Green, the color of plants, is also present in the animal kingdom. Green animals can be found on all continents and in very varied habitats around the world, often offering perfect camouflage for these creatures. This color is particularly found in birds, reptiles, and insects, but not only!
We have compiled a list of 12 fascinating green animals from around the world, and we are sure you will LOVE the last one. Let’s get started!
12 Green Animals: Overview
- Amazon Parrot
- Eastern Green Mamba
- Praying Mantis
- Emerald Tree Boa
- Male Eclectus Parrot
- Resplendent Quetzal
- American Green Tree Frog
- Leaf Insect
- Maned Forest Lizard
- Plumed Basilisk Lizard
- Green Broadbill
- Little Leaf-Sheep Nudibranch
Green Animals: Pictures and Facts
Amazon Parrot
- Scientific name: Amazona spp.
- Type of animal: Bird
- Where found: Tropical America
Amazon parrots are native to Central America, South America, and the Caribbean. There are more than 30 species of Amazon parrots, belonging to the genus Amazona. They are known for their beautiful green color, and also their ability to perform tricks and imitate human speech. for these reasons, they are very popular animals in the pet trade.
In the wild, they mostly live in rainforests, sometimes in most open habitats like savannas, depending on the species. Unfortunately, more than half of Amazon parrot species are threatened, endangered, or even extinct in the wild, due to the destruction of their environment, and the pet trade.
Eastern Green Mamba
- Scientific name: Dendroaspis angusticeps
- Type of animal: Reptile
- Where found: East and Southern Africa
The eastern green mamba is a 2 m / 6.5 ft-long, slender snake native to eastern and southern Africa, along the coasts of the Indian Ocean. At first glance, what catches the eye is of course its mesmerizing green coloration. It acts as an effective camouflage when the snake is among the foliage, as this is an arboreal snake (it primarily lives in trees).
The eastern green mamba is a highly venomous snake, and 20 mg of its venom is enough to kill a human. This species is just one of the three species of green mambas that exist, the others being the western green mamba (southern West Africa) and Jameson’s mamba (Central and West Africa).
Praying Mantis
- Scientific name: order Mantodea
- Type of animal: Insect
- Where found: Tropical and temperate regions worldwide
Mantises are a group of insects, most of which belong to the family Mantidae – but there are in total 33 different families and no less than 2,400 species of mantises! These unique insects are known for their triangular heads and their folded forearms which are the reason why they are called “praying mantises”.
They are carnivorous and ambush predators, and eat other insects. The behavior they are best known for is probably the fact that the female consumes the male during or after mating. This is called sexual cannibalism, and it is practiced by roughly 90% of mantises.
Emerald Tree Boa
- Scientific name: Corallus caninus
- Type of animal: Reptile
- Where found: South America
The emerald tree boa is a snake species native to the rainforests of South America, in the Amazon River basin. It is recognized by its beautiful green color with lighter patterns, and it can grow up to 2 meters or about 6 feet. Surprisingly, the young boas go through different stages with very different colors (such as orange or red), before turning green when they are 9 to 12 months old.
Emerald tree boas, like all the other boas, are not venomous. Instead, they are constrictors: they kill their prey by wrapping their body around it and squeeze it to death. It feeds primarily on small mammals, small birds, lizards and frogs.
Male Eclectus Parrot
- Scientific name: Eclectus spp.
- Type of animal: Bird
- Where found: New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Australia
The Eclectus parrots are split into 4 different species, and can be found in the rainforests of New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, and the Northern tip of Australia (Cape York Peninsula). They live and nest in the canopy.
One of the most striking aspects of these birds is their sexual dimorphism (differences between males and females). Indeed, males are green, whereas females are red.
These beautiful birds have a specific diet comprising fruits and nuts. They are very appreciated in the pet trade, for their beauty of course, but also for their friendly personality and their high intelligence, enabling them to mimic human language and perform various tricks.
Resplendent Quetzal
- Scientific name: Pharomachrus mocinno
- Type of animal: Bird
- Where found: Central America
The resplendent quetzal is a really striking bird that is found in the rainforests of Central America, from southern Mexico to Panama. It is the largest species in the family Trogonidae.
