Endemic Animals of Trinidad and Tobago








Trinidad piping guan
The Trinidad piping guan (Pipile pipile ) locally known as the pawi, is a bird in the chachalaca, guan and curassow family Cracidae, endemic to the island of Trinidad. It is a large bird, somewhat resembling a turkey in appearance, and research has shown that its nearest living relative is the blue-throated piping guan from South America. It is a mainly arboreal species feeding mostly on fruit, but also on flowers and leaves. At one time ...
abundant, it has declined in numbers and been extirpated from much of its natural range and the International Union for Conservation of Nature has rated the bird as "critically endangered".
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Trinidad piping guan
Trinidad motmot
The Trinidad motmot (Momotus bahamensis ) is a colorful near-passerine bird endemic to the forests and woodlands of Trinidad and Tobago. This species and the blue-capped motmot, Lesson's motmot, whooping motmot, Amazonian motmot, and Andean motmot were all considered conspecific. Though found on both islands, this bird is more abundant in Tobago than it is in Trinidad.The central crown is black and surrounded by a blue band. There is a black ...
eyemask. The call is a low owl-like ooo-doot.These birds often sit still, and in their dense forest habitat can be difficult to see, despite their size. They eat small prey such as insects, spiders, earthworms, lizards, small snakes and fledgling birds, and will also regularly take fruit. They are known to eat small tree snails, and to use forest floor rocks as 'anvils' to crack open the hard shells of these prey items to access the soft edible bodies within.Like most of the Coraciiformes, motmots nest in tunnels in banks, laying about three or four white eggs.The bird is shown on the front of the $5 bank note of Trinidad and Tobago.
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Trinidad motmot
Mannophryne trinitatis
The yellow-throated frog, Trinidadian stream frog, Trinidad stream frog, or Trinidad poison frog (Mannophryne trinitatis ) is a species of frog in the family Aromobatidae that is endemic to the island of Trinidad in the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. Mannophryne venezuelensis from the Paria Peninsula in Venezuela were formerly included in this species.
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Mannophryne trinitatis
Bloody Bay poison frog
The Bloody Bay poison frog (Mannophryne olmonae ) is a species of frog in the family Aromobatidae.It is endemic to the island of Tobago in the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest and streams mainly in the northeastern mountainous half of the island. This classified "critically Endangered" species according to the IUCN Global Amphibian Assessment conducted a survey and that based ...
on the population that surveyed out over 23 extralimital populations and has been found in a variety of forest that included degraded secondary forest and abandoned cacao plantations.
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Bloody Bay poison frog
Pristimantis charlottevillensis
Pristimantis charlottevillensis is a species of frog in the family Craugastoridae.It is endemic to the island of Tobago in the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago.Its natural habitat is tropical moist lowland forests where it often utilizes stream side leaf litter and low (forest floor) vegetation. It is chiefly nocturnal.
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Pristimantis charlottevillensis
Erythrolamprus ocellatus
Erythrolamprus ocellatus, commonly known as the Tobago false coral snake, Red snake, or Doctor snake is a species of colubrid snake, which is endemic to the island of Tobago (in the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago).
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Erythrolamprus ocellatus
Leptophis stimsoni
Leptophis stimsoni, commonly known as the grey lora or the Trinidad upland parrot snake, is a small species of snake in the family Colubridae. The species is endemic to the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago.
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Leptophis stimsoni
Trinidad worm snake
Amerotyphlops trinitatus, known commonly as the Trinidad blindsnake, Trinidad worm snake, and Trinidad burrowing snake, is a harmless blind snake species in the family Typhlopidae. The species is endemic to Trinidad and Tobago. There are no subspecies that are recognized as being valid.
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Trinidad worm snake
Bachia whitei
Bachia whitei, White's bachia, is a species of lizard in the family Gymnophthalmidae. It is endemic to Tobago.
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Bachia whitei
Eyespot gecko
The eyespot gecko (Gonatodes ocellatus ) is a species of lizard in the Sphaerodactylidae family native to Tobago.
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Eyespot gecko
Oreosaurus shrevei
Oreosaurus shrevei, known commonly as the luminous lizard or Shreve's lightbulb lizard, is a species of lizard in the family Gymnophthalmidae. The species is endemic to the Northern Range of mountains of the island of Trinidad in the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. This species was for some time erroneously alleged to be bioluminescent (hence its common name - luminous lizard).
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Oreosaurus shrevei
Sir David Attenborough's myotis
Sir David Attenborough's myotis (Myotis attenboroughi ) is a species of small bat in the family Vespertilionidae that is endemic to the Caribbean island of Tobago. Its presence on nearby Trinidad is as yet uncertain. It is the only mammal species currently known to be endemic to Trinidad and Tobago. It was named after famed English naturalist Sir David Attenborough.It was formerly assigned to Myotis nigricans until a 2017 study revealed that it ...
was a distinct, previously unknown species. It is the sister species to a clade containing M. cf. handleyi, M. nesopolus, and 3 possibly undescribed species from South and Central America. It can be distinguished from all other Caribbean Myotis by its small skull and steeply sloping frontals.It feeds on moths and other small flying nocturnal insects, and roosts in caves, tree hollows, and the attics of buildings.
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Sir David Attenborough's myotis
Crassispira ritanida
Crassispira ritanida is an extinct species of sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Pseudomelatomidae, the turrids and allies.
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Crassispira ritanida