Amazon Rainforest Animals

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.

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

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.

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.