Animal

Definition

Animals are multicellular, eukaryotic organisms belonging to the biological kingdom Animalia. With few exceptions, animals consume organic material, breathe oxygen, have myocytes and are able to move, can reproduce sexually, and grow from a hollow sphere of cells, the blastula, during embryonic development. Animals form a clade, meaning that they arose from a single common ancestor. Over 1.5 million living animal species have been described, of which around 1.05 million are insects, over 85,000 are molluscs, and around 65,000 are vertebrates. It has been estimated there are as many as 7.77 million animal species on Earth. Animal body lengths range from 8.5 μm (0.00033 in) to 33.6 m (110 ft). They have complex ecologies and interactions with each other and their environments, forming intricate food webs. The scientific study of animals is known as zoology, and the study of animal behaviour is known as ethology.

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10th edition of Systema Naturae 24-Isopropylcholestane Abditibacteriota Abiogenesis Acanthocephala Acetithermota Acidobacteriota Acinetactis Acorn worm Acritarch Actinomycetota Actinophryid Adnaviria Adolf Seilacher Aenigmatarchaeota Aerobic respiration Aerophobota African bush elephant Albrecht Dürer Alexander Coosemans Alga Algivore Algospongia Alphasatellitidae Altarchaeota Alveolate Ambulacraria Amino acid Amoebozoa Amorphea Amphibia Amphibia in the 10th edition of Systema Naturae Ampullaviridae Anaeramoeba Anaerobic respiration Anaeromonadea Ancient Egypt Ancyromonadida Ancyromonadidae Animal (disambiguation)Animal Diversity Web Animal coloration Animal husbandry Animal locomotion Animal product Animal rights Animal style Animalia (disambiguation)Animals in sport Annelid Annelida Anomalocaris Anomalocaris canadensis Antarctica Anthozoa Anti-predator adaptation Aphid Apicomplexa Appleton-Century-Crofts Apusomonadidae Aquatic animal Aquificota Archaea Archaeochaeta Archaeplastida Archamoebea Archean Archenteron Argentinosaurus Aristotle Aristotle's Lagoon Aristotle's biology Armand Marie Leroi Armatimonadota Art Arthropod Arthropoda Arthropods in film Ascomycota Asexual reproduction Asgard archaea Asterozoa Astrobiology Atmosphere of Earth Atribacterota Augarchaeota Auribacterota Auroralumina attenboroughii Australian Faunal Directory Autotroph Avalon explosion Aves in the 10th edition of Systema Naturae Avsunviroidae Babelota Bacillota Bacteria Bacteroidota Balneolales Barthelona Bartogtaviriformidae Basal (phylogenetics)Basal metabolism Basaltiviridae Basidiomycota Bat Bdelloidea Bear worship Beef Benjamin Cummings Benthic Benthozoa Berkeleyaesol Bicaudaviridae Bicellum Bicosoecea Big bug movie Bigyra Bigyromonad Bilateral symmetry Bilaterally symmetric Bilateria Binatota Bio-like structure Biodiversity Biological Reviews Biological classification Biological energy Biological interaction Biological life cycle Biological organisation Biology Biomass Biome Biosphere Bipolaricaulota Bird Birds of prey Bivalve Bivalvia Blastocladiomycota Blastula Blowdart Blue whale Body plan Bone Brachiopod Brachiopoda Brachiozoa Brachygtaviriformidae Breviatea British Antarctic Survey Bryozoa Budding Burgess Shale Butterfly CAM (clade)CRC Press CRuMs CSIRO Publishing Caelestes Calcareous sponge Calculus Caldipriscota Caldisericota Caldithrix Calescibacteriota Calpionellid Cambrian explosion Cambridge University Press Canada Cancer cell Canglongiota Carbohydrate Carl Linnaeus Carmine Carnivore Cat Catalogue of Life Catfish Cattle Cattle in religion and mythology Cave art Cave paintings at Lascaux Cecidomyiidae Cell (biology)Cellular differentiation Cellular respiration Centrohelid Centroneuralia Cephalisation Cephalization Cephalochordate Cephalonyx Cephalopod Cercozoa Cestoda Chaetognatha