The

fauna Fauna is all of the animal life present in a particular region or time. The corresponding term for plants is ''flora'', and for fungi, it is ''funga''. Flora, fauna, funga and other forms of life are collectively referred to as ''Biota (ecology ...

Uruguay Uruguay (; ), officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay ( es, República Oriental del Uruguay), is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast; while bordering ...

is a part of the

wildlife Wildlife refers to undomesticated animal species, but has come to include all organisms that grow or live wild in an area without being introduced by humans. Wildlife was also synonymous to game: those birds and mammals that were hunted ...

of Uruguay.

Overview

It is characteristic of the

Uruguayan savanna The Uruguayan savanna, also known as the Brazilian-Uruguayan savanna, is a subtropical grassland and savanna ecoregion which includes all of Uruguay and southernmost Brazil, along with portions of Argentina along the Uruguay River, In Brazil, th ...

. Grazing mammals include the

Pampas deer The Pampas deer (''Ozotoceros bezoarticus'') is a species of deer that live in the grasslands of South America at low elevations.Geist, Valerius. Deer of the world their evolution, behaviour, and ecology'. Mechanicsburg, Pa: Stackpole Books, 1998 ...

''(Ozotoceros bezoarticus)'', the ray brocketor Guazuvirá deer ''(

Mazama gouazoubira The gray brocket (''Mazama gouazoubira''), also known as the brown brocket, is a species of brocket deer from northern Argentina, Bolivia, southern Peru, eastern and southern Brazil, Paraguay, and Uruguay. It formerly included the Amazonian bro ...

)'', and the capybara ''(Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris)'', the world's largest living

rodent Rodents (from Latin , 'to gnaw') are mammals of the order Rodentia (), which are characterized by a single pair of continuously growing incisors in each of the upper and lower jaws. About 40% of all mammal species are rodents. They are n ...

. Uruguay is home to a rich

avifauna Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the laying of hard-shelled eggs, a high metabolic rate, a four-chambered heart, and a strong yet lightweight s ...

, including the Southern lapwing and the magnificent

black-necked swan The black-necked swan (''Cygnus melancoryphus'') is a species of waterfowl in tribe Cygnini of subfamily Anserinae.HBW and BirdLife International (2021) Handbook of the Birds of the World and BirdLife International digital checklist of the bir ...

. As a result,

birdwatching Birdwatching, or birding, is the observing of birds, either as a recreational activity or as a form of citizen science. A birdwatcher may observe by using their naked eye, by using a visual enhancement device like binoculars or a telescope, by ...

has become popular in selected locations. There are several snakes, with four venomous species: the rattlesnake ''( Crotalus durissus terrificus)'', coral snake ''(

Micrurus altirostris ''Micrurus altirostris'' is a species of coral snake in the family Elapidae Elapidae (, commonly known as elapids ; grc, ἔλλοψ ''éllops'' "sea-fish") is a family of snakes characterized by their permanently erect fangs at the front of ...

)'', yarará ''( Bothrops pubescens)'', and crossed pit viper ''(

Bothrops alternatus :''Common names'': yarará grande, urutu,Campbell JA, Lamar WW. 2004. ''The Venomous Reptiles of the Western Hemisphere''. Comstock Publishing Associates, Ithaca and London. 870 pp. 1500 plates. . wutu,Brown JH. 1973. ''Toxicology and Pharmacolog ...

)''. Despite the humid climate of much of the country, the vast majority of Uruguay's land is made up of savannas, so there is not much amphibian diversity. However, the Argentine horned frog, ''

Ceratophrys ornata The Argentine horned frog (''Ceratophrys ornata''), also known as the Argentine wide-mouthed frog, ornate horned frog, ornate horned toad, or the ornate pacman frog, is a species of frog in the family Ceratophryidae. The species is endemic to Sou ...

'', thrives in the savannas of central and northwestern Uruguay. Other notable amphibian species of Uruguay include ''

Pseudis minuta ''Pseudis minuta'' (common name: lesser swimming frog) is a species of aquatic frog in the family Hylidae. It is found in northeastern Argentina, Uruguay, and southern Brazil, and is likely to be found in southern Paraguay. Description Males mea ...

'', '' Boana pulchella'', '' Rhinella achavali'', and ''

Rhinella diptycha ''Rhinella diptycha'', sometimes referred to as Cope's toad, Schneider's toad, cururu toad, or rococo toad, is a toad found in northern Argentina, Paraguay, Uruguay, eastern Bolivia, and eastern and southern Brazil. It is one of three rather sim ...

''. Waterlife is also rich, with species such as the tararira ''(

Hoplias malabaricus ''Hoplias malabaricus'', also known as the wolf fish, tiger fish, guabine or trahira, is a predatory Central and South American freshwater ray-finned fish of the characiform family Erythrinidae. Description The maximum known length for this spe ...

)'' or the white-dotted skate.

Extinct species

Extinct fauna includes megafauna, such as ''

Josephoartigasia monesi ''Josephoartigasia'' is an extinct genus of enormous dinomyid rodent from the Early Pliocene to Early Pleistocene of Uruguay. The only living member of Dinomyidae is the pacarana. ''Josephoartigasia'' is named after Uruguayan national hero J ...

'', '' Lestobradys'', and ''

Glyptodon ''Glyptodon'' (from Greek for 'grooved or carved tooth': γλυπτός 'sculptured' and ὀδοντ-, ὀδούς 'tooth') is a genus of glyptodont (an extinct group of large, herbivorous armadillos) that lived from the Pleistocene, around 2.5 m ...

'' (some of them coexisted with the arrival of humans, who were responsible for their extinction). Older extinct species include '' Uruguaysuchus'', ''

Meridiosaurus ''Meridiosaurus'' is an extinct genus of mesoeucrocodylian that is a possible member of the family Pholidosauridae. Remains have been found in the Late Jurassic Tacuarembó Formation in Tacuarembó, Uruguay. The genus was described in 1980 on ...

'' and ''

Neuquensaurus ''Neuquensaurus'' (meaning "Neuquén lizard") is a genus of saltasaurid sauropod dinosaur that lived in the Late Cretaceous, about 80 million years ago in Argentina and Uruguay in South America. Its fossils were recovered from outcrops of the Ana ...

'', all from the

Cretaceous The Cretaceous ( ) is a geological period that lasted from about 145 to 66 million years ago (Mya). It is the third and final period of the Mesozoic Era, as well as the longest. At around 79 million years, it is the longest geological period of ...

. Jaguars are extinct in Uruguay.

References

{{Uruguay-stub

Overview

Extinct species

See also

References