The Amazon rainforest represents more than half of all the rainforests in the world. It is spread across an area of 2,100,000 square miles, and is home to an abundance of wildlife, with about 10% of all known animals and birds living in the Amazon rainforest. Like all rainforests, the Amazon can be classified into four layers, the forest floor, understory, canopy, and emergent, with different animals inhabiting each layer.
Amazon Rainforest Animals
List of animals that live in the Amazon rainforest
Mammals
Opossum (Amazonian red-sided, Grey short-tailed, Bare-tailed woolly mouse, White-eared, Spectacled slender, Ronald’s, Bare-tailed woolly, Marajó short-tailed, Woolly mouse, Short-tailed, Chestnut-striped, Olrog’s four-eyed) Armadillo (Giant, Greater long-nosed, Southern naked-tailed, Six-banded, Nine-banded) Sloth (Brown-throated, Pale-throated, Linnaeus’s two-toed) Anteater (Giant, Collared) Capuchin (White-fronted, Tufted, Gracile) Spider monkey (White-bellied, Peruvian, White-cheeked) Night monkey (Three-striped, Azara’s, Nancy Ma’s, Black-headed) Marmoset (Roosmalens’ dwarf, Pygmy, Rio Acari, Silvery, Gold-and-white, Santarem, White, Manicore, Marca’s, Maués, Goeldi’s, Rondon’s, Black-headed, Satéré) Tamarin (Pied, Brown-mantled, Emperor, Mottle-faced, White-lipped, Black, Red-handed, Black-mantled, Graells’s, Red-capped, Mura’s saddleback, Golden-mantled, Martins’s, White-mantled, Golden-handed, Moustached) Squirrel monkey (Black-capped, Common, Bare-eared, Black) Howler monkey (Amazon black, Red-handed, Spix’s red-handed, Juruá red, Purús red) Woolly monkey (Grey, Silvery) Titi (Milton’s, Prince Bernhard’s, Baptista Lake, Coppery, Nash’s, Brown, Chestnut-bellied, Collared, Lucifer, Rio Mayo, White-tailed, Hershkovitz’s, Hoffmann’s, Dusky, Colombian black-handed, Rio Purus, Red-headed) Saki (White-nosed, Golden-faced, White-footed, Brown-backed bearded, Black bearded, Red-backed bearded, Uta Hick’s bearded) Bat (Lesser long-tongued, Dark fruit-eating, Tent-making, Visored, Velvety free-tailed, Flat-faced fruit-eating, Mexican free-tailed, Brown fruit-eating, Desert red, Gnome fruit-eating, Brown-bellied broad-nosed, Common vampire, Hairy-legged vampire, White-winged vampire) Rat (Amazon bamboo, Sucre spiny, Peruvian tree, Giant tree, Ferreira’s spiny tree, Guyenne spiny, White-faced spiny tree, Tuft-tailed spiny tree, Bare-tailed armored tree, Yellow-crowned brush-tailed, Cuvier’s spiny, White-tailed Olalla, Guyanan spiny, Grey-footed spiny, Patton’s spiny, Kulina spiny, Gardner’s spiny, Furtive spiny tree, Rio Negro brush-tailed, Long-tailed armored tree) Porcupine (Black dwarf, Streaked dwarf, Bicolored-spined, Black-tailed hairy dwarf) Acouchi (Red, Green) Squirrel (Southern Amazon red, Amazon dwarf, Northern Amazon red, Neotropical pygmy) Mouse (Eastern Amazon climbing, White-footed climbing) Uakari (Bald, Neblina, Aracá, Golden-backed) Dog (Short-eared, Bush) Raccoon (Pygmy, Crab-eating) Weasel (Amazon, Long-tailed) Otter (Neotropical, Giant) Tapir (Little black, Mountain, South American) Peccary (Collared, White-lipped) Brocket (Red, Brown, Amazonian brown) River dolphin (Amazon, Araguaian) Pacarana Acrobatic cavy Capybara Black agouti Lowland paca Amazonian hocicudo Brazilian cottontail rabbit Ocelot Oncilla Southern tiger cat Margay Cougar Jaguarundi Jaguar Crab-eating fox Maned wolf South American coati Kinkajou Eastern lowland olingo Tayra Greater grison Striped hog-nosed skunk White-tailed deer Tucuxi Birds
