Mammals - Our Planet Images

Mammals are the smallest groups of animals with only about 5,000 species of mammals. They range in size from the huge blue whale which can reach a size of up to 80 feet long to tiny rodents. Most of the mammals that we commonly see live on the ground but they also live in the trees and in the water. They also live in many different environments including underground, on the land, in caves, in the ocean and some can even fly (bats).

Most of the mammals that we commonly see are mammals that have been domesticated like cows, horses, dogs and cats however there are some wild mammals that live near humans. Some of the mammals that can possibly be seen in city parks and neighborhoods are squirrels, rabbits, rodents, raccoons, opossums and armadillos.

Seeing wild mammals in their natural environment typically requires a little more effort. Most truly wild mammals live in heavily wooded area with thick underbrush and they are very fearful of humans. To see these mammals we need to get off the beaten paths, move very quietly and have a lot of patience but when I have seen these mammals, the reward was worth the effort.

Mammals are very similar in many ways and extremely different in other ways. Some of the things that I find fascinating about mammals are:

Most mammal give birth to live young but some carry their young in a pouch and a few actually lay eggs.
Mammals exhibit many parental care behaviors like building a den, feeding guarding, carrying, huddling, grooming and teaching their young.
Some mammals migrate short distances every year but most mammal stay in a relatively small region near where they were born. Because of this they are not seen globally like some bird species.
Mammals have developed different ways to survive. Mammals as a group can walk, run, jump, climb, hop, swing, dig, burrow, swim, dive and even fly.

During my travels and near my home I have photographed many different mammal species that are dramatically different in their size, their shape, the diet that they eat and the habitat where they live. The number of mammal species and the total number of photos included in this website are shown in the following table.

76 Species

364 Photos

While there are many significant differences throughout the mammal world, mammals have some similar characteristics that help to group mammals together based on those characteristics. I have developed pages for the mammals that I have photographed based on the similar characteristics of those mammals.

I currently have grouped the mammals on this website into 7 categories. These categories are shown below with a photograph representing the category and the title of the category. The number of species and photos included in each category are shown beneath the photo of that category. Additionally, I have included the date that the category was last updated to help frequent readers to know if new mammals have been added since the last time they looked at the page.

On each page I have grouped the different species of mammals by the family they belong. Some species I have not been able to take many photos but when I was able to take several photos of a species, I have tried to include enough photos of each species to show a good look of the species and to show some of its behavior.

Photo Note

A large majority of my mammal photos in this website are nice photos and some photos are even exceptional but some are not of the standard that I like to use on this website.

I always try hard to get good photos of any subject that I am photographing. Some of the mammals that I have included in this website I may have only seen one time for just a few seconds. It was just not possible for me to get quality photos but I have included them in this website because I want to show my viewers as many species of mammals as I can even though the photo may not be a nice as I would like. I will upgrade poor quality photos if I have a chance to see these species again and if I am able to improve the photos that I have already taken.

Mammal Categories

Clicking on the photo of the category will take you to a separate page that includes all of the mammals in that category that I have photographed and that page provides more details about those mammals.