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About This Quiz
There are so many animals you'll find nesting, grazing and hiding among the shrubs, trees and herbaceous plants in the woodlands, it will be a challenge to name them all. Some eat insects, some survive on smaller mammals, and others eat fruits and seeds from flowers and trees.Â
The open forest habitat with plenty of sunlight and limited shade supports an entire ecosystem. However, woodlands are often transition zones between different ecosystems such as grasslands, true forests (high-density trees) and deserts. The main non-living chemical and physical part of the environment that affect woodland animals most are the hot, dry summers, mild moist winters, nutrient-poor soil and wildfires that suddenly spring up.Â
Even if you live in a suburban environment and not out in the woods, you are sure to get many of these questions correct. The grey squirrel, raccoon, and skunk can be found in both the woodlands and, most likely, your neighborhood. And it's not just mammals, there are monarch butterflies, ladybugs, and snails that you're sure to recognize in your garden or out walking.Â
Moreover, it's not unheard of to find the American green tree frog in your backyard - especially if you live in the southeastern United States. Find out if you can name each of these American woodland animals from the image. Take the quiz now.
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Beaver
Buffalo
Orangutan
Red Fox
It's pretty easy to spot a red fox in the United States -- you'll find them in forests and wildlife preserves. They have been known to show up in human neighborhoods, and are known for their cleverness and intelligence.
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Alpaca
Masked Owl
Sea Lion
Grey Squirrel
There are two main types of grey squirrels in the U.S.: the eastern grey squirrel and the western grey squirrel. As you may guess, the eastern grey lives in dense woodlands on the East Coast and in the Midwest, and the western can be found in similar, but on the West Coast.
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Gecko
Hedgehog
Although their spiny armor is similar to a porcupine, the two animals are unrelated. Hedgehogs are (very) distantly related to shrews, though, and, like the shrew, enjoys living in gardens and woodland borders. There are 17 different species of hedgehog -- 18 if you include the animated, Sonic the Hedgehog. However, the one species that lived in the Americas has gone extinct.
Little Brown Bat
Sloth Bear
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Cricket
Ladybug
Ladybugs (Ladybirds) are a type of beetle, and because they like to eat things like aphids, they're generally considered useful in our gardens and yards. In North America, most ladybugs have seven spots (three on each wing and one in the middle), but across the 5,000 different species in the world, some instead have stripes or a different number of spots -- or no markings at all.
Kangaroo
Monarch Butterfly
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Yellow-bellied Marmot
Tasmanian Devil
Opossum
Cottontail Rabbit
There are more than 30 species of rabbits around the world, and the eastern cottontail rabbit is the most common of the cottontails. In the Americas, you'll find them living from Canada all the way south into South America. In the U.S., eastern cottontail rabbits make their home on the East Coast and west into the Great Plains.
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American Bighorn Sheep
Lobster
Salamander
Snail
Snails are shelled gastropods (and gastropods without shells are, generally, called slugs). They've been used as food, used in skin creams, and used as a symbol of sloth or laziness, such as "at a snail's pace."
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Black-footed ferret
Blue and Gold Macaw
Collared Lizard
White-tailed Deer
You'll find the white-tailed deer across the U.S., as well as from Canada down to Peru. They're the smallest deer in North America, but have a big appetite -- the high concentration of deer in some places in the U.S. is changing the plant biomass, including tree seedlings, shrubs, and forest plants.
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American Black Bear
Beaver
Beavers are semiaquatic rodents with flat tails, transparent eyelids, and big front teeth for gnawing -- and they're built to swim as fast as 5 mph. There are two species of beaver, and both live in the forests of North America.
Giant Anteater
Moose
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Four-horned Antelope
Long-Tailed Weasel
The long-tailed weasel lives everywhere from southern Canada all the way south into South America. These mammals are fearless hunters who don't always consider their own size and power before attacking something larger. Smaller prey, like mice, though, don't present an issue for this carnivore.
