This list includes 42 Animals that start with W, ranging from “Wahoo” to “Wrybill”. Many entries are fish, birds, and mammals with global ranges, useful for study and classroom reference.
Animals that start with W are animals whose common names begin with the letter W. The walrus, for example, appears in Arctic folklore and early explorers’ accounts.
Below you’ll find the table with Common name, Scientific name, Habitat, Region, Description, and Conservation status.
Common name: The everyday name you likely recognize, helping you scan and locate species quickly in the list.
Scientific name: The accepted Latin binomial that uniquely identifies each species, useful when you want precise taxonomic reference.
Habitat: Brief biome and habitat notes show where the species lives, useful when comparing ecological niches or field study.
Region: Geographic regions summarize where the animal occurs, helping you focus on local fauna or global distribution quickly.
Description: A concise one- to two-sentence snapshot of appearance, behavior, and ecology to give you a quick overview.
Conservation status: Short tags indicate risk level or protection status, so you immediately see conservation priorities and concerns.
Animals that start with W
| Name | Scientific name | Habitat & region | Conservation status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wahoo | Acanthocybium solandri | Pelagic tropical seas — worldwide | Least Concern |
| Wapiti | Cervus canadensis | Temperate forests & grasslands — North America, East Asia | Least Concern |
| Warthog | Phacochoerus africanus | Savanna & grassland — sub‑Saharan Africa | Least Concern |
| Wild water buffalo | Bubalus arnee | Freshwater marshes — South Asia | Endangered |
| Water vole | Arvicola amphibius | Rivers, wetlands — Europe & northern Asia | Least Concern (regional declines) |
| Weddell seal | Leptonychotes weddellii | Coastal pack ice — Antarctic | Least Concern |
| Weka | Gallirallus australis | Forest & grassland — New Zealand | Vulnerable |
| Whale shark | Rhincodon typus | Tropical open ocean — worldwide | Endangered |
| Whip‑poor‑will | Antrostomus vociferus | Woodlands & forest edges — North America | Near Threatened |
| Whimbrel | Numenius phaeopus | Coastal mudflats & tundra — global migrant | Least Concern |
| White‑tailed deer | Odocoileus virginianus | Forests & fields — North/Central America | Least Concern |
| White shark | Carcharodon carcharias | Coastal temperate seas — worldwide | Vulnerable |
| Walrus | Odobenus rosmarus | Arctic coasts & ice floes — Arctic | Vulnerable |
| Wandering albatross | Diomedea exulans | Southern Ocean pelagic — Southern Hemisphere | Vulnerable |
| Waterbuck | Kobus ellipsiprymnus | Wet savanna & floodplains — sub‑Saharan Africa | Least Concern |
| Western gorilla | Gorilla gorilla | Lowland tropical forest — Central Africa | Critically Endangered |
| White rhinoceros | Ceratotherium simum | Savanna grassland — southern Africa | Near Threatened |
| Wolverine | Gulo gulo | Boreal forest & tundra — northern Holarctic | Least Concern |
| Wolf | Canis lupus | Forests, tundra & grasslands — Northern Hemisphere | Least Concern |
| Wood frog | Lithobates sylvaticus | Woodland ponds & wetlands — North America | Least Concern |
| Western diamondback rattlesnake | Crotalus atrox | Desert & scrub — southwestern USA, Mexico | Least Concern |
| Wedge‑tailed eagle | Aquila audax | Open country & deserts — Australia | Least Concern |
| White stork | Ciconia ciconia | Wetlands, meadows — Europe, Africa, Asia | Least Concern |
| White‑tailed eagle | Haliaeetus albicilla | Coasts, lakes & rivers — Eurasia | Least Concern |
| White‑faced capuchin | Cebus capucinus | Tropical forest — Central & northern South America | Least Concern |
| Woodchuck | Marmota monax | Grasslands & woods — eastern North America | Least Concern |
