How many animals that start with A can you think of? I know if I was put on the spot I am not sure I could come up with a long list. We have put together a long list of animals tat start with A for you to look at and find information the next time you are asked to name some by a friend or kid. You will also have a few facts you can tell about them.
Commonly Known Animals That Start With A
Aardvark
Aardvarks live in the bottom part of Africa. They eat at night and eat termites and ants. They live in burrows and stay in them during the day to avoid the heat. They can live up to 23 years. They eat by digging holes with their claws and sniffing for food.
Afghan Hound
Afghan Hounds are known for their beautiful long hair. They can be playful at times but also not want to do anything with you as well depending on their mood. They have been said to be slow to learn and listen to commands. They can live an average of 12 years. They are fast and can be good at agility games.
African Bullfrog
African bullfrogs like to live in savannas, shrubland, lakes, marches, arable land, pastureland, canals, and flooded ditches. They are the sixth biggest toads on earth, weighing about 3.1 pounds and measuring about 9.6 inches. Females are smaller which is not the norm for toads as they usually have bigger females than males.
African Grey Parrot
African Grey Parrots are medium-sized birds. Their body and head are grey and they have red tails. They like to eat fruits, nuts, and seeds. They may eat flowers, tree bark, insects, and snails. They can copy the noises that they hear around them making them good at talking back to you. They can speak words that you have taught them to say.
Africanized Bee (Killer Bee)
Africanized bees also called the killer bee, have spread all over North and South America. They tend to swarm more often than other bees. They are known to sting ten times as much as other bees. They are more aggressive when guarding the hive than other bees as well.
Airedale Terrier
Airedale Terriers are the largest Terrier. They are black and tan. They are used often for war dogs, guide dogs, or police dogs in Great Britain. They are known to be good dogs if you have allergies to animals. They can be stubborn and hard to train. Might not be great around children unless well trained and the children understand the dog’s needs.
Alaskan Husky
Alaskan Huskies are bred to pull dog sleds. They are very athletic and are not kept as house pets but for dog sled racing. They have a strong desire to pull and run because of the sport they are bred to do. Teams of them can sprint at up to 28 mph or go distances of 938 miles in just over 8 days.
Albacore Tuna
Albacore Tuna are found in temperate and tropical waters all over the world. These are the tuna you will find in your can of tuna. They swim in groups called schools. They eat pretty much squid, octopus, cuttlefish, or other cephalopods. They do migrate to warmer waters as they need but do not tend to mingle with other Ocean tuna.
Alligator
Alligators are large reptiles that live in the United States, Mexico, and China. They live in freshwaters like ponds, wetlands, rivers, lakes, and swamps and in something called brackish water that is a bit of a mix of fresh and seawater. Most large male alligators live alone, but you can find smaller ones living together. They use something called a death roll to kill their prey and they roll over and over to get a chunk of flesh off for a bite.
Alpaca
Alpacas are very similar to lamas and can often be confused with them as well. They are a lot smaller than a llama and are not used to pack around things but instead are just bred for their coats that are cut off and used for many things like blankets, and clothes. They live in family groups with usually one alfa male and some females and theory young. Not all alpaca spit but they are able to they can spit up to 10 feet if needed.
American Bulldog
American Bulldogs have been bred to be used as stock dogs, catch dogs, and guard dogs on farms and ranches. Unlike the English bulldog, they do not have short stocky legs but are more regular size but they have the same look to their body and face in the stocky build and flat nose. They can live from 10 to 16 years.
American Cocker Spaniel
American Cocker Spaniels are the smallest of the sporting dogs. They are good pets if socialized early they will get along with other animals and people well. They originally were hunting dogs but most today are show dogs. They can live 10 to 11 years.
American Cockroach
American cockroaches are the largest cockroach. They may be called American but most originated in Africa and the Middle East and are believed to be brought to the Americas in the slave trade. They can live up to 700 days. As for running fast, many people think it is the fastest-running insect. Adults can fly for short distances if they start from a high place.
American Pit Bull Terrier
American Pit Bull Terriers have strength, confidence, and a zest for life. They want to do what their owners tell them and are great climbers. They are good at many dog sports such as weight pulling, dog agility, flyball, lure coursing, and advanced obedience competition. They are very intelligent and have high energy and endurance. Because of this, they have a wide range of jobs they can be used for from police dogs to service dogs and many in between.
American Robin
American Robins have bright red-orange chests. They are found all over North America. They are the state bird of Connecticut, Michigan, and Wisconsin. They are busy during the day and then at night are known to gather in flocks. They like to eat bugs such as worms, beetles grubs and caterpillars, and fruits and berries. Their eggs are a bright color of blue.
