Collared Peccary
The collared peccary (or Pecari tajacu) is a pig-like mammal adapted to living in a diverse array of environments. It’s native range spans across the rainforests, woodlands, semi-deserts, and grasslands of North, Central, and South America. Collared peccaries have coarse, grey hair that is slightly longer around the neck and spine. They are named after the ring of paler hair around their neck. They have a pig-like, round snout, short and straight tusks, and small, rounded ears. There is no sexual dimorphism in collared peccaries, meaning males and females look alike and are the same size.
Little Penguin
The little penguin (or Eudyptula minor), also known as the blue penguin, is a small species of marine bird that lives on the coastlines and in the surrounding oceans of Southern Australia and New Zealand. It has dark blue feathers dorsally – on its back – and white feathers ventrally – covering its belly and chin. The little penguin has black eyes, a black beak, and pink feet. Males and females of this species look alike. Little penguins stand 30cm tall on average, and weigh between 1.1kg and 1.5kg.
Desert Horned Viper
The desert horned viper (or Cerastes cerastes) is a venomous snake native to the deserts and semi-deserts of Northern Africa and the Middle East. It is also known as the Saharan horned viper. The body of the desert horned viper is sand-coloured, often with a paler underside. They may have slightly darker brown mottling on their scales as camouflage. The head is large and triangular. Most notably, they may have distinctive, pointed horns above their eyes, from which they get their name. Males and females look alike, although females tend to be slightly larger.
Sand Cat
The sand cat (or Felis margarita) is a small wild cat native to the deserts of North Africa, the Middle East, and Central Asia. It has thick, sand-coloured fur, with thin, dark stripes across its back, legs, and tail. The sand cat’s face is round, with dark, striped markings, large ears and yellow eyes. Males and females look alike, and are 24cm to 36cm tall at the shoulder, 39cm to 52cm long, with their tail measuring a further 23cm to 31cm. Male sand cats weigh 2.1kg to 3.4kg, while females are a little lighter at 1.4kg to 3.1kg.
African Crested Porcupine
The African crested porcupine (or Hystrix cristata) is a large species of rodent found in the semi-deserts, savannahs, and montane areas of Central and Northern Africa, as well as Italy. Its coarse, bristled fur is dark brown to black in colour, with its most distinctive feature being the black and white quills that grow from the middle of its neck, across its back and sides, and down its tail. These quills are raised upright when the porcupine feels threatened, and are very sharp. The African crested porcupine has a blunt, rounded snout, small eyes, and round ears.
Brown-throated Sloth
The brown-throated sloth (or Bradypus variegatus) is an arboreal mammal living in the rainforests of Central and South America. It is pale grey to brown in colour, has long gangly limbs, longer arms than legs, and a short, vestigial tail. The sloth has three long claws on both of its hands and feet, although the front claws are significantly longer. The brown-throated sloth has a round head with inconspicuous ears and dark brown markings going laterally from the eyes to the side of the head.
Red River Hog
Native to the rivers, lakes and marshes of Western and Central Africa, the red river hog (or Potamochoerus porcus) is a small member of the pig family. It has striking red fur across its body, with a black face, legs, tail and ears. The ears are adorned with long black and white tufts. Down their backs, red river hogs have a wispy, white line of hair. Their facial features and ears are surrounded by coarse white fur. They are sexually dimorphic, with males being generally larger and heavier than females, and having a wider skull with bony protrusions and long whiskers along the face.
Asian Water Monitor
The Asian water monitor (or Varanus salvator) is a large reptile native to the rainforests, swamps, and mangrove forests throughout much of the warmer areas of Southeast Asia and the Indian subcontinent. It is dark green to black in colouration, with pale brown and yellow reticulated markings across its whole body. These reticulations often appear as bands on the tail. The Asian water monitor displays sexual dimorphism, with males being larger.
Old World Swallowtail
The Old World swallowtail (or Papilio machaon) is a butterfly living in the temperate regions, woodlands and even tundras of Europe, Asia and North America. It has pale yellow wings with grey-black patterning on the forewings, and blue-black accents as well as red eyespots on the hindwings. The hindwings also have an extended ‘tail’, for which they are named swallowtail. There is no sexual dimorphism in size and appearance in the Old World swallowtail, and its average wingspan is 6.5cm to 8.6cm. The caterpillar is plump and pale green with black and orange markings on each body segment.
European Peacock
The European peacock (or Aglais io) is a species of butterfly living throughout the temperate grasslands and woodlands of Europe and Asia. It has four red wings with brown edges and distinctive eye spots. These eye spots may be made up of yellow, blue, red or purple scales and have black surrounding marks. The undersides of the wings are brown to black. Males and females looks alike, although females may be up to 10% larger than males. European peacocks reach a wingspan of 5cm to 6.4cm.