Amazon (Diademed, Festive, Kawall’s, Orange-winged, Yellow-crowned) Antbird (Band-tailed, Banded, Bare-eyed, Black, Black-and-white, Black-chinned, Black-faced, Black-throated, Blackish, Chestnut-crested, Southern chestnut-tailed, Dot-backed, Dusky, Ferruginous-backed, Goeldi’s, Grey, Grey-bellied, Hairy-crested, Harlequin, Humaita, Manu, Plumbeous, Rio Branco, Riparian, Rufous-faced, Common scale-backed, Silvered, Slate-colored, Sooty, Spot-backed, Spot-winged, Striated, Xingu scale-backed) Cacique (Red-rumped, Solitary, Yellow-rumped) Chachalaca (Little, Speckled, Chestnut-headed) Conebill (Bicolored, Pearly-breasted) Coquette (Festive, Racket-tailed) Dove (Grey-fronted, Common ground, Ruddy ground, White-tipped) Eagle (Crested, Harpy) Falcon (Bat, Cryptic forest, Barred forest, Lined forest, Slaty-backed forest, Orange-breasted) Finch (Wedge-tailed grass, Chestnut-bellied seed, Great-billed seed, Large-billed seed, Grassland yellow, Orange-fronted yellow) Ibis (Buff-necked, Green, Scarlet) Jacamar (Blue-necked, Bluish-fronted, Bronzy, Great, Paradise, Purus, Rufous-tailed, White-chinned, White-eared, White-throated, Yellow-billed, White-necked) Jay (Campina, Plush-crested, Violaceous) Kingfisher (Amazon, Green-and-rufous, American pygmy) Owl (Amazonian pygmy, Black-banded, Crested, Roraiman screech, Tawny-bellied screech) Parakeet (Crimson-bellied, Black-capped, Bonaparte’s, Brown-throated, Cobalt-winged, Dusky-headed, Golden, Golden-winged, Maroon-tailed, Pearly, Santarem, Sulphur-breasted, Tui, White-winged) Parrot (Bald, Black-legged, Blue-headed, Dusky, Green-thighed, Orange-cheeked, Red-fan, Short-tailed, Vulturine, Yellow-tailed) Pigeon (Plumbeous, Ruddy, Scaled) Wood quail (Marbled, Starred) Shrike-tanager (Fulvous, White-winged) Tinamou (Bartlett’s, Brazilian, Cinereous, Great, Grey, Little, Red-legged, Variegated, Undulated) Tityra (Black-tailed, Masked) Tody-flycatcher (Black-and-white, Buff-cheeked, Painted, Rusty-fronted, Smoky-fronted, Spotted, Yellow-browed) Wren (Grey, Buff-breasted, Coraya, Moustached, Musician, Thrush-like, Tooth-billed) Xenops (Plain, Rufous-tailed, Slender-billed) Amazonian trogon Warbling antbird Antpitta Antshrike Antthrush Antwren Aracari Attila Fiery-tailed awlbill Barbet Barbthroat Bare-eye Becard Blackbird Flycatcher Bushbird Puffbird Capuchinbird Caracara Red-capped cardinal Rose-breasted chat Chestnut-headed crake Cotinga Giant cowbird Crake Cuckoo Curassow Dacnis Black-capped donacobius Elaenia Emerald Euphonia Black-eared fairy Flatbill Foliage-gleaner Fruitcrow Gnatcatcher Gnatwren Goldenthroat Orinoco goose Velvet-fronted grackle Blue-black grassquit Greenlet Grey-winged trumpeter Grosbeak Guan Hawk-eagle Hawk Hermit Heron Hoatzin Honeycreeper Chestnut-winged hookbill Hornero Hummingbird Amazonian inezia Gould’s jewelfront White-throated kingbird Lesser kiskadee Kite Leaftosser Macaw Manakin Mango Eastern meadowlark Tropical mockingbird Lanceolated monklet Motmot Mourner Myiobius Cinnamon neopipo Nighthawk Southern nightingale-wren Nightjar Nunbird Nunlet Oropendola Epaulet oriole Point-tailed palmcreeper Parrotlet Piculet Screaming piha Wing-barred piprites Orange-fronted plushcrown Potoo Puffbird White-browed purpletuft Pavonine quetzal Rail Grey-breasted sabrewing Saltator Sapphire Schiffornis Horned screamer Scythebill Seedeater Slaty-capped shrike-vireo White-rumped sirystes Plain softtail Southern rough-winged swallow Spadebill Sparrow Spinetail Long-billed starthroat Sunbittern Swallow Swift Tanager Rusty-belted tapaculo Black-bellied thorntail Thrush Tody-tyrant Topaz Toucan Toucanet Trogon Orange-backed troupial Twistwing Tyrannulet Manakin Tyrant Dot-winged antwren Yellow-headed vulture Lesser wagtail-tyrant Warbler Woodcreeper Striped woodhaunter Woodnymph Woodpecker Reptiles
