AardvarksThe greatness of a nation can be judged by the way its animals are treated.
This file includes Animal ABC List, Aardvarks, Armadillos, Bats, Chipmunks, Groundhogs and Woodchucks, Mice, Porcupines, Possums, Prairie Dogs, Rabbits, Raccoons, Rats, Skunks, Sloths, Squirrels, Weasels, Yaks, and miscellaneous.
Also see Reptiles and Amphibians, Wild Animals, Dragons and Dinosaurs, Insects, Birds, Pets, Farm Animals, Horses, Water Animals, and Fishing.
Always be kind to animals,
Morning, noon, and night.
For animals have feelings, too,
And furthermore . . . they bite.
I learned my first lesson in responsibility the day I returned from school to find my guinea pigs missing. I rushed to ask my mother about them.
"I gave them away because you didn't take care of them."
"But I did take care of them!"
"Joni, I gave them away ten days ago!"
Aardvarks(from a song by Weird Al Yankovic)
The aardvark is really a curious creature
If you're an ant, then he's likely to eat ya.
Although his long nose makes him look rather hideous
He's still listed first in the encyclopedias.
Armadillos
The baby bat
Screamed out in fright,
"Turn on the dark,
I'm afraid of the light."
(Richard Wilbur)
Mind in its purest play is like some bat
That beats about in caverns all alone,
Contriving by a kind of senseless wit
Not to conclude against a wall of stone.
(Ogden Nash)
My friends all know that I am shy
But the chipmunk is twice as shy as I
He moves with flickering indecision
Like stripes across a television
He's like the shadow of a cloud
Or Emily Dickinson read out loud.
Groundhogs and Woodchucks(Woodchuck is another name for groundhog. Also see Groundhog Day.)
In a snug little burrow
Deep down underground
Sleeps a fat little groundhog
All safe and sound.
Be careful not to wake him
From his sleep so deep
For he's a grumpy little fellow
If he doesn't get his sleep.
On February second
He yawns and he stretches
And climbs out of his hole
To check on the weather.
If he sees his shadow
He turns right around
To spend six more weeks sleeping
Until spring comes around.
How much wood
would a woodchuck chuck
if a woodchuck
could chuck wood?
A woodchuck would chuck
all the wood he could chuck
If a woodchuck
would chuck wood.
Mice 
(Rose Fyleman)
I think mice are nice.
Their tails are long
Their faces small,
They haven't any
Chins at all.
Their ears are pink,
Their teeth are white,
They run about
The house at night.
They nibble things
They shouldn't touch
And no one seems
To like them much.
But I think mice
Are nice.
Three blind mice, three blind mice,
See how they run, see how they run,
They all ran after the farmer's wife,
Who cut off their tails with a carving knife,
Did you ever see such a sight in your life,
As three blind mice?
Hickory, dickory, dock.
The mouse ran up the clock.
The clock struck one, the mouse ran down.
Hickory, dickory dock.
Hickory, dickory, dock.
The mouse ran up the clock.
The clock struck two, the mouse said, "Boo!"
Hickory, dickory dock.
Hickory, dickory, dock.
The mouse ran up the clock.
The clock struck three, the mouse said, "Whee!"
Hickory, dickory dock.
Hickory, dickory, dock.
The mouse ran up the clock.
The clock struck four, the mouse said, "No more!"
Hickory, dickory dock.
(Ogden Nash)
Any hound a porcupine nudges
Can't be blamed for harboring grudges.
I know one hound that laughed all winter
At a porcupine that sat on a splinter.
Possums(Anne LaBastille - from the book The Opossums)
Two tricks has a possum
When danger is near.
To climb to a treetop
Or hiss full of fear.
But when these two fail
He tries this instead,
Rolls up like a ball
And pretends he is dead.
Rabbits(Gerry Krueger)
Rabbits have a habit
of coming for breakfast
and staying for lunch.
Now there's one leaf
instead of a bunch.
(Tom Robinson)
I'd like to run like a rabbit in hops
With occasional intermediate stops.
He is so cute when he lifts his ears
And looks around to see what he hears.
A chubby little snowman had a carrot nose.
Along came a bunny and what do you suppose?
That hungry little bunny, looking for his lunch,
Ate that little snowman's nose--
Nibble, Nibble, Crunch!
(Elizabeth Gould)
We brought him home,
I was so pleased,
We made a rabbit hutch,
I give him oats, I talk to him,
I love him very much.
Now when I talk to Rover dog,
He answers me "Bow-wow!"