| West Indian manatee | Trichechus manatus | Coastal estuaries & rivers — Caribbean & Americas | Vulnerable |
| Western tragopan | Tragopan melanocephalus | Montane forest — Himalayan foothills | Vulnerable |
| Wilson’s storm‑petrel | Oceanites oceanicus | Open ocean pelagic — global Southern & Northern oceans | Least Concern |
| Wilson’s warbler | Cardellina pusilla | Shrubland & forest edges — North America | Least Concern |
| Willow ptarmigan | Lagopus lagopus | Tundra & shrubland — Arctic and subarctic regions | Least Concern |
| White‑naped crane | Antigone vipio | Freshwater wetlands — East Asia | Vulnerable |
| White‑beaked dolphin | Lagenorhynchus albirostris | Cold temperate seas — North Atlantic | Least Concern |
| Wilson’s phalarope | Phalaropus tricolor | Shallow saline lakes & wetlands — Americas | Least Concern |
| White‑winged dove | Zenaida asiatica | Woodlands & semi‑arid scrub — Americas | Least Concern |
| White‑eyed vireo | Vireo griseus | Shrubland & woodland edges — southeastern USA | Least Concern |
| White‑backed vulture | Gyps africanus | Savanna & open woodland — sub‑Saharan Africa | Endangered |
| White‑footed mouse | Peromyscus leucopus | Woodlands & fields — eastern North America | Least Concern |
| Woodmouse | Apodemus sylvaticus | Deciduous woods & hedgerows — Europe & western Asia | Least Concern |
| Williamson’s sapsucker | Sphyrapicus thyroideus | Montane conifer forest — western North America | Least Concern |
| Wrybill | Anarhynchus frontalis | River gravel beds — New Zealand South Island | Near Threatened |
| Wolf eel | Anarrhichthys ocellatus | Rocky reefs & kelp beds — North Pacific | Not Evaluated |
Descriptions
Wahoo
A fast, streamlined game fish reaching over 2 m, prized by sport fishers for speed and powerful runs; feeds on smaller schooling fish and squid.
Wapiti
Also called elk, a large deer up to 500+ kg (males), known for loud bugling calls and long seasonal migrations across forests and plains.
Warthog
A stout wild pig with curved tusks and a stiff mane, grazes and digs for bulbs; often shelters in burrows and forms small family groups.
Wild water buffalo
A massive, wild bovine with heavy horns, lives in flooded grasslands and river plains; numbers have fallen due to habitat loss and hybridisation with domestic buffalo.
Water vole
A chunky semi‑aquatic rodent with dense fur and a blunt face; digs burrows in riverbanks and feeds on grasses and aquatic plants.
Weddell seal
A stocky Antarctic seal that dives to great depths, can weigh up to 600 kg, and is known for hauling out on sea ice and vocal underwater communication.
Weka
A curious, flightless rail with sturdy legs and a brown mottled plumage; omnivorous and notable for boldness around humans but threatened by introduced predators.
Whale shark
The largest fish, reaching 10–12 m, a gentle filter feeder of plankton and small fish, recognizable by a spotted pattern and huge mouth.
Whip‑poor‑will
A nocturnal nightjar with cryptic plumage and distinctive repeated call; feeds on flying insects caught in flight at dusk and night.
Whimbrel
A long‑billed migratory shorebird that probes mud for invertebrates, notable for long seasonal migrations between Arctic breeding and tropical wintering areas.
White‑tailed deer
A medium‑sized deer with distinctive white tail, adaptable browser found in woodlands and suburban areas; males bear branched antlers each season.
White shark
Also called the great white, a large predatory shark up to 6 m, apex predator feeding on marine mammals and fish; recognized by robust body and conical snout.
Walrus
A huge pinniped with long tusks and whiskers, uses tusks to haul out on ice and feed on benthic invertebrates like clams on the seafloor.
Wandering albatross
A giant seabird with the longest wingspan of any bird (up to 3.5 m), spends years at sea, gliding between oceanic feeding areas and scattered islands.