Komodo Dragon
Ornate Shrew
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Cougar
Elephant
Emu
White-footed Mouse
The white-footed mouse is a rodent that lives in the American Southwest, as well as parts of Canada and Mexico -- and in Texas, it's called a woodmouse. Beware, though, because these mice may carry serious illness, such as hantaviruses and bacteria that can cause Lyme disease.
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American Bison
Chipmunk
These little rodents are part of the squirrel family, and just like squirrels, you'll find them in the U.S. and across North America. They love to burrow, which is how they make their homes -- and it's also how they can cause damage to your yard or garden.
White-tailed Mongoose
Raccoon
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Alaskan Hare
Ibex
Spotted Salamander
Typically, you can find the spotted salamander living in the eastern parts of Canada and the United States. In fact, it's the state amphibian for not just one but two states, Ohio and South Carolina.
Beluga Whale
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Arctic Fox
Laughing Kookaburra
Black-tailed Prairie Dog
Woodchuck
Did you know that a woodchuck and a groundhog are actually the same? It's true -- and they're also nicknamed the "whistle-pig." This mammal loves to dig burrows, and you'll find these vegetarians living in forests throughout the East Coast of the U.S. as well as throughout Canada.
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American Black Bear
The black bear, which is the most common bear in the U.S., can grow to be 6 feet tall and up to 600 pounds. Despite their name, their fur can actually range from a cinnamon shade to blue-black or blue-grey.
Mountain Goat
Nutria
Warthog
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Armadillo
Koala
LLama
Striped Skunk
In the United States, you'll find the striped skunk -- or you'll smell that he's been by -- living in forests, woodlands, and grassy plains from coast to coast and almost 100 percent of the contiguous states. Striped skunks are passive, but if they do need to defend themselves, their stinky spray can travel nearly 20 feet.
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Monarch Butterfly
The Monarch butterfly is the most familiar to Americans, and are known to travel up to 3,000 miles every year during their winter migration. Scientists have been concerned about the Monarch population in the U.S., and worry their survival may be threatened, in part, by the shrinking number of milkweed plants in the country.
Cicada
Flying Squirrel
American Sparrow Hawk
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Baboon
Elk
Elk, which grow to be as much as 1,100 pounds, can stand by the time they're 20 minutes (yes, minutes!) old, and hang around in gangs. Most have been killed off or driven away from much of North America, but in the U.S., you'll find them in the West, such as in Wyoming's National Elk Refuge and Yellowstone National Park.
Polar Bear
Ring-tailed Lemur
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Banded Gila Monster
Green Iguana
Mountain Chicken
Tree Frog
It shouldn't surprise you that this amphibian spends most of its time in trees. It's not unheard of to find the American green tree frog in your backyard -- especially if you live in the southeastern United States.
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Chinchilla
Sugar Glider
Silver-haired Bat
The Silver-haired Bat, a dark brown bat with hairs tipped with silver, is typically found in Bermuda, Canada, Mexico, and in woodland areas of the United States. They are suspected carriers of rabies, so look, but don't touch.
Wombat
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Red Panda
Opossum
There are more than 100 opossum species in the world, but the Virginia opossum is the only one, and the only type of marsupial, in the United States. They're mainly scavengers, and are known to eat both dead animals, plants, and even garbage.
Mudpuppy
Fennec Fox
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American Crow
Crows, in the same family (Corvid) as jays and magpies, are considered among the most intelligent birds. They are widespread across the United States, but although they're a common site, they are susceptible to West Nile virus.
Feather-tailed Possum
Griffin
Little Red Flying Fox
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Gibbon
Grizzly Bear
Raccoon
Raccoon's are great at getting into things. They have five fingers on each hand, and are able to deftly open garbage cans. They're nocturnal mischief makers who are smart, curious, and known to destroy your garden while you sleep.
Two-toed Sloth
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Dingo
Kinkajou
Llama
Moose
There are probably around 300,000 moose living in the United States, mainly in the Northeast, Upper Midwest, Alaska, and the Rocky Mountain states. They may not look quick on their feet, but moose are able to reach speeds of 35 mph over short distances -- a steady trot is a bit slower, at about 20 mph.