Its body is covered with bright green, iridescent feathers, with a red belly. Its tail is particularly long, actually longer than the rest of its body. Quetzals are frugivorous, which means that they feed on fruits, such as figs and wild avocadoes.
The resplendent quetzal played an important part in pre-Columbian Mesoamerican cultures such as the Mayas and the Aztec, who used to venerate their amazing green feathers.
American Green Tree Frog
- Scientific name: Hyla cinerea
- Type of animal: Amphibian
- Where found: United States
The American green tree frog is found in the southeastern part of the United States. It is a quite small arboreal frog that can climb vertical surfaces thanks to its adhesive toe pads. It is known for its bright green color. This coloration is of course a great camouflage for this frog, among the vegetation where it lives.
The American green tree frog is a shy, nocturnal amphibian, that eats a large variety of insects, such as mosquitoes, flies, cockroaches, or beetles, and also spiders. Unfortunately, their numbers are declining, primarily because of loss of their habitat to urbanization and wildfires.
Leaf Insect
- Scientific name: family Phylliidae
- Type of animal: Insect
- Where found: South & Southeast Asia, Australia
Leaf insects, which are also called “walking leaves”, are a group of insects belonging to the family Phylliidae. They of course fully deserve their spot in this list of green animals, as their perfectly mimic green tree leaves, making them largely invisible to predators.
They can be found in South Asia, Southeast Asia, and all the way to Australia. The level of mimicry they exhibit is truly remarkable, as the edge of their body can feature shapes that look like bite marks (as if the leaf was bitten by an animal), and they make deliberate movements to imitate a leaf that would be blown by the wind.
Maned Forest Lizard
- Scientific name: Bronchocela jubata
- Type of animal: Reptile
- Where found: Southeast Asia
These reptiles can be found in Southeast Asia, particularly in Indonesia, Thailand, Cambodia, and the Philippines. They owe their name to the prominent crest on their head that resembles a mane. The maned forest lizard is an arboreal species, and it feeds on insects, spiders, and other small invertebrates that can fit in its mouth.
Apart from its beautiful green color and its hair-like crest, another amazing feature of the maned forest lizard is the length of its tail, which can reach 80% of its total body length! This species is in general 55 cm / 22 in long – of which 44 cm is the tail.
Plumed Basilisk Lizard
- Scientific name: Basiliscus plumifrons
- Type of animal: Reptile
- Where found: Central America
Another beautiful green reptile on our list! The plumed basilisk is also called the green basilisk or the Jesus Christ lizard, for its ability to run across water at a high speed, which prevents it from sinking. It can be found across Central America from southern Mexico to northern Colombia.
They live in tropical rainforests, preferably featuring rivers and streams., and they are arboreal. Plumed basilisks are very territorial and won’t hesitate to attack any intruder. They are omnivorous and feed on both invertebrate animals (such as insects, worms, and others) and vegetation (such as leaves, flowers, or fruits).
Green Broadbill
- Scientific name: Calyptomena viridis
- Type of animal: Bird
- Where found: Southeast Asia
The green broadbill, also called lesser green broadbill, is a small-sized bird with a mesmerizing green color, and black patterns on males’ backs. It is native to Southeast Asia, particularly the Malay Peninsula, as well as Sumatra and Borneo in Indonesia. There are 3 subspecies inhabiting different regions of its range.
This species can be found in dense rainforests. It is not easy to observe because of its small size, the fact that its green color provides excellent camouflage, and also because it tends to live high up in the trees, in or around the canopy level.
Little Leaf-Sheep Nudibranch
- Scientific name: Costasiella kuroshimae
- Type of animal: Mollusk
- Where found: East and Southeast Asia
This nudibranch (sea slug) is a tiny mollusk measuring less than 1 cm / 0.39 in, that can be found in tropical waters of the Pacific Ocean around Japan, the Philippines, and Indonesia. Like sheep, this amazing animal grazes on fields of Avrainvillea algae in the ocean.
Its body is covered with appendages called cerata that are green in color and look like tiny leaves, with purplish tips. One surprising fact about this unique animal is that it is able to perform photosynthesis… like a plant! As its feeds on its favorite algae, it consumes and processes the chloroplasts of the plant, in a process called keptoplasty.
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