Snakes: Amazon Basin tree snake, Boa (Crowned false, Rainbow, Colombian rainbow), Tree boa (Amazon, Amazon Basin emerald), Amazon banded snake, Salmon-bellied Racer snake, Caatinga coral snake, Anaconda (Dark-spotted, Green), Two-striped forest pitviper, False coral snake, Black-skinned parrot snake, Bushmaster snake, Checkerbelly snake, Puffing snake Lizards: Amazon wood lizard, Amazon whiptail lizard, Amazon thornytail iguana, Amazon lava lizard, Brazilian spiny-tailed lizard, Dwarf gecko, Tegu lizard, Anolis lizard, Amazon racerunner, Amazon wood lizard, Calango lizard, Collared tree lizard, Ringed spinytail iguana, Shiny Lizard, Red worm lizard, Turtles: Red-headed Amazon Side-necked Turtle, Yellow-spotted Amazon river turtle, Big-headed Amazon River turtle, Mata-mata, South American river turtle, Twist-necked turtle, Toadhead turtle, Caiman: Spectacled caiman, Cuvier’s dwarf caiman, Black caiman, Smooth-fronted caiman Tortoise: Yellow-footed tortoise, Red-footed tortoise Amphibians
Salamanders: Amazon climbing salamander, Mushroom-tongued salamander Frogs: Amazon River frog, Tree frog (Upper Amazon, Rivero’s Amazon, Mission golden-eyed, Rodriguez’s Amazon, Waxy-monkey, Gorzula’s Amazon, Clown, Doris’ lime, Orinoco lime, Sumaco horned, Canelos, Red-skirted, Sarayacu, Red-snouted, Troschel’s, Ecuador horned, Spix’s horned, Triangle, Buckley’s slender-legged, Napo lime, Gunther’s banded, Brown-bordered snouted), Bolivian bleating frog, Glass frogs, Bassler’s humming frog, Smooth jungle frog, Poison dart frogs, Paradoxical frog, Peters’ thin-toed frog, Common big-headed frog, Slender-fingered toadlet, Foam frogs, Vanzolini’s Amazon frog, Labyrinth frog, Rio Mamore robber frog, Dull rocket frog, Santa Cecilia Cochran frog, Loreto leaf frog, dotted humming frog, Smoky jungle frog, Yapima Shield frog, Miriam’s frog, Lynch’s swamp frog, Brown egg frog, Chupada rocket frog, Rio Uaupes robber frog, Schmidt’s forest frog, Feijo white-lipped frog, Sheep frogs, Tukeit Hill frog, Stephen’s rocket frog, Resplendent Cochran frog, Lago Agrio robber frog, Caecilian: Tiny Taylor’s Caecilian, Cayenne caecilian, Dunn’s caecilian Toads: Horned toads, Harlequin toads, Cane toad, Alto Marañon toad Insects
Butterflies Beetles Grasshoppers Spiders Dragonflies Bullet ants Weaver ants Bees Wasps Crickets Scorpions Worms Army ants Moths Fish
Pirarucu Giant pacu Toothpick fish Piranha Electric eel Stingray Payara Speckled peacock bass
Amazon Rainforest Animal Sloth
Conservation
Despite being such a haven for wildlife, steady human encroachment is pushing many of the animals living in the Amazon towards endangerment, with multiple species already on the brink of extinction. The giant otter, golden poison dart frog, hoary-throated spinetail, White-cheeked spider monkey, among many others, are all listed as endangered or critically endangered by the IUCN. Although the extent of the Amazon rainforest makes it hard to sustain conservation efforts, countries like Brazil, which contains about 60% of the rainforest, and organizations like the IUCN and WWF are working vigorously to conserve the wildlife.
Endangered Animals in the Amazon Rainforest
Amazon Rainforest Animals Pictures
Did you know
There are about 2.5 million individual species of insects living in the Amazon rainforest. The largest predatory animals of this forest are the jaguar, black caiman, green anaconda, and the cougar. The Amazon rainforest is home to the only big cat and largest felid in the Americas, the jaguar. Green anaconda, the heaviest extant snake in the world, is also indigenous to the Amazon. Animals living in the Amazon rainforest have a varied diet, consisting of carnivores like the jaguars and caimans, herbivores like capybaras and tapirs, while frogs and toads mainly eat insects.