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Impala
Mole Rat
Porcupine
Porcupines have quills, which are sharp bristles of hair that cover their back, sides of their body, and tail. And just one porcupine's body can be armored with more than 30,000 of them, which detach into an opponent when needed.
Wildebeest
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Clouded Leopard
Mountain Lion
Call them catamount, cougar, panther, and puma, these cats are all the mountain lion -- the largest wildcat in North America. They're solitary animals, and active hunters who bury their kill to feed on it later.
North American River Otter
Prairie Dog
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Bald Eagle
Little Blue Heron
Flying Mobulas
Black Vulture
It can kill on its own, but it's also known to bully other birds away from a carcass. You'll find the American black vulture mostly in the southeastern U.S., where it's been given legal protection under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918 -- which means it can't be held captive unless it's injured or somehow unable to be in the wild.
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Red-masked Parakeet
Chincoteague Pony
Soay Sheep
Wild (Feral) Pig
Call them razorback or wild hogs, two American nicknames, the feral pig is a domesticated pig that's living in the wild -- or its offspring. Their population can be problematic, for farmers especially, but also for anyone with property that can be damaged.
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Broad-Breasted White Turkey
Ostrich
Penguin
Woodpecker
A male woodpecker will drum between 200 and 600 times every day, depending on if he's paired with a mate or not. It's not all about drumming, though. Sadly, woodpeckers have a hard time with our homes. If ever you've had a bird fly into the glass pane of a window, you know it can be a deadly accident -- and woodpeckers, in particular the young ones, are frequently those birds.
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Earthworm
Field Vole
Ornate Shrew
The ornate shrew can be found anywhere from Northern California down into Baja California in Mexico. They're a small animal, weighing only about 5 grams, and because they molt, they have a different color fur depending on the time of year.
Giraffe Weevil
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American Robin
Baltimore Oriole
Cooper's Hawk
The Cooper's hawk is found across the United States, but depending on where you live, you may know it as a chicken hawk or a big blue darter. It's known for its ability to fly quickly through trees and other vegetation. While their population declined in the mid-20th century, due to a combination of pesticides and hunting, there has been some recovery since then.
Ruby-throated Hummingbird
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Alligator Newt
Golden Mantella
American Mink
Orb-weaving Spider
These are the most common members of the spider family. They're known for their spiral wheel-shaped webs -- usually it's them who have made the intricate kind you think of when you think of a spider's web.
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Bumble Bee
Cricket
Did you know that male crickets are the only ones that produce the well-known chirping sound? It's part of their mating ritual, and sometimes out of anger, and they make it by rubbing their wings together. To get the current temperature, you count the number of their chirps that happen in 14 seconds, and add 40 to get the temperature in Fahrenheit.
Earwig
Paper Wasp
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Coyote
Time and again they've shown their adaptability, and today coyote populations have never been bigger in North America. It's been called the most vocal of all the wild mammals found in North America -- at least 11 different vocalizations are known among the adults, such as to greet another or to sound an alarm.
Groundhog
Platypus
Spider Monkey
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River Otter
North American river otters are playful, and if you see them out of the water you may find them doing somersaults, wrestling, and sliding. They prefer to spend their time in or near the water -- lakes, marshes, rivers, streams, etc. -- but aren't aquatic animals.
Mountain Hare
Slow Loris
Walia Ibex
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Black-throated Blue Warbler
Black-throated blue warblers live in the deep forest in the northeastern United States and migrate to the Caribbean for the winter. Deforestation is threatening its wintering habitat, but the population of these songbirds is steady, if not trending up.
Field Sparrow
Northern Cardinal
Purple Finch
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Arctic Fox
Mediterranean Monk Seal
Ringtail Cat
Ringtail cats look a bit like a lemur and a bit like a fox. They live as far south as southern Mexico, and in the U.S. as far north to Northern California and as far east as Louisiana. They're known to be solitary animals, although Gold Rush-era miners tamed them to live among humans and control the mice and rat population.