And when I talk to Pussy-cat,
She purrs and says "Mee-ow!"
But Bunny never says a word,
Just twinkles with his nose,
And what that rabbit thinks about,
Why! no one ever knows.
My Mother says the fairies must
Have put on him a spell,
They told him all their secrets, then
They whispered, "Pray don't tell."
So Bunny sits there looking wise,
And twinkling with his nose,
And never, never, never tells
A single thing he knows.
RaccoonsThere is a cute story about raccoons in the Gardening file.
(John R. Reed)
I hear his cry
And it takes all
The Science I
Can muster
Not to pick him up,
Warm him in my jacket,
Name him Rocky
And confine him
To an iron cage
For all his natural
Raccoon life.
Two river flow within
me,
So different
And so necessary.
(attributed to Dr. Seuss)
If your ratty gets all scatty 'cos his coat is getting matty
And he's acting kinda batty now he doesn't look so natty.
If he starts to get all chatty and to voice pratty demands
Then beware! You've got a bratty tatty ratty on your hands.
(Robert Browning)
They fought the dogs and killed the cats,
And bit the babies in the cradles,
And ate the cheeses out of the vats,
And licked the soup from the cooks' own ladles,
Slit open the kegs of salted sprats,
Made nests inside men's Sunday hats,
And even spoiled the women's chats
By drowning their speaking
With shrieking and squeaking
In fifty different sharps and flats.
SkunksSome people in the U.S. refer to skunks as 'polecats'. But polecats are a separate mammal that lives in Europe and Africa.
The sloth lives his life upside down. He is perfectly comfortable that way. If the blood rushes to his head, nothing happens because there is nothing to work on. (Will Cuppy)
(Theodore Roethke)
In moving-slow he has no Peer.
You ask him something in his Ear,
He thinks about it for a Year;
And, then, before he says a Word
There, upside down (unlike a Bird),
He will assume that you have Heard--
A most Ex-as-per-at-ing Lug.
But should you call his manner Smug,
He'll sigh and give his Branch a Hug;
Then off again to Sleep he goes,
Still swaying gently by his Toes,
And you just know he knows he knows.
SquirrelsThese are the brown leaves fluttering down.
This is the tall tree bare and brown.
This is the squirrel with eyes so bright
Hunting for nuts with all his might.
This is the hole where day by day
Nut after nut he stores away.
When winter comes with its cold and storm
He'll sleep curled up all snug and warm.
Whisky frisky,
Hippity hop
Up he goes
To the top!
Whirly twirly,
Round and round
Down he scampers
To the ground.
Furly, curly,
What a tail!
Tall as a feather,
Broad as a sail!
Where's his supper?
In the shell,
Snap, cracky,
Out it fell.
A squirrel from his tree-house poked out his head,
It's high time for my breakfast he happily said.
So he ran down the tree trunk and pattered around,
His bushy tail trailing, his nose to the ground.
He looked here, he looked there, through the white snow
Till he found a nut, hidden below,
And into his cheek he popped the nut with glee.
Then Mr. Squirrel scampered back up the tree.
If you look very sharply, maybe you'll spy
Mr. Squirrel at his door ever so high.
All around the Cobbler's bench
The monkey chased the weasel.
The monkey thought 'twas all in fun.
Pop! Goes the weasel.
(Hilaire Belloc)
As a friend to the children commend me the Yak.
You will find it exactly the thing:
It will carry and fetch, you can ride on its back,
Or lead it about with a string.
The Tartar who dwells on the plains of Thibet
(A desolate region of snow)
Has for centuries made it a nursery pet,
And surely the Tartar should know!
Then tell you papa where the Yak can be got,
And if he is awfully rich
He will buy you the creature--or else he will not.
(I cannot be positive which.)
For lists relating to specific kinds of animals see the Animals section.
