List of animal names

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This lists names of animals used depending on the context. Many species of animals, particularly those domesticated, have been given specific names for the male, the female, and the young of the species. There are a few generic terms, "bull-cow-calf", for instance, that are found across species, but many species have been granted unique names for these gender/age characteristics. Empty table cells indicate incomplete data, and should not be interpreted to mean that the animal does not have a specific name of that type.

It is thought that many of the bizarre words used for collective groupings of animals were first published in 1486 in the Book of St. Albans, in an essay on hunting attributed to a Dame Juliana Barnes. Many of the words are thought to be chosen simply for the humorous or poetic images they conjured up in her lively imagination.[1]

See also: List of collective nouns.

[edit] Formal names

Animal Young Female Male Group Adjective Meat
Alligator hatchling cow bull bask, congregation[2]
Ant larva, pupa queen, worker, gyne drone army, colony, nest, swarm, bike formic, myrmecine
Antelope calf doe buck herd, cluster alcelaphine, bubaline, antilopine
Ape infant [3] [3] shrewdness, troop simian
Ass/Donkey foal jenny jack pace, band, drove, herd, coffle asinine
Baboon infant [3] troop, tribe, flange[4], congress[citation needed]
Badger kit sow boar cete, colony, sett, company musteline
Bat bitten [3] [3] colony, cloud, cauldron pteropine, noctillionine
Bear cub sow boar sleuth, sloth ursine
Beaver kit, kitten, pup [3] [3] family, colony
Bee larva, pupa queen, worker [5] drone grist, hive, swarm, colony apic, apian, apiarian
Beetle larva [3] [3] swarm
Bird chick hen cock [6] flock avian, muscicapine, oscine, passerine, pendeline, volucrine, ornithic
Bison calf cow bull herd, troop
Buffalo calf cow bull herd bovine, bubaline
Butterfly caterpillar rabble, flight, flutter, swarm
Buzzard chick hen cock[6] wake
Camel calf cow bull flock camelid
Cat kitten queen tom [7] clowder, cluster[4], clutter, glaring[4], pounce, kindle (young) feline
Cattle[8] calf cow bull herd, drift[4], drove, mob bovine[9], vituline (young), vaccine (female), taurine (male) beef, veal
Chamois calf doe bull herd
Cheetah cub coalition
Chicken chick hen, pullet rooster, cock(-erel)[6][10] flock, brood, peep galline chicken[11], poultry
Cobra quiver[12] elapid
Cockroach nymph intrusion[12]
Cormorant gulp[12], flight
Coyote cub, pup, whelp bitch[6] dog pack, train
Crane herd, sedge, siege alectorine
Crocodile crocklet cow bull bask, nest, congregation, float crocodilian
Crow hover, murder, parcel[4]
Deer fawn, ass[6] doe, hind, cow buck, stag, bull, hart (red deer) herd, mob, rangale[4] cervine, elaphine venison, humble (organ meat)
Dog whelp, pup, puppy bitch[6] sire, stud pack, litter (young), kennel, gang, legion canine dog meat
Dogfish troop[4]
Dolphin calf, pup cow bull team, school, pod, herd, team[4], alliance (male), party (female) delphine
Donkey/Ass[6] foal jenny jack pace, band, drove, herd, coffle asinine
Dove chick cote, flight, dole, dule, piteousness,[4] troop columbine
Duck duckling duck, hen drake flock, brace, bunch (on water)[4], team[13] anatine, fuliguline poultry
Eagle eaglet [3] [3] convocation, brood, aerie aquiline
Eel elver [3] [3] swarm, cell, pipe
Elephant calf cow bull herd, flock, parade, overabundance elephantine
Elk calf cow bull gang, herd cervine venison
Falcon eyass/eyas falcon tiercel gross acciptrine
Ferret kit jill hob [14] business musteline
Finch chick hen cock[6] charm, chirm, trembling, trimming fringilline
fish fry, fingerling school, shoal piscine, ichthyic
Flamingo hen cock[6] stand phoenicopterine
Fox cub, kit, pup vixen reynard, todd, dog leash, skulk vulpine
Frog polliwog, tadpole, froglet bundle ranine
Gazelle calf
Gerbil pup doe buck horde cricetine
Giraffe calf cow bull herd, stretch, tower giraffine
Goat kid doe buck[15] herd, mob, tribe caprine, hircine chevon
Goldfinch chick hen cock[6] fringilline
Goose gosling goose gander gaggle (skein when in flight)[13] anatine, anserine poultry
Gorilla infant [3] [3] troop, group (band), flange
Guanaco chulengo camelid
Guinea pig pup sow boar herd
Gull chick, scorrie[16] hen cock[6] flock larine
Hamster pup doe buck horde cricetine
Hare leveret doe, jill buck, jack band, down leverine, leporine
Hawk eyas hen tiercel cast, kettle, boil[17] accipitrine, falconine
Heron chick hen cock[6] siege[13]
Hippopotamus calf cow bull bloat, crash, herd, thunder[12] hippopotamine
Hog sow boar drift, herd suilline pork
Hornet larvae, pupae queen drone swarm vespine