Waterbuck
A large, shaggy antelope living near water, recognized by a white ring on its rump; grazes and browses in herds and uses water as refuge from predators.
Western gorilla
A large, primarily herbivorous great ape with complex social groups; faces severe threats from disease, hunting, and habitat loss.
White rhinoceros
A very large grazing rhinoceros with a broad square lip, living in open grasslands; population recovery in parts of Africa but still threatened by poaching.
Wolverine
A muscular, solitary mustelid with powerful jaws known for scavenging and hunting; capable of traveling long distances across snowy terrain.
Wolf
A highly social carnivore forming packs with cooperative hunting strategies; variable diet and wide historic distribution, now recovering in some regions.
Wood frog
A brown frog that breeds in vernal pools and is notable for freezing tolerance during winter in northern populations.
Western diamondback rattlesnake
A large venomous rattlesnake with distinctive diamond pattern, ambushes small mammals and uses its rattle as a warning to predators and humans.
Wedge‑tailed eagle
Australia’s largest bird of prey with long, fingered wings and wedge‑shaped tail; scavenges and hunts mammals and birds across diverse habitats.
White stork
A tall, long‑legged migratory bird that nests on buildings and chimneys, feeds on amphibians and insects in wet grasslands and marshes.
White‑tailed eagle
A large sea‑eagle with pale tail and powerful build, feeds on fish and waterbirds; has recovered in parts of Europe following protection.
White‑faced capuchin
A clever, social New World monkey often seen using tools and foraging in mixed groups; recognizable by its pale face and dark body.
Woodchuck
Also called groundhog, a burrowing marmot that feeds on vegetation and hibernates in winter; known for digging extensive tunnel systems.
West Indian manatee
A slow‑moving herbivorous marine mammal that grazes on seagrass; impacted by boat strikes, habitat loss, and cold‑stress events.
Western tragopan
A brightly coloured pheasant with ornate plumage, secretive in dense mountain forests and threatened by habitat fragmentation and hunting.
Wilson’s storm‑petrel
A small, fluttering seabird that skims the sea surface to feed on planktonic prey, often following ships and flotsam.
Wilson’s warbler
A tiny, energetic songbird with a bright yellow body and active foraging style, migrating long distances between breeding and wintering grounds.
Willow ptarmigan
A ground‑dwelling gamebird that changes plumage seasonally (brown in summer, white in winter) to blend with snow and tundra vegetation.
White‑naped crane
A tall, elegant crane with a distinctive white nape, breeds in boggy steppe and relies on threatened wetland habitats for nesting and feeding.
White‑beaked dolphin
A robust dolphin with a pale beak and bold white markings, typically found in offshore waters hunting fish and squid.
Wilson’s phalarope
A small, slender shorebird that spins in circles on water to stir up prey; breeds in North America’s grassland wetlands and winters in South America.
White‑winged dove
A medium dove with white wing patches visible in flight, adaptable to urban and agricultural areas where it feeds on seeds and fruits.
White‑eyed vireo
A small, active songbird with bright eyes and a buzzy song, forages through dense undergrowth for insects and spiders.
White‑backed vulture
A large Old World vulture that scavenges on carcasses; populations have crashed due to poisoning and habitat pressures.
White‑footed mouse
A small nocturnal rodent common in forests and suburban areas; important prey species and a carrier of forest pathogens in some regions.
Woodmouse
A nimble small rodent with large eyes and ears, often found in fields and gardens where it feeds on seeds and invertebrates.
Williamson’s sapsucker
A medium woodpecker that drills sap wells and feeds on insects and sap; males and females have distinctly different plumage.
Wrybill
A small endemic plover with a uniquely curved bill bent to the right, specialised for feeding on insect prey in braided riverbeds.
Wolf eel
A long, eel‑like marine fish with powerful jaws used to crush shells; largely solitary and inhabits crevices among rocky reefs.