Anchovies
Anchovies mostly live in the ocean but a few are found in what is called brackish water which is a mix of fresh and seawater, and even others are found in a few freshwater lakes. They eat by opening their mouth as they swim and eat what they get in their mouths. They are a part of many foods that you may not even know about such as Worcestershire sauce, Caesar salad dressing, and several others.
Ant
Ants are insects that live in colonies that have workers, soldiers, and other groups that specialize in something. They also have at least one queen and several male drones that mate with the queen to make more ants. There are ants on almost all land in the world.
Anteater
Anteater is a common name for animals that eat ants and termites, such as aardvarks, numbat, echidnas, pangolins, and some others. They all have a long snout that has a thin, long tongue. They have lips but no teeth. They all have a long tail that they can use as another arm to grip or hold things except the giant anteater.
Antelope
Antelopes are mostly found in Africa, India, the Middle East, Central Asia, and a little part of Eastern Europe. We may see something here in the US that might be called a Antelope but it in fact is not a part of that family. Antelope have horns that are made of bone and grow all the time and never fall off, unlike deer or elk.
Arctic Hare
Arctic Hares have smaller legs and ears than other hares to help them stay warmer in the Arctic. They eat things like Arctic willow and other woody plants. They live in the northernmost parts of Greenland, Northern Canada, and the Arctic islands of Canada. They can run up to 40 mph.
Armadillo
Armadillos have leathery armor skin and long, sharp claws they use for digging. They have short legs that can move quickly. When threatened one species is known to roll into a ball to protect itself, but none of the others can do that. They like to eat bugs. They are great diggers and dig for food. They have bad eyesight and use their sense of smell to find their food.
Zoo Animals That Start With A
Adelie Penguin
Adelie Penguins live along the coast of Antarctica along with only four other penguin species. They like to eat mostly krill and fish. They lay two eggs in a rocky nest and they take turns sitting with the eggs. Their main predator is leopard seals, but the eggs and younger ones can be preyed upon by the birds.
African Bush Elephant
African Bush Elephants like to live in herds mostly females and their babies. The males live alone. They like to eat grasses and other plants. They use their tusks to communicate with each other. As well as their feet and trunks. Adult elephants are usually not preyed upon by predators but the babies can be eaten by lions and hyenas.
African Forest Elephant
African Forest Elephants are found in central Africa, but because of loss of habitat and poaching for their tusks and other things they are endangered. Like other Elephants, they live in family groups of females and their kids. The males live alone. They eat tree bark and leaves, and fruits. Their feet are so sensitive to vibrations that they can feel the thunder or elephant calls from up to 10 miles away.
African Penguin
African penguins live on the tip of Southern Africa. They like to eat squid and fish. They live on only a few islands off the coast of southwestern Africa. In the 1980s a colony of penguins started not far away from Capetown. They have become a tourist attraction and they will let people get within a meter of them. They are just with one mate and come back to the same place each year to lay their eggs.
African Wild Dog
African Wild Dogs live in Southern parts of Africa. They live in savannas and usually avoid the forested areas. They live with a pack of about 2 to 27 adults and young pups. But most are about 4 to 9 dogs in size. They hunt as a pack and silently stock their prey, then they pounce. They have measured running at speeds of 41 mph for 10 to 40 minutes.
Albatross
Albatross are large seabirds that are found in the southern Oceans and the north Pacific. They are the largest flying bird. They eat squid, fish, and krill. They like to live in colonies and when they pair up they do so for life. They can live for 50 years. The males dance to attract the females.
American Pygmy Goat
American Pygmy Goats are small, compact, and stalky. They are kept for meat or as companions and can be found in many zoos. So you may have seen them at your local zoo and gone and petted one. They are about 16 to 20 inches tall and weigh about 55 to 90 pounds.
Ape
Apes live in Africa and Southeast Asia. Apes do not have tails. Most apes are good climbers except for gorillas. They eat a lot of different things but mostly plants and fruits, things like leaves, stalks, roots, and seeds. Apes are more intelligent than monkeys. Depending on the species of ape they can vary on whether they live alone or with others.
Arctic Fox
Arctic Foxes live in the Arctic. They have all-white fur that is thick and fluffy and helps them camouflage. To help keep warm they curl up and tuck their legs and head under their bodies and behind its tail. They do not hibernate but in the fall they may add up to 50% to their body weight to help keep them warm in the winter and as a source of energy when they have a hard time finding food. They will eat any small animal they can find but most commonly will eat lemmings.
Arctic Wolf
Artic Wolves spend most of their lives north of the northern treeline. They seem to be not that afraid of people and can be coaxed to get close to them. They are hard to know much about them since they live far away from people and are not moving around a lot during the time of year that has a lot of sunlight. They eat meat and mostly they eat muskoxen and arctic hares.
