Acacia — Acacia is a genus of shrubs and trees belonging to the subfamily Mimosoideae of the family Fabaceae, first described in Africa by the Swedish botanist Carolus Linnaeus in 1773. Acacias are also known as thorntrees or wattles, including the yellow-fever acacia and umbrella acacias. There are roughly 1300 species of Acacia worldwide, about 960 of them native to …

Wolverine — The wolverine (Gulo gulo) is the largest land-dwelling species of the Mustelidae or weasel family (the Giant Otter is largest overall), and is the only species currently classified in the genus Gulo (meaning “glutton”). It is also called the Glutton or Carcajou. Some authors recognize two subspecies: the Old World form Gulo gulo gulo and the New World …

Wolf — The gray wolf (Canis lupus), also known as the timber wolf or wolf, is a mammal of the order Carnivora. The gray wolf is the largest wild member of the Canidae family and an ice age survivor originating during the Late Pleistocene around 300,000 years ago. Its shoulder height ranging from 0.6 to 0.9 meters (26-36 inches) and …

Wildebeest — The wildebeest, is an antelope of the genus Connochaetes. It is a hooved (ungulate) mammal. Connochaetes includes two species, both native to Africa: the Black Wildebeest, or white-tailed gnu (C. gnou), and the Blue Wildebeest, or brindled gnu (C. taurinus). Gnus belong to the family Bovidae, which includes antelopes, cattle, goats, and other even-toed horned ungulates. Wildebeest grow …

Weasel — Weasels are mammals in the genus Mustela of the Mustelidae family. Originally, the name “weasel” was applied to one species of the genus, the European form of the Least Weasel (Mustela nivalis). Early literary references to weasels, for example their common appearances in fables, refer to this species rather than to the genus as a whole, reflecting what …

Warthog — The Warthog (Phacochoerus africanus) (“African Lens-Pig”) is a wild member of the pig family that lives in Africa. The common name comes from the four large wart-like tusks found on the head of the warthog, which serve the purpose of defense when males fight. They are the only widely recognised species in their genus, though some authors divide …

Wapiti — The elk, or wapiti (Cervus canadensis), is the second largest species of deer in the world and one of the largest mammals in North America and eastern Asia. In the deer family (Cervidae), only the moose, Alces alces (called an “elk” in Europe), is larger. Wapiti are almost identical to red deer found in Europe, of which they …

Walrus — The walrus (Odobenus rosmarus) is a large flippered marine mammal with a discontinuous circumpolar distribution in the Arctic Ocean and sub-Arctic seas of the Northern Hemisphere. The walrus is the only living species in the Odobenidae family and is further subdivided into two or three subspecies; the Atlantic walrus (O. rosmarus rosmarus), the Pacific walrus (O. rosmarus divergens) …

Wallaby — A wallaby is any of about thirty species of macropod (Family Macropodidae). It is an informal designation generally used for any macropod that is smaller than a kangaroo or wallaroo that has not been given some other name. Very small forest-dwelling wallabies are known as pademelons (genus Thylogale) and dorcopsises (genera Dorcopsis and Dorcopsulus). The name wallaby comes …

Tree Shrew — The treeshrews (or tree shrews) are small mammals native to the tropical forests of Southeast Asia. They make up the families Tupaiidae and Ptilocercidae and the entire order Scandentia. There are 20 species in 5 genera. Treeshrews have the highest brain to body mass ratio of any animal, even higher than humans. Although called treeshrews, they are …