Serval
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Cardinal Beetle
The red-headed, or common cardinal beetle, is often mistaken for the scarlet lily beetle (which is smaller). It lives in the woodlands, and can usually be found under loose tree bark or on dense, low foliage.
Pharoah Ant
Root Maggot
Spider Mite
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Badger
The American badger lives in the western and central U.S., and prefers to make its home in prairies or at the edge of woodlands. These animals spend time on land or underground, but are also capable swimmers.
Grey Seal
Peale's Dolphin
Four-toed Hedgehog
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Blue Jay
Grouse
The grouse is a small game bird that lives across North America and Canada. In addition to being known for their air drumming skills, these birds are able to eat bitter plants, some toxic, that other birds can't.
House Finch
Yellow-rumped Warbler
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American Bullfrog
Blue-tailed Fire-bellied Newt
Inland Bearded Dragon
Slug
Most often, a slug is a snail, a gastropod mollusc, that doesn't have an outer shell. They have four retractable tentacles, hundreds of thousands of tiny teeth, and some leave their own tails behind when fleeing a predator.
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Central American Bushmaster
Dormouse
If your only experience with the dormouse is, "Twinkle twinkle, little bat, how I wonder what you're at? Up above the world you fly, like a tea tray in the sky," know there's more to these creatures than what Alice learned. Dormice are known for their long spans of hibernation, but they're also adept and agile at climbing.
Pacific Walrus
Star-nosed Mole
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American Mink
The American mink is part of the same family as otters, weasels, and wolverines -- other carnivorous mammals. Mink is a voracious predator native to North America, most closely related to the Siberian weasel.
Tufted Capuchin
Pine Marten
Golden Langur
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Butterfly
Dragonfly
Dragonflies don't sting, don't bite, and if one lands on your head it's considered good luck. In Indonesia, these insects are eaten as snacks. As for the dragonfly, just one can consume between 30 and more than 100 mosquitoes every day.
Housefly
Shoofly
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Bureaucrat
Firebrat
Muskrat
Packrat
Packrats, also called woodrats, are found throughout the United States. These nest builders are always scavenging for everything from plant material to whatever is packed away in your attic.
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Black-tailed Jack Rabbit
Also known as the American desert hare, the black-tailed jackrabbit is easily identifiable with its long black-tipped ears. These hares -- not rabbits -- favor high elevation, deciduous temperate forests, and, yes, even the desert.
Naked Mole Rat
Przewalski's horse
Siamang
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Blue Jay
Blue Jays live in the forest, although they have adapted to living in more urban environments. They're known for their abilities to mimic the scream of a red-shouldered hawk, as well as for sneaking through the trees to pillage another bird's nest.
Brewer's Blackbird
Common Grackle
White-winged Dove
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Caribou
The reindeer is a species of deer commonly known as caribou in the United States, and the only type of deer where both males and females grow antlers. As their population numbers decline, caribou are considered a vulnerable species.
Giant Water Bug
Giraffe
Swift Fox
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Red-ruffed Lemur
Lynx
The North American lynx, also called Canadian lynx, is able to spread its toes wide, and use its feet like snowshoes. They're nocturnal, and their main prey is the snowshoe hare. Its vision is legendary, and has become not only part of North American mythology but was also in Greek and Norse myth.
Markhor
Musk Ox
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Pacific Loon
Spotted Sandpiper
Screech Owl
Screech owls, found in the Americas, are little owls with large heads and almost no neck. Despite what their name suggests, they don't actually screech -- you're more likely to hear some soft trills, though.
Peregrine Falcon
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Bobcat
The bobcat is a cousin of the lynx, and lives and hunts in North America -- in fact, the bobcat is North America's most common native cat. Nearly a million of these wildcats remain in the wild, with a stubby, "bobbed" tail as their name suggests.
Caracal
Black-tailed Deer
Bengal Cat
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