100+ Animals that start with W – Interesting Animal Facts

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Last Updated on January 18, 2022 by

The Wonders of the World: Wonderful Animals That Start with the Letter ‘W’

Are you looking for a list of animals that start with W?

What is the first W letter animal you think of? Is it Whale? Walrus? Or how about Weasel? In this article we’ll review the top 100 animals that start with the letter W.

Have you heard of the Wallaby, Wombat and Wrasse? I bet there will be a few W animals that you haven’t heard of before!

The letter W includes some wonderful and well-known creatures!

Discover the different animals that begin with the letter ‘W’:

The World’s Most Well-Known Animals That Start with the Letter ‘W’

Wallaby

Wallabies share many similarities to kangaroos. They are both marsupials, or mammals that carry their offspring in their built-in pouches, and you will also notice a wallaby’s uncanny resemblance to a kangaroo because of its neutral-colored coat and elongated tail. However, you can distinguish one from the other by its size. Kangaroos are taller and have bigger bodies, and use their tails as their “fifth leg.” However, wallabies make use of their tails for balancing.

Walrus

The walrus is a close relative of seals, having stocky bodies covered with a thick layer of animal fat. However, walruses have whiskers and two long tusks similar to elephants, but theirs grow downward. They also inhabit cold regions in the north and survive by hunting small crustaceans, such as squids and mollusks, such as clams and snails in shallow waters.

Wandering Albatross

This sea bird holds the record of having the widest wingspan among all bird species, reaching up to 12 feet. Its habit of flying for long periods of searching or wandering is where it got its name. In fact, they can even survive without landing for a long time and can travel for tens of thousands kilometers before the touchdown. Not only that, but wandering albatrosses can endure the cold waters and winds in the Antarctic regions and can live for decades.

Water Buffalo

As its name suggests, the water buffalo is a dark grey-coated bovine that loves submerging its body in marshy lands and muddy bodies of water. These hooved mammals have stocky bodies that have made them the largest bovine species. They also have two flat and curvaceous horns that grow backward. Water buffalos have a close relationship with humans. Having been domesticated for thousands of years, they help humans to do laborious work on the field and provide fresh water buffalo milk.

Weasel

Weasels are small mammals with elongated reddish-brown bodies, tiny limbs, rounded ears, small heads, and semi-pointed snouts. On the other hand, their chest and abdominal areas have white coats. A weasel can also be mistaken for a ferret, another long-bodied mammal. However, you can distinguish ferrets from weasels because of their shorter bodies and dark grey and white fur. Despite the meek appearance of weasels, they are carnivores that feed on small rodents.

West African Crocodile

Like most crocodiles, this massive reptile has an elongated scaly body and a powerful tail. It is often confused with the bulkier Nile crocodile because they both have similar appearances. The West African crocodile’s limbs are shorter than the others. It also stays near lakes and estuaries, which are smaller than big rivers where Nile crocodiles reside.

Whale

The heaviest living animal is actually a whale species. Whales are massive mammals that can weigh up to 150 000 kilograms. Like most cetaceans, thick layers of fat cover a whale’s body. Not only that, but they also have mammary glands on their chests since they are mammals and not fish. The most massive whale, the Antarctic Blue Whale, weighs up to 165 tonnes, which is why it can consume at least four tonnes of krill in a single day.

Whale Shark

If whales are the largest mammal, the whale shark is the most massive fish. Yes, whale sharks are not whales but are actually fish. You can best recognize these gigantic aquatic creatures for their flat heads, wide mouth, hidden teeth, and brown scaly skin covered with white spots. Despite being extensively large-sized critters, whale sharks are not aggressive eaters. They feed on small fish, krill, plankton, and creatures filtered by their ultra-wide mouth.

Wildebeest

Wildebeests are large-bodied mammals with brown short-maned torsos and black hair on their rectangular-shaped faces, on top of their bodies, and under their chins. Also called gnus, these wild animals are antelopes that dwell in the savannahs and grasslands of southeastern Africa. However, unlike their kin, they don’t have antlers but have short horns that curve upward. As their name implies, wildebeests can be aggressive and territorial.

Wasp

This tiny winged insect has a yellow-and-black or -brown striped body, similar to bees. However, unlike them, wasps have hairless and slender thoraxes. Despite having thousands of members in its nest, a wasp can still identify one from the other through its facial patterns. These insects might be small, but they are aggressive. Be careful not to get stung because a wasp’s venom also has a distinct scent that can warn its fellow wasps. But don’t worry, for only the females have pointed stingers.

