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Tropical rainforest animals are animals that adapted to survive in the biggest tropical rainforests of the world, where the climate is very hot, humid, and damp. Some of the most iconic animals have obvious physical or behavioural characteristics that have enabled them to adapt to a home with a high amount of annual rainfall and loads of predators.
In the Amazon to date, there’s over 1,300 species of birds, over 430 different species of mammals, over 400 amphibians, and 378 reptiles species. In the surrounding waters, there’s 3,000 different kinds of freshwater fish - inclusive of piranhas!
The Amazon Rainforest is the largest tropical rainforest on the globe. It’s located in South America, with 60% of the Amazon Rainforest being in Brazil, 13% in Peru, 10% in Colombia, and other small parts in Venezuela. The Amazon Rainforest is the biggest ecosystem on the planet and the most varied biological reservoir, being home to approximately 30% of the world’s species.
The Amazon Rainforest has one in ten known species on Earth and 2,000 new species of plants and vertebrates, including a monkey that purrs like a cat. It’s also the last place where harpy eagles, pink river dolphins, or jaguars can be found.
The Jaguar, one of the largest animals in the Amazon rainforest, is the symbol of power in the Amazon Rainforest. It has a large head, short legs and a stunning coat with dark spots. The Jaguar can be usually found near the water, and it is known for being excellent at swimming, climbing trees and hunting. There are just a few Jaguars left in the rainforest because of illegal hunting and changing of the habitat, and they are now considered endangered.
The Amazon River Dolphin, also known as the Pink River Dolphin, lives in the river of the Amazon Forest. It is remarkably different from the ocean dolphin. Its body is pale pink, it has a rounded head, a smaller dorsal fin, a long snout and an elongated neck that can be moved right and left. Because of their strange colour, the Amazon Dolphins were believed to be magical creatures.
The Giant Armadillo can be only found in the Amazon and can reach up to 5 feet long and weigh up to 120 pounds. It is a peculiar-looking creature with a casing made of bones, long front claws and 80 to 100 teeth, more than any other mammal. The Giant Armadillo is a nocturnal animal and lives in underground tunnels. In the last 30 years, the number of Giant Armadillos has decreased by 50% because of hunting.
The Pygmy Marmoset is a type of monkey that lives only in the Amazon rainforests. It’s one of the world’s smallest primate. The Pygmy Marmoset lives in groups of around 6 monkeys, near swamps or streams. The Marmoset is extremely shy, so it's hardly spotted.
Otters can be found in different parts of the world, but the Giant River Otter can only be seen in the Amazon Rainforest. Its body can reach up to 5 feet in length and the tail around 3 feet. The Giant Otter has webbed hands and feet that are perfect for swimming and hunting.
Sloth
Sloths are known as the ‘lazy’ creatures, due to their slow-moving motor abilities. This is because a sloth eats so little, meaning their metabolism is around 40 to 45 percent lower than the majority of other mammals. There are two types of sloth, three-toed and two-toed, and both types live in the Amazon.
The Squirrel Monkey is a small and agile monkey, that spends most of the time in trees. It’s unique because of the tinny size and the ability to use its tail for climbing. This monkey is also known as ‘Death’s Head Monkey’ because it has black and white fur on the face, which makes it resemble a skeleton.
Green Anaconda is one of the longest and largest known snakes in the world, measuring about 16 feet and weighing between 60 and 150 pounds. Green Anaconda is not a venomous snake, but kills its prey by suffocating and swallowing it whole. Because it spends a lot of time in the water, it’s also known as ‘Water Boa’.
The Black Caiman is one of the largest reptiles that can be found in the Amazon Rainforest, and also one of the most effective predator animals in the amazon rainforest. Its name comes from the dark, scaly skin, that helps him camouflage during the night hunting.
The Gladiator Tree Frog got its name from the bony spine that males have on their hands, which they need to fight other males. This type of frog is able to make five different types of sounds.
The King Vulture is the second-largest vulture in the world, after the Condor. It is considered one of the most majestic creatures animals in the Amazon rainforest, because of the mainly white body, long black feathers on the wings and tails, and red and purple shades on the head. Its name comes from an old legend that presented the vulture as the messenger between the gods and the people.
The Spectacled Owl is the only owl that can be seen in the Amazon Rainforest. It has an oval head, no ear tufts, a dark face with white stripes on the cheeks and white eyebrows. The Spectacled Owl is a solitary and nocturnal bird.
The largest of all seven Toucan species found in the rainforest, Toco Toucan is often recognised because of the oversized orange-yellow beak. The feathers on the body are usually black and the ones on the throat and face are white, with yellow and blue circles around the eyes. Toco Toucan is a sociable bird that loves to fly in small groups.
One of the most aggressive creatures in the Amazon is an insect. Amazonian Giant Centipedes are known for being extremely venomous. They use venom to kill the prey, after they ambush it. Their venom can cause severe pain, swelling, chills and fatigue to people.
The Black Caiman is the largest type of alligator in the world and the largest predator in the Amazon River. He eats fish, turtles, bird and also animals that come closer to the water. Reports show that the Black Caiman has attached and killed people, and they are the most dangerous during mating season.
Also known as The Banana Spider, the Brazilian Wandering Spider is one of the most venomous spiders on the globe. Eight species of this spider live in the Amazon Rainforest and all are poisonous. From their biting, people may go through extreme pain, trouble breathing and even paralysis.
Even if their biting is not deadly, mosquitos are considered among the most dangerous creatures in the Amazon Rainforest. They carry some diseases that can be fatale to people. For example, mosquitos carry Malaria, Yellow Fever, Dengue, Zika.
Electric Eel have the ability to shock,and a few shocks can cause a heart attack and respiratory failure in people.