Horse[18] foal mare stallion herd, harass equine horse meat
Human infant,child woman man crowd, tribe, family, people, wave (young), society
Hummingbird hen cock[6] charm, chattering, drum, hover, troubling trochiline
Hyena cub, pup, whelp bitch[6] dog clan, cackle hyenine
Jackal pup pack
Jaguar cub
Jay chick hen cock[6] band, party garruline, passerine
Jellyfish ephyra smack, bloom, brood, smuth, smuck, fluther
Kangaroo joey flyer, doe boomer, buck mob, troop, court macropodine
Ladybug larva [3] [3]
Lark chick hen cock[6] exaltation alaudine
Leopard cub leopardess leopard leap, lepe pardine
Lion cub lioness lion pride leonine
Llama cria hembra macho herd, flock camelid
Lobster hen cock[6] risk homarine
Louse nymph [3] [3] colony, infestation, lice pediculine
Magpie hen cock[6] tiding, tittering, gulp, murder, charm, flock garruline
Mallard duckling hen drake sord, lute, brace, puddling, flush anatine
Manatee calf cow bull herd manatine, sirenian
Mink cub, kit sow boar musteline
Mole pup [3] [3] labour,company, movement talpine
Monkey infant [3] [3] troop, barrel, tribe, cartload simian
Moose calf cow bull cervine
Mosquito nymph, wriggler, tumbler [3] [3] scourge, swarm aedine, anopheline
Mouse pinkie, kitten, pup doe buck nest, colony, harvest, horde, mischief murine
Mule foal jennet, jenny jack barren, pack, span, rake
Nightingale chick hen cock[6] watch, flock, route, match philomelian
Ostrich chick hen cock[6] flock, troop ratite, struthious ostrich meat
Otter pup, whelp [3] [3] romp, bevy, lodge, family, raft musteline, lutrine
Owl owlet alicia parliament, stare, wisdom strigine
Ox calf cow bull yoke, team, drove, herd, nye bovine
Oyster bed, hive, cast, culch ostracine
Panda cub sow boar amalgamation
Panther cub pantheress [19] priory, pantheon pantherine
Parrot chick hen cock[6] company, flock, prattle, pandemonium psittacine
Partridge chick, cheeper hen, chantelle cock[6] covey perdicine
Peafowl chick, peachick peahen peacock muster, ostentation, pride pavonine
Pelican chick, nestling hen cock[6] scoop
Penguin chick hen cock[6] colony, rookery, parade, parcel, crèche, huddle spheniscine
Pheasant chick hen cock[6] bouquet, nest, nide, nye, brood, covey alectorine, phasianine pheasant
Pig[20] piglet, shoat/shote (a young, just weaned pig) gilt (female) sow boar herd, drove, mob porcine, sulline pork, ham, bacon
Pigeon squab hen cock[6] flight, loft, flock, kit pullastrine
Polecat kit jill hob chine musteline
Pony foal (either sex), colt (young, immature male), filly (young, immature female) mare stallion herd, string equine
Quail chick hen cock[6] covey coturnine
Rabbit bunny, kit, kitten, leveret, nestling doe, jill buck, jack warren, nest, colony, bevy, bury, drove, trace leporine lapin, lapan
Raccoon cub, kit sow boar nursery procyonine
Rail chick reeve ruff ralline
Ram lamb ewe ram flock arietine, ovine
Rat kitten, nestling, pinkie, pup doe buck colony, horde, pack, plague, swarm murine
Raven chick hen cock[6] unkindness[1], congress, conspiracy, parliament, murder, storytelling, nevermore corvine
Reindeer calf cow bull herd
Rhinoceros calf cow bull crash, herd
Rook chick hen cock[6] building, parliament
Sea lion pup, beach weaner cow bull pod, colony, crash, flock, harem, bob, herd, rookery, team, hurdle otarine
Sea urchin larva, pluteus (free-swimming stage), juvenile (young urchin) Uni
Pinniped(seal, walrus, etc.) pup cow bull same as sea lion phocine, otarine
Shark pup [3] bull slew, shiver[12]
Sheep lamb ewe ram[15] drove, mob, flock, herd ovine lamb, mutton, hoggett, haggis (visceral meat)
Skunk kit boar odor musteline
Snake snakelet, hatchling (a newly-hatched snake) [3] [3] pit, nest or bed anguine, elapine, serpentine, viperine, ophidian
Snipe chick hen cock[6] walk, wisp charadrine
Sparrow chick hen cock[6] flight, host, quarrel, tribe, ubiquity passerine
Spider spiderling cluster, clutter arachnine, arachnoid
Squirrel pup, kit, kitten doe buck dray, scurry[12] sciurine
Swallow hen cock[6] flight hirundine
Swan cygnet, flapper pen cob flock cygnine
Tiger cub tigress tiger streak[12] tigrine
Toad tadpole, toadlet [3] [3] knot, lump ranine, batrachian
Turkey poult, chick hen tom rafter, flock meleagrine
Turtle hatchling [3] [3] bale, dule chelonian
Weasel bitch[6], doe, jill buck, dog, hub, jack musteline
Whale calf cow bull gam, pod, herd, school cetacean, cetaceous
Wildfowl chick hen cock[6] flock
Wolf cub, pup, whelp bitch[6], fae dog, brute pack, rout lupine
Wombat joey jill jack mob, warren, wisdom, army phascolomian
Worm wormlet bed, bunch, clew, squirm helminthic, vermian
Wren chick jenny cock[6] flock
Yak calf cow bull herd
Zebra foal mare stallion dazzle, herd zebrine, hippotigrine