Atlantic Puffin
Atlantic puffins are a seabird. They live in the northern parts of the Atlantic. They mostly feed from the top of the water while they float, but they will dive and use their wings to move around to get food. They spend most of their time far away from the land in open water and only come to land to breed. They live by themselves when they are at sea.
Other Animals That Start With A
- Abalone
- Abyssinian Cat
- Abyssinian Guinea Pig
- Acadian Flycatcher
- Achrioptera Manga
- Ackie Monitor
- Addax
- Admiral Butterfly
- Aesculapian Snake
- Affenpinscher
- African Civet
- African Clawed Frog
- African Fish Eagle
- African Golden Cat
- African Jacana
- African Palm Civet
- African Sugarcane Borer
- African Tree Toad
- Agama Lizard
- Agkistrodon Contortrix
- Agouti
- Aidi
- Ainu Dog
- Airedoodle
- Akbash
- Akita Shepherd
- Alabai (Central Asian Shepherd)
- Alaskan Klee Kai
- Alaskan Malamute
- Alaskan Pollock
- Alaskan Shepherd
- Albertonectes
- Albino (Amelanistic) Corn Snake
- Aldabra Giant Tortoise
- Allosaurus
- Alpine Dachsbracke
- Alusky
- Amano Shrimp
- Amargasaurus
- Amazon Parrot
- Amazon River Dolphin (Pink Dolphin)
- Amazon Tree Boa
- Amazonian Royal Flycatcher
- Amberjack
- Ambrosia Beetle
- American Alligator
- American Alsatian
- American Bulldog
- American Bully
- American Cocker Spaniel
- American Cockroach
- American Coonhound
- American Dog Tick
- American Eel
- American Eskimo Dog
- American Foxhound
- American Leopard Hound
- American Paddlefish
- American Pugabull
- American Staffordshire Terrier
- American Toad
- American Water Spaniel
- American Wirehair
- Amethystine Python (Scrub Python)
- Amphicoelias Fragillimus
- Amur Leopard
- Anaconda
- Anatolian Shepherd Dog
- Anchovy
- Andrewsarchus
- Anemone
- Angelfish
- Angel Shark
- Angled Sunbeam Caterpillar
- Anglerfish
- Angora Ferret
- Angora Goat
- Anhinga
- Anna’s Hummingbird
- Anole Lizard
- Anomalocaris
- Antarctic Scale Worm
- Anteosaurus
- Antiguan Racer Snake
- Apennine Wolf
- Appenzeller Dog
- Apple Head Chihuahua
- Apple Moth
- Arabian Cobra
- Arabian Wolf
- Arafura File Snake
- Arambourgiania
- Arapaima
- Archaeoindris
- Archaeopteryx
- Archaeotherium
- Archelon Turtle
- Archerfish
- Arctic Char
- Arctodus
- Arctotherium
- Argentavis Magnificens
- Argentine Black and White Tegu
- Argentine Horned Frog
- Argentinosaurus
- Arizona Bark Scorpion
- Arizona Black Rattlesnake
- Arizona Blonde Tarantula
- Arizona Coral Snake
- Armadillo Lizard
- Armenian Gampr
- Armored Catfish
- Armyworm
- Arsinoitherium
- Arthropleura
- Aruba Rattlesnake
- Ashy Mining Bee
- Asian Arowana
- Asian Carp
- Asian Cockroach
- Asian Giant Hornet
- Asian Lady Beetle
- Asian Longhorn Beetle
- Asian Palm Civet
- Asian Vine Snake
- Asian Water Monitor
- Asiatic Black Bear
- Asp
- Asp Caterpillar
- Assassin Bug
- Assassin Snail
- Atlantic Salmon
- Atlantic Sturgeon
- Atlas Beetle
- Atlas Moth
- Aurochs
- Aussiedoodle
- Aussiedor
- Aussiepom
- Australian Bulldog
- Australian Cattle Dog
- Australian Cockroach
- Australian Firehawk
- Australian Flathead Perch
- Australian Gecko
- Australian Kelpie Dog
- Australian Labradoodle
- Australian Mist
- Australian Retriever
- Australian Shepherd
- Australian Shepherd Mix
- Australian Terrier
- Australopithecus
- Avocet
- Axanthic Ball Python
- Ayam Cemani
- Azawakh
- Axolotl
Wow! There are a lot of animals that start with A. Did you learn about any new animals? I know we did! Leave a comment with the most interesting animal you learned about. We’d love to know.
Be sure to check out our other animal lists.
- 190 Amazing Animals that Start with A
- 236 Captivating Animals That Begin with C
- 119 Intriguing Animals that Begin with E
- 180 Fascinating Animals that Begin with G
- 22 Exciting Animals that Begin with J
- 272 Captivating Animals that Begin with L
- 165 Magnificent Animals that Start with M
- 104 Wonderful Animals that Start with W
- 31 Amazing Animals that Start with Y