Chameleon Changchengia Charnia Charnwood Forest Charophyceae Charophyta Cheleutochroa Chelicerata Chemical element Chemosynthesis Chicken Chinese zodiac Chitinozoan Chiton Chlamydiota Chloroflexota Chlorokybus Chlorophyta Choanoflagellate Choanozoa Cholesterol Chordata Chordate Chromadorea Chrompodellid Chrysiogenota Chytridiomycota Cilia Ciliate Cirripede Clade Class (biology)Classical era Clavaviridae Cleavage (embryo)Climate Clitellata Cloacimonadota Clonally transmissible cancer Cloud Cnidaria Cochineal Coelom Coevolution Cold seep Coleochaetophyceae Collagen Colponemida Commation Common ancestor Comparative anatomy Competition (biology)Conifer Consumer-resource systems Consumer (food chain)Coprothermobacterota Cormorant Cormorant fishing Coryphidium Cosmid Cosmopoliota Crinozoa Crustacea Cryogenian Cryosericota Cryptista Cryptomonad Ctenophora Cucumiforma Cultural Cultural depictions of lions Cutosea Cyanobacteria Cycad Cycliophora DNA barcoding Dairy product Daniel Mazia Deer in mythology Defective interfering particle Deferribacterota Deferrimicrobiota Deinococcota Demosponge Detritivore Deuterostome Deuterostomes Deuterostomia Developea Devonian Diaphoretickes Dickinsonia Dickinsonia costata Dictyoglomus Dictyosphaera Dicyemida Digestion Dinodnavirus Dinoflagellate Diphylleida Diploblastic Discicristata Discoba Discosea Diskagma Disparia Diversity-generating retroelement Divimonas Dog Dogs in warfare Domain (biology)Domestic canary Domesticate Domestication of animals Dormiibacterota Dragonflies Drosophila melanogaster Dubious species Duplodnaviria Dürer's Rhinoceros E. O. Wilson EPPO Code Earth Earth science Ecdysis Ecdysozoa Echinoderm Echinodermata Echinozoa Ecologies Ecology Ecosystem Ectoderm Ediacaran Ediacaran biota Effluvivivacota Efunaviria Eggs as food Electryoneota Elulimicrobiota Elusimicrobiota Embryo Embryogenesis Embryological origins of the mouth and anus Embryonic development Embryophyte Encyclopedia of Life Endoderm Endogenous viral element Endomyxa Endosymbiont Energy Enoplea Enterocoely Entoprocta Eosolena Episome Equestrianism Ernst Haeckel Ethology Euglenozoa Eukaryote Eukaryotic Eumetazoa Eumycetozoa Eurekaviridae Evolution Evolutionary arms race Excavata Exoskeleton Extant taxon Extracellular matrix Extraterrestrial life Falconry Fauna Fauna Europaea Feeding behaviour Fermentibacterota Fervidibacterota Fibrobacterota Fidelibacter Field (physics)Filasterea Filozoa Fish Fish farming Fishing Flatworm Flora Floreoviria Folivore Food and Agriculture Organization Food web Foraminifera Fornicata Fosmid Fossil Fragmentation (reproduction)Francevillian biota Fresh water Frontiers in Psychology Frugivore Fungal prion Fungi Fungivore Fungus Fur Fuselloviridae Fusobacteriota Future of Earth Gaia hypothesis Gamete Garland Science Gastropod Gastropoda Gastrotrich Gastrotricha Gastrula Gemmatimonadota Gene Gene linkage Geoarchaeota Geological history of Earth Geology Geology (journal)George Stubbs Georges Cuvier Germ layer Germinosphaera Ginkgophyta Glaucophyte Glissandra Global Biodiversity Information Facility Globuloviridae Glomeromycota Glycoprotein Gnathifera (Spiralia)Gnathostomulid Gnathostomulida Gnetophyta Goldiibacteriota Graminivore Grandilingulata Granivore Granomarginata Green sulfur bacteria Gromia sphaerica Grypania Guard dog Gun dog Gunflint chert Guttaviridae Gymnolaemata Gyrista Habitat Hadarchaeota Hadean Hadesarchaeota Halspiviridae Haploid Haptista Haptophyte Hawksbill sea turtle HeLa Heilongiota Hemichordate Hemimastigophora Heraldry Herbivore Heterolobosea Heterotroph Hexactinellid Hierarchical Hinthialibacterota History of Animals History of Earth History of life History of zoology since 1859 History of zoology through 1859 Holomycota Holozoa Hornwort Horodyskia Horse worship Houghton