Wolf

Wolves are the largest canids characterized by grey, white, or brown furry bodies, slender muzzles, and ears that stick out. Most wolves live in the woods, while others, like the red wolves, prefer to dwell near swamps and small bodies of water. Wherever they inhabit, they are top predators that use their muscular legs and sharp canine teeth to hunt their prey. Wolves are also known for their howling sounds, which they use to communicate with other wolves distantly.

Wombat

Another unusual animal is the wombat, a fluffy, short-legged, and hairy-nosed mammal inhabiting the forests in Australian islands. Like kangaroos, wombats are marsupials. However, wombats use their four legs to walk while kangaroos use their tails for movement. Their bodies may look stubby, but they are speedy runners. As a matter of fact, they can run up to 40 km/h. There are many bizarre things that only wombats do and have. For instance, they use their butts to block burrows, attack predators and crush them to death. Their bums also excrete cube-shaped poop.

Woodpecker

These medium-sized birds with black-and-white-colored feathers, a red crest atop their heads, and a sturdy pointed beak used for pecking live. Don’t underestimate a woodpecker, for its peck is strong enough to cause a concussion. They need this force to create holes on tree trunks in search of food and nest their offspring.

Worm

Worms, or also annelids, are tiny invertebrates with long tube-like bodies that dwell in different environments. You can categorize them into three types of bodies: flatworms, roundworms, and segmented worms. Some inhabit under the sea or underground, while others live inside their hosts. They neither have limbs, so they have to use the muscles on each segment to hold on to the surface and crawl.

Wrasse

These fish species usually have vibrant-colored smooth and scaly skin and are best known for their long protruding proboscis and thick lips. They are active feeders during the day and swim near coral reefs to eat small crustaceans, echinoderms, and worms.

Animals with Outlandish Names That Start with the Letter ‘W’

Wunderpus photogenicus
Walleye Fish
Walking Catfish
Whippet
Wire Fox Terrier
Whooping Crane
Wattle-eye
Wartyback
Wolverine
White-crested Laughingthrush
Whooping Crane
Wahoo
Wapiti
Wattled Bulbul
Waterbuck

Extraordinarily Weird Creatures That Begin with the Letter ‘W’

Warty Frogfish
Whip Scorpion
Wolffish
Whitemargin Stargazer
Whiptail Gulper
White-ringed Garden Eel
Water Dragon
Water Opossum
Wyoming Toad
Wolf Eel
Wrinkle-faced Bat
Woodlark Cuscus
Weasel Sportive Lemur
Weid’s Black-tufted-ear Marmoset
Water Strider

The Winsome Animals That Start with the Letter ‘W’

Weaver
Willow Warbler
Woodchuck
Wren
Weasel
West Highland Terrier
Westiepoo
Wedge-billed Hummingbird
Woodland Vole
Wailing Cisticola
Wallace’s Owlet-Nightjar
Waters’ Gerbil
Web-footed Marsh Rat
Wood Lemming
Woodland Dormouse

Eensy-Weensy or Small Creatures That Start with the Letter ‘W’

Window-winged Moth
Wolf Spider
Wood Frog
Wedgemussel
Whipbird
Warble Fly
White-footed Vole
White-faced Capuchin
White Shrimp
Woodlouse
Whirligig beetles
Worm
Weevil
White Butterfly
Waxworm

Whacking and Weighty: Large Animals That Start with the Letter ‘W’

West African Slender-snouted Crocodile
White Tiger
Wild Boar
White-tailed Eagle
Western Gorilla
White Rhinoceros
Wild Yak
Warthog
Western Lowland Gorilla
Wood Bison
Woolly Mammoth
.West Indian Manatee
Whitetip Reef Shark
White-beaked Dolphin
Walia Ibex

Bewitching Animals That Start with the Letter ‘W’

Water Vole
Weirmadoodle
Welsh Corgi
Wallace’s Three-striped Dasyure
Wirehaired Pointing Griffon
Woolly Hare
Wagler’s Macaw
Water Chevrotain
Weddell Seal
Wombat
Woolly Flying Squirrel
Wood Turtle
White-faced Langur
White-whiskered Spider Monkey
Western Tree Dassie