Don’t let their exquisite colours fool you! Poison dart frogs are considered highly poisonous. Their skin emits toxicities which are lethal to those that come into contact and can cause the victim many problems such as paralysis. The golden poison dart frog contains a fatal amount of venom - enough to wipe out ten fully grown men.
Pit vipers are considered one of the most dangerous species of snake in the world. Just one bite can cause breathing problems and asphyxiation, as well as intense pain and slowing heart rate.
All animals that live in the Amazon Rainforest have special adaptations that enable them to cope with frequent rainfall and heat, and also to the volatile and competitive behaviour around them. Some of them have physical adaptations, while others changed their behaviour to survive the environment.
Some animals can blend with the environment to avoid predators. For example, green algae-covered sloths are used to hide in the trees and blend with them, so they don’t get caught by meat-eaters. Also, walking stick insects are hard to spot since they look just like the tree branches they're crawling. But camouflage is not used just for self-defence in the Amazon. Some animals like jaguars, well known for their black spotter coats, hide in order to hunt. Their spots are similar to the dappled sunlight through the leaves of the rainforest trees and are perfect to trick the prey.
Keeping predators away can be a difficult thing to do in a place with so many types of animals. To make sure they survive, Poison Dart Frogs excrete a powerful alkaloid toxin, similar to morphine, that can kill predators when they try to eat them. The species is known for its bright colour that in animal world translates into danger. The bright colour warns predators of the danger, and they will avoid eating the frogs. The most deadly of these frogs is the golden poison frog, named Phyllobates terribilis, which has enough toxin to kill several people. Some frogs in this specie took advantage of their sister's dangerous reputation, and even though they are not poisonous, they have adapted to the environment, and replicated the brightness to keep away the danger.
Some animals are sleeping during the day and hunting during the night. An example is The Amazon Tree Boa, a remarkable beautiful green snake, that sleeps during the day to escape being caught by birds of prey and primates. When the dark comes, Boa wakes up and hunts other nocturnal animals like rodents. It can be easier for nocturnal animals to find food since the competition is not so fierce.
The need to hunt for food also determined some adaptations for the Rainforest Amazon Animals. For example, even if they are big felines, jaguars have the ability to move slowly and silently through the forest when stalking their prey. But, when they have to catch it, they can become extremely fast and that makes them very effective hunters.
Loads of animals from the Amazon Rainforest live in the trees. To be able to do that, they have long and strong arms. Sloths are built for a life in the trees, for example, and they have longer arms and curved feet, so they can hold on to branches.
You would think that having thick fur it’s not necessary in a place with increased temperatures, but some animals in the tropical rainforest do have a lot of hair. The fur protects them against rain, sun and insects. The Woolly Monkeys are known for their dense fur that helps them have a safe life in the Amazon.
Coming up with new and interesting activities and games to teach children about different topics can be challenging and time-consuming. That’s why we’ve put together some of our best resources about tropical rainforest animals to help you do that faster. With these resources, children will grow a vast knowledge surrounding what animals live in the Amazon Rainforest.
Teach your children the most interesting things about the rainforest species with this amazing Rainforest Animal Fact Files Activity Pack. Use the handy fact files and the Amazon rainforest animals PowerPoint to introduce children to six species of animals that live in the Amazon, and then test their knowledge with a specially designed worksheet.
Find out more about the wildlife with this fun Amazon Rainforest Creatures 'What's Behind The Binoculars?' PowerPoint. Each slide features different safari animals, but only a part of them can be seen through the binocular. You’ll have to move the virtual binoculars around to spot other animals and guess their names.
Tell children about the animals that live in different layers of the rainforest with this fantastic Layers of the Rainforest Cut and Stick Animals Activity. This cut and stick worksheet is great to use in a lesson about rainforest habitats.
Use this amazing Endangered Animals Activity PowerPoint to start a conversation with your class about the endangered species. The resource puts together beautiful hand-drawn illustrations and interesting text that will help your children understand the world around them.
Or maybe tell them more about how animals have adapted to life in rainforest conditions using this handy Amazon Rainforest Animals Adaptation PowerPoint Pack. The resource includes eight animals and offers details about how each of them adapted to live in the Amazon. After they learn this, children will have the possibility to imagine and create their own animal, making sure he will survive in the tropical environment.
For your younger learners, go with these Amazon Rainforest KS2 Colouring Pages. They are perfect to ease your kids into the topic and to design easy tasks to be completed at the end of the class. The resource features creatures and plants that can be seen in the Amazon, and some special pages about the rainforest layers.
Another simple activity can be created using our Animals in the Amazon Rainforest Cut and Paste Activity. Children will have to decide the right order of the four layers and then cut and paste the Amazon rainforest animals into the correct place after reading the clues included.
Not satisfied with the resources above? Here is another great material to use during your geography classes and activities. Our amazing Amazon Rainforest Layers Display Posters are ideal to try during the lesson about Amazon rainforest animals, to show children where each creature lives. Or do you simply want some colourful and informative rainforest posters to hang up on the walls of your classroom? Decorate your topic area with these beautiful and hand-illustrated rainforest posters featuring each layer of the Amazon rainforest in South America!
Here is another amazing idea on how to help your children understand more about the Amazon rainforest animals. Use this handy Amazon Rainforest Animals Word Search to consolidate their knowledge on the subject, or just to create a relaxing task to end the lesson. The resource includes the names of a range of animals found in the Amazon. Children will have to spot and circle them. To make your life easier, we also included the answers.
This Amazon Rainforest Animals Matching Connecting Bricks Game contains 4 sheets each full of lovely hand-drawn images of animals that live in the Amazon rainforest. The cut-out images on each sheet are designed to fit connecting bricks of varying sizes. Each image can be cut in half and stuck onto 2 bricks ready to be connected to make up the whole animal.
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