Mifflin Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Hox gene Hox genes Huangdiviridae Huberarchaeota Human Human evolution Human food Human uses of animals Humane World for Animals Hunt Hunting dog Hydra (genus)Hydrogen sulfide Hydrogenedentota Hydrostatic skeleton Hydrothermal vent Hydrothermarchaeota Hydrothermota Hyphochytriomycetes INaturalist Iainarchaeota Ichthyosporea Imasidae Inbreeding Inbreeding avoidance Inbreeding depression Incertae sedis Infusoria Inorganic compound Insect Insecta in the 10th edition of Systema Naturae Insectivore Insects in mythology Integrated Taxonomic Information System Integrative and conjugative element Internal structure of Earth Introvertocystis Invagination Invertebrates Itzamnaviridae Jakobid Jean-Baptiste Lamarck Jean-Baptiste de Lamarck Jeewanu Jennifer A. Clack Journal of Experimental Biology Kamera lens Kaonashia Kapaibacteriota Karl Ernst von Baer Katablepharid Kendall Hunt Kermes (dye)Kingdom (biology)Kinorhyncha Kiritimatiellota Klebsormidiales Korilophyton Krumholzibacteriota Kryptoniota Kryptotrochozoa LUCA Lafcadio Hearn Land plant Largest organisms Larva Late Cambrian Latescibacterota Le Règne Animal Leather Leiosphaeridia Lentisphaerota Lernaellota Life Limnognathia Linnaeus Lipid Lists of animals Lists of organisms by population Literature Lithacetigenota Liverwort Livestock Lobe-finned fish Lobster Lomiviridae Lophophorata Lophotrochozoa Loricifera Louis Agassiz Lycophyte Lynn Margulis Macinerneyibacteriota Magnolia Press Magosphaera Malacostraca Malawimonad Malawimonada Malawimonadidae Mammal Mammalia in the 10th edition of Systema Naturae Mantamonadida Margulisiibacteriota Marine animals Marine species Mating Matter McFarland & Company Meat Medusozoa Meiosis Membrifera Meringosphaera Merriam-Webster Mesoderm Mesostigmatophyceae Mesozoa Metamonad Meteora sporadica Meteorology Methanobacteriota Methylomirabilota Micrarchaeota Microbial dark matter Microcaldus Micrognathozoa Microheliella Microorganism Microparticle MilliBase Million years ago Minisyncoccota Mitochondrion Mitosis Model organism Moduliflexota Molecular clock Molecular phylogenetics Mollusc Mollusca Monogenea Monogononta Monophyletic Moonlight Moss Motile Motility Muiribacteriota Multicellular Muscle Mycoplasma laboratorium Mycoplasmatota Myocyte Myriapoda Myriazoa Mythology Myxobolus cerebralis Myxozoa Myzozoa Naldaviricetes Nanobacterium Nanobdellota Nanobe Nanohalarchaeota National Biodiversity Network Natural environment Nature Nature-based solutions Nature (journal)Nature Reviews Genetics Navifusa Nebulidia Nectarivore Nematocyst Nematoda Nematode Nematoida Nematomorpha Nemertea Neocallimastigomycota Neoproterozoic Nephrozoa Nezhaarchaeota Nibbleridia Nipumfusiviridae Nitroplast Nitrosediminicolota Nitrospinota Nitrospirota Non-cellular life Nucleariid Obazoa Obelisk (biology)Obligate parasite Obscuriviridae Ocean Ochrophyte Omnitrophota Omnivore Onychophora Oomycete Opisthokont Opisthokonta Ordovician Ordovician radiation Organelle Organism Organogenesis Organs Orthonectida Ova Ovaliviridae Ovivore Oxford University Press Oxidising Oyster Paleobiology Database Palpitomonas Panarthropoda Pancrustacea Pancryptista ParaHoxozoa Parabasalid Parakaryon Parakeet Paraphyletic Parasite Parasitic Parasitic worms Parasitoid Parasitoid wasp Parcunitrobacterota Parrot Parthenogenesis Particle Parts of Animals Parvarchaeota Pelagophyte Peregrinibacteriota Peristalsis Peristaltic motion Perkinsea Perkinsozoa Personification Pet Phagemid Phanerozoic Phenotypic trait Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B Philosophie Zoologique Phoronid Photosynthesis Phylactolaemata Phyllomitus Phylogenetic tree Phylum Phytoplankton Picozoa Pig Pigeon post Pirsoniales Pisces in the 10th edition of Systema Naturae Piscivore Placidozoa Placozoa