[edit] References

  1. ^ UK Reader's Digest, Q&A page, c.2000
  2. ^ "Animal group names". SanDiegoZoo.org. Zoological Society of San Diego. http://www.sandiegozoo.org/animalbytes/got_questions_groups_list.html. 
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa ab ac ad ae af ag ah This animal does not have a specific name for the indicated gender. For example, "male cheetah".
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j "Collective Terms for Groups of Animals". Oxford English Dictionary. Oxford University Press. http://www.askoxford.com/asktheexperts/collective/b/?view=uk. 
  5. ^ A worker bee is a sexually undeveloped female.
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa ab ac ad ae af ag ah ai aj This word is considered a profanity in American English under certain connotations.
  7. ^ A castrated male cat is a gib or neuter.
  8. ^ Castrated male cattle are steers in the United States, or a bullock in the United Kingdom. A young female cow that has not given birth is a heifer. See Cattle for more names. Cow is often used informally to refer to cattle in general.
  9. ^ Bovine refers to all species of genus Bos.
  10. ^ A castrated male chicken is a capon.
  11. ^ chicken - Definition from the Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary
  12. ^ a b c d e f g Universe in Your Pocket by Joel Levy, published by Barnes & Noble, Inc.
  13. ^ a b c A group of geese, herons, or ducks in flight is a skein.
  14. ^ A castrated male ferret is a gib.
  15. ^ a b A castrated male sheep or goat is a wether. See sheep for more names.
  16. ^ Caithness CWS - Caithness Field Club - Annual Bulletins - 2002 - Early Flying In The North Of Scotland
  17. ^ a "kettle" or "boil" is a group of hawks swirling and cris-crossing in an air thermal, see "A Kettle of Hawks"
  18. ^ A castrated male horse is a gelding. A male foal is a colt, and a female foal is a filly.
  19. ^ "dictionary.com definition". http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/pantheress. 
  20. ^ A young female pig that has not given birth is a gilt. A castrated male pig is a barrow.

[edit] External links

Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_animal_names"
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