AnimalsWork — Discover the Amazing World of Animals

A Field Guide, Online

Discover the Amazing World of Animals

AnimalsWork is an independent, carefully researched guide to pets, wildlife, animal behavior, habitats and conservation — built for people who actually want to learn something, not skim past it.

Start Here

Explore Animal Categories

Every animal on the site is filed into a category — browse by class, or jump straight to pets, wildlife or endangered species.

AD SPACE — 970×90 Leaderboard
Reader Favorites

Featured Animals

A starting point from our growing animal database — full profiles with habitat, diet, behavior and conservation status.

Browse All Animals

Vulnerable

Mammals

Lion

Panthera leo

The only big cat that lives in social groups, known as prides, built around related females.

Savannas & grasslands

Endangered

Mammals

African Elephant

Loxodonta africana

The largest living land animal, using its trunk as a multi-purpose hand, hose and snorkel.

Savanna, forest & grassland

Least Concern

Birds

Barn Owl

Tyto alba

A near-silent flier whose heart-shaped face funnels sound to pinpoint prey in total darkness.

Farmland & woodland edges

Least Concern

Marine

Bottlenose Dolphin

Tursiops truncatus

Each dolphin develops its own signature whistle, functioning much like a name.

Coastal & offshore waters
Field Notes

Popular Animal Facts

More Facts

FIELD NOTE No. 001

An octopus has three hearts and blue, copper-based blood.

FIELD NOTE No. 002

Elephants are the only mammals that can’t jump.

FIELD NOTE No. 003

Sea otters hold hands while sleeping so they don’t drift apart.

In the Wild

Wildlife Spotlight

Animals living free of human care, and the pressures many of them now face.

See Wildlife

Least Concern

Mammals

Gray Wolf

Canis lupus

A highly social pack hunter and the wild ancestor of every modern domestic dog breed.

Forest, tundra & grassland

Endangered

Reptiles

Green Sea Turtle

Chelonia mydas

Females return to the exact beach where they hatched, sometimes decades later, to lay eggs.

Tropical oceans

Vulnerable

Marine

Great White Shark

Carcharodon carcharias

Can detect a single drop of blood in an olympic pool’s worth of water.

Coastal temperate waters
Companions

Pet Care Guides

Practical, level-headed advice for people bringing home — or already living with — a companion animal.

Pet Animals

Conservation

Endangered Animals

Species the IUCN currently lists as vulnerable, endangered or critically endangered.

See All

Endangered

Mammals

African Elephant

Loxodonta africana

Poaching and habitat loss remain the primary threats across its range.

Sub-Saharan Africa

Vulnerable

Mammals

Lion

Panthera leo

Wild populations have dropped by over 40% in the last three generations.

Sub-Saharan Africa

Vulnerable

Marine

Great White Shark

Carcharodon carcharias

Slow to reproduce, making populations especially vulnerable to overfishing.

Coastal waters worldwide
From the Journal

Latest Animal Articles

All Articles

Did You Know?

Popular Searches