Order Carnivora
Kingdom: Animalia > Phylum: Chordata > Class: Mammalia > Order: Carnivora
Carnivores are animals that get their energy and nutrients almost entirely from animal tissue. They therefore have sharp teeth and 4 (or more) claws on each foot. The order can be split into Caniforms (A) – those with long snouts and unretractable claws and Feliforms (B) – those with retractable claws. Where I have photos I have included some information and further classification (see below).
Family: Canidae (wolves, dogs, jackals, foxes)
- Canis latrans (coyote)
- Vulpes lagopus (arctic fox)
- Vulpes vulpes (red fox)
The fox snoozing in my garden was a real lucky shot. I include some photos of Arctic foxes taken at Langedraget in Norway. I have yet to see them completely in the wild. There were also wolves at Langedraget but alas they were too far away to get a decent photo. I had hoped to see some in Yellowstone but no luck. I will hopefully get a chance to see them in the wild one day.
Family: Ursidae (bears, giant pandas)
- Ailuropoda melanoleuca (giant panda)
- Ursus americanus (American black bear)
I saw my first bear in Romania at the local rubbish dump (no photos). There are some wild brown bears in Norway but I have never seen any other than in captivity. In Canada we came across a Bear Jam and had some reasonable views of one. We kept our distance unlike some of the people along the road. In Yellowstone we saw a glimpse of a grizzly bear on a carcas as we drove along. In Grand Teton National Park we had some good views on black bears swimming across the river. I am unlikely to ever see any giant pandas in the wild but we visited the Chengdu Panda Base, a research and breeding centre in China.
Family: Mustelidae (martens, weasels, skunks, otters)
- Lutra lutra (European otter)
- Meles meles (European badger)
- Mustela nivalis (least weasel)
- Mustela putorius (European polecat)
- Martes martes (European pine marten)
Whilst in Scotland we saw pine martens from the Speyside Wildlife hide but I didn’t have my camera. We also saw badgers and on a separate visit and I took some photos. Alas the pine martens didn’t turn up that time. I have seen weasels, polecats and otters in the wild but I never managed to get a photo of them. They were at the British Wildlife Centre so I am including some photos from there.
Family: Phocidae (seals)
- Halichoerus grypus (grey seal)
- Phoca vitulina (harbour seal or common seal)
Both harbour seals and grey seals are pretty common along the British coast. You can see them on land during moulting (from August to September for harbour seals and February to April for grey seals) and when they are breeding (harbour seal: June to August & grey seal: September to December). They look fairly similar so not easy to tell apart. You can’t tell by the colour as it is changeable but the grey seal is larger. Posture is another way as on land the harbour seal tends to lift its head and tail. They are also more spread out generally. The grey seal also has an elongated nose.
Other families
I am grouping together the remaining photos I have in this order below.
- Family: Ailuridae (red pandas)
- Ailurus fulgens (red panda)
- Family: Procyonidae (coatis, raccoons, lesser pandas)
- Nasua narica (White-nosed coati)
- Family: Felidae (cats, lions, cheetahs, leopards)
- Felis silvestris (European wildcat)
We saw the red pandas at Chengdu Panda Base in China. The wildcats were at the British Wildlife Centre, I have never seen any in the wild. We saw lots of coati in Costa Rica.
