservoir of genetic … Read Later ; Print. Glaucus Atlanticus or "the Blue Dragon"4. (2021, February 16). Jump to letter: A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z. Aardvark. You have never seen this tiny bacterium but it is the reason why life is possible on earth. Black-footed ferret Elizabeth Ann, a black-footed ferret female, was born on December 10, 2020, at the Fish and Wildlife Service's Black-footed Ferret Conservation Center in Colorado. If you have ever seen a Wildlife documentary on TV, then you would know how amazingly adaptable wild animals … Oldest Animal Species In The World Most Of The Earth’s History Has Been Uncovered Through Research Into What Is Known As The Fossil Record. I love learning about new animals, and I know you do too. How Many Animal Species Are There? How do we come up with that whopping estimate? https://www.thoughtco.com/how-many-animal-species-on-planet-130923 It maybe looks more like a zebra, but it is in fact closely related to the giraffe. Pika. How do you define a species? Oldest Animal Species 1. How the Sixth Mass Extinction Affects the U.S. Economy, The 10 Essential Facts to Know About Animals, Insects: The Most Diverse Animal Group in the Planet, Animals of Australia's Great Barrier Reef. African Spurred Tortoise. Darwin’s Fox. With only an estimated 60 Amur leopards left in the whole world, this species of wild cat is in... 3. Among them, the Animal Kingdom is the prominent kingdom having a huge variety of colorful species who can walk, swim, fly, creep as well as roam freely all around the Earth by different techniques in search of food and necessities of life. The greatest challenge facing species classification is extinction. Despite these challenges, it's desirable to have some idea of how many species inhabit our planet. Endemic Animals Around the World “Endemic” refers to a species that is uniquely found in one part of the world, and that part only! These Kingdoms are known as Animals, Plants, Fungi, Protista, and Monera. The world is full of invasive species. From primates to intestinal parasites.A decade later, a study conducted by Dr. Nathan Bailey at the University of California, published in Trends in Eco… And while humans have domesticated some of them for work or food, others have been observed, admired, feared, and revered from afar. Madame Berthe’s Mouse Lemur- the smallest primate in the world. The animals in the verge of extinction are known as critically endangered species. This is a list of animals that have been cloned. "How Many Animal Species Are There?" This gives us the perspective necessary to balance research and conservation objectives, to ensure that less popular groups of animals are not overlooked, and to help us better understand community structure and dynamics. Because of this research, scientists have been able to piece together the evolutionary tree as well as the evolution of the Earth itself. They are found only in one place, that is, the Annamite Mountains of Laos and Vietnam. Strauss, Bob. Pika or Ilia pika (Ochotona iliensis), is a tiny mammal that lives in the Tianshan mountain range was... 2. How Many Animals Do Humans Kill Each Year. Birds, as a group, have been extensively studied, so scientists believe that the estimated number of bird species alive today (between 9,000 to 10,000) is a relatively good approximation of the actual number. The okapi is one of the weirdest-looking animal species in the world and at times looks like a masquerade costume. Pink Fairy Armadillo2. The challenges are numerous. While discovering new species is the easier part of documenting living things, categorizing them is the hard part. In 1995, zoologist Konrad Lorenz published a study in which he studied the behaviour of 1,500 animal species. Thankfully, there are thousands of people and organizations dedicated to saving these vulnerable creatures. This is just one of the reasons why it is difficult to estimate the exact number of species that inhabit the Earth. Giant Isopod. 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