Planctomycetota Planomonadidae Plant Plants Planulozoa Plasmaviridae Plasmid Plastid Plate tectonics Platyhelmintha Platyhelminthes Platysulcus Platytrochozoa Pleomoviria Pluriformea Podiata Poison dart frog Politics Polychaete Polydnaviriformidae Porifera Portalites Portogloboviridae Poseidoniota Pospiviroidae Prasinodermophyta Praying mantis Preaxostyla Predation Predator Prentice-Hall Prey Priapulida Princeton University Press Prion Producer (biology)Prokaryote Protein Proteinoid Proterozoic Protist Protista Protosterol biota Protostome Protostomes Protostomia Prototaxites Protozoa Provora Pseudomonadota Pteridophyte Pterobranchia Pterospermopsimorpha Qinglongiota Qingshania Quadrisporites Quasibodo Rabbit Radiates Radiation Radiolaria Rain Recessive Red algae Religion Reproduce sexually Reptile Retaria Retron Retroposon Retroviroid Reverse transcriptase-related cellular gene Rhizaria Rhizidiovirus Rhodelphis Rhodogtaviriformidae Rhodothermota Riboviria Ribozyme Ribozyviria Richard Dawkins Richard Owen Rifleibacteriota Rigifilida Robert Poulin (zoologist)Rotifer Rotifera Rouphozoa Royal Ontario Museum Royal Society Ryujiniota SAR supergroup Sagenista Salinella Satellite (biology)Sauropoda Scala naturae Scalidophora Scarabaeidae Scavenger Schizocoely Schizofusa Scientific American Sea cucumber Sea floor Sea urchin Secernentea Seisonidae Selective pressure Sense organ Service (economics)Sexual reproduction Sheep Shellac Shuiyousphaeridium Signs of the zodiac Silkworms Simia annulare Simon Conway Morris Sinauer Associates Sinew Singelaviria Sipuncula Sister group Skoliomonas Slaughterhouse Smallest organisms Snake Snow Soul South Australia Space Species Species description Spermatozoa Spicule (sponge)Spiegelman's Monster Spiral cleavage Spiralia Spiraviridae Spirochaete Spirotaenia Sponge Sponges Spongiamicota Spongivore Sport Spriggina Starfish Stegophilinae Stenolaemata Stephen Jay Gould Steven Haddock Still Life Stramenopile Streptophyta Stromatolite Sumerlaeota Sunlight Symbion Symmetry (biology)Synergistota Synonym (taxonomy)Systema Naturae Sysuimicrobiota Tandem repeat Tangaroaeota Tappania Tardigrada Tardigrade Tawuia Taxa Taxonomy (biology)Taxonomy of protists Tectimicrobiota Telomerase reverse transcriptase Telonemia Terrestrial animal Tetrahelia Tetraporina Thaspiviridae The Guardian The Paleontological Society The Princeton Review Thermodesulfobacteriota Thermomicrobiota Thermophile Thermoproteota Thermotogae Thuchomyces Tianyaibacteriota Tide Tiktaalik Tim Caro Time Titanosaur Tolecusatellitidae Tonian Tonne Tornado Totem Toxin Trabectedin Trace fossil Transportation Transposable element Transpoviron Trees for Life (Scotland)Trematoda Trezona Formation Trichomycteridae Trichozoa Triploblastic Triploblasty Trophic level Tropical cyclone Tsukubamonas Tuanshanzia Tubulinea Tunicaraptor Tunicate Turbellaria Tusk shell Ultramarine flycatcher Undinarchaeota United States Department of Agriculture Universe University of California Press University of Chicago Press University of Michigan Urmetazoan Vaccine Valeria lophostriata Vandelliinae Varidnaviria Variosea Vendobionta Vermes in the 10th edition of Systema Naturae Vernanimalcula Verrucomicrobiota Vertebral column Vertebrate Vertebrates Viridiplantae Viriform Viroid Virus Volvereviria Vulcanimicrobiota Weather Western honey bee Whistlejacket Wikidata Wikispecies Wilderness Wildfire Wiley-Blackwell William S. Romoser Williams & Wilkins Wind Wirthibacterota Wolves in folklore, religion and mythology Wool Working animal Working animals World Animal Day World Register of Marine Species Xenacoelomorpha Xenambulacraria Xenobot Xigoviridae Yamazakiviridae Zhuqueibacterota Zhurongbacterota ZooBank Zoology Zoophytes Zygnematophyceae Zygomycota Zygote Μm

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