Zoo Animals
Species List and Fact Sheets

Choose from the links below for animals found at the Zoo:
Mammals  Birds  Reptiles  Amphibians & Fish  Animal Ambassadors

Animals share several important traits:

1. They eat other living things
2. They can usually move from place to place
3. They react quickly to their environment
4. Their bodies usually have multiple cells
5. They usually reproduce sexually.

Mammals
There are several characteristics that all of us have in common:

• We nurse our young from mammary glands, hence the name "mammals"
• We have hair or fur

What sets us apart as a group? our adaptability and our relatively large brains.

Birds
There are more than 9,000 species of birds alive today, occupying all of the world's continents and habitats. Yet despite their amazing variety and diversity, all birds have one unique characteristic: feathers.

Reptiles
Reptiles are the only animals with the following combination of traits:

• Skin covered with a sheet of scales
• Contol body temperature through external means
• Young that look like miniature adults (most hatched from eggs, but some born live)

Amphibians
Almost all amphibians have thin, moist skin that helps them breathe. No other group of animals has this special skin. Most amphibians undergo a unique change from larvae to adults, called metamorphosis.

Fish
There are some things that all fish have in common:

• They breathe with gills.
• All fish also have fins, which help them swim forward, turn, and stop, as well as keep upright.
• Most fish also have scales and most hatch from eggs.

Scientists estimate there are about 9 or 10 million species. They exist in a staggering array of forms and sizes, ranging from a few cells to creatures that weigh several tons. Though most animals live in the seas, they're found in every habitat on the planet.