A - aardvark, abalone, adder, African elephant, agouti, albatross, albacore tuna, alligator, alpaca, amoeba, amphibian, amur leopard, anaconda, anchovy, angelfish, angora goat, ant, anteater, antelope, ape, arctic fox, arctic wolf, armadillo, Asian elephant, aye-aye
B - baboon, badger, bald eagle, barracuda, bat, bearded dragon, bears, beaver, bees, beetle, Beluga whale, Bengal tiger, bighorn sheep, billy goat, bird, bison, black-footed ferret, blue whale, boa constrictor, boar, bobcat, bookworm (child reading?), bottle-nose dolphin, buffalo, bugs, bunny, burro, butterfly
C - camel, Canadian goose, canary, canine, capybara, caracal, cardinal, caribou, carnivore, cassowary, cat, caterpillar, cattle egret, capybara, caterpillar, centipede, chameleon, cheetah, chicken, chimpanzee, chinchilla, chipmunk, clam, cobra, colt, cottontail, cougar, cow, coyote, crab, crayfish, cricket, crocodile, cubs
D - deer, dingo, dinosaur, dog, dolphin, donkey, dormouse, dove, dragon, dragonfly, dromedary, duck
E - eagle, earthworm, Easter bunny, echidna, eel, egret, eland, elephant, elk, emu
F - falcon, fawn, feline, Fennec fox, ferret, finch, firefly, fish, flamingo, flock, fly, flying squirrel, foal, fox, frilled dragon, frog
G - garden snake, gazelle, gecko, gerbil, giant panda, gibbon, Gila monster, giraffe, gnat, gnu, goat, goldfish, gopher, goose, gorilla, grasshopper, great white shark, grizzly bear, groundhog, Guinea pig
H - hammerhead shark, hamster, hare, hartebeest, hawk, hedgehog, hen, herd (of animals), hermit crab, heron, hippopotamus, hobby horse, hog, honey badger, horse, hummingbird, hyena
I - ibex, ibis, iguana, impala, inchworm, insect, ivory-billed woodpecker
J - jack rabbit, jackal, jaguar, jelly fish, jerboa, June bug
K - kangaroo, killdeer, killer whale, King Cobra, kingfisher, kitten, kiwi, koala, Komodo dragon, kob, kookaburra
L - ladybug, lamb, lamprey, lemming, lemur, leopard, lion, lizard, llama, lobster, lop-eared bunny, lorikeet, lynx
M - macaw, mallard, mammal, manatee, margay, marmoset, marmot, marsupial, meerkat, Mickey Mouse, mink, mockingbird, mole, mongoose, monkey, moose, mosquito, mountain goat, mountain lion, mouse, mule, muskrat, mustang
N - narwhal, Nativity animals, nene goose, newt, nightingale, Noah's Ark, nyala
O - ocelot, octopus, okapi, opossum, orangutan, orca, oriole, oryx, osprey, ostrich, otter, owl, ox
P - pachyderm, panda, panther, parakeet, parrot, partridge, peacock, peccary, pelican, penguin, pheasant, pig, pigeon, piranha, platypus, polar bear, pony, porcupine, porpoise, prairie dog, praying mantis, primate, pronghorn, puffin, puppy, puma, python
Q - eQuus (horse), quacker (duck!), quadruped, quail, quarterhorse, quelea (bird), quetzal (bird), quokka (mammal), quoll (marsupial)
R - rabbit, raccoon, ram, rat, rattlesnake, red fox, reindeer, reptile, rhesus monkey, rhinoceros, roadrunner, robin, rocking horse, rodent, rooster
S - salamander, sand dollar, scorpion, sea horse, sea lion, seal, serval, shark, sheep, shrew, skunk, sloth, snail, snake, snow leopard, sparrow, spectacled bear, spider, spider monkey, spoonbill, springbok, squirrel, starfish, stingray, stork, swan, swallow
T - tadpole, tapir, tarantula, Teddy bear, tern, tiger, tiger shark, toad, tortoise, toucan, tree frog, trout, tufted titmouse, turkey, turtle
U - uakari (monkey), umbrella bird, unicorn, (sea) urchin, urutu (snake)
V - vampire bat, veterinarian, vicuna, viper, vixen, vole, vulture
W - wallaby, walrus, warthog, wasp, water buffalo, weasel, whale, white rhino, white-tailed deer, whooping crane, wildebeest, wolf, wolverine, wombat, woodpecker, worm
X - eXoskeleton, foX, lynX, xantus (bird), Xebu, xenops, xerophilous animal (i. e. camel), xerus (African ground squirrel), x-ray fish, Xyloryctes beetle (Rhinoceros beetle)
Y - yak, yellow-finned tuna, yellowhammer, yellow jacket
Z - zander (fish), zebra, zebu, zoophilist (person who likes animals), zygodactyl bird (i.e. parrot)
Two good animal ABC books are Animalia by Graeme Baese and Aardvarks Disembark by Ann Jonas.
Some of the animal song titles came from Eric's Song Lists
Some graphics on this site are from Public Domain Clip Art, Free Clip Art Library and Free Clipart Now.
back to top of page