During the celebration of Latino Heritage Month, we'll be sharing a weekly post highlighting interesting facts from Pre-Columbian America. This second installment is dedicated to the interesting animals that roam the Americas from North to South.
12 Animals Native to the Americas
1. Axolotl: It's a native of Mexico more commonly known as a Mexican salamander or a Mexican walking fish. The Axolotl is considered an endangered species. It's capable of repairing and/or regenerating lost limbs and vital structures like parts of their brain.
2. Jaguar: The third-largest cat in the world, after the lion and the tiger, and the largest in the Americas. Nowadays, the jaguar lives in Central and South Americas, in the region from Mexico to the northern parts of Argentina.
3. Bald Eagle: This bird is not bald, it only looks bald from a distance, because of its white feathered head against its dark brown body. Bald eagles are monogamous, once the birds find a mate, they only mate with each other for the rest of their lives.
4. Alpaca: Often confused with the llama, Alpaca is a species of South American camelid. In Peru, the alpaca fiber is classified into 52 natural colors. Historically, the alpaca fiber has been known as “Fiber of the Gods”, often used in making clothing and blankets.
5. Armadillo: Barrel-shaped animals that are covered with natural armor. Its name in Spanish means “little armored one.” When threatened, the three-banded armadillo can instinctually roll into a ball, enclosing its body in its armor-like shell.
6. Raccoon: A medium-sized mammal, whose hands look like human hands. They have five fingers that help them easily to collect food, open shells, doors and even trash cans. Raccoons often place food in water before eating.
7. Llama: Llamas first domesticated around 5,000 years ago in the Peruvian highlands., Historically, the llama fleece has been used in textiles In the Andes Mountains of Peru. Llama wool is warm, light, and water-repellent.
8. Piranha: Piranhas are South American fish with razor-sharp teeth. In the language of the Tupi people, piranha means "toothfish". However, not all piranha species are carnivorous, some species are in fact vegetarian.
9. Caiman: A reptile that is closely related to crocodiles and alligators. They can often be found in Puerto Rico, Cuba, Brazil, Ecuador, Peru, Columbia, and French Guyana. Caiman males and female look alike.
10. Anaconda: Anacondas are some of the largest snakes in the world, that can be found in tropical South America. They are semiaquatic, known for their swimming ability. “Anaconda” is the common name for the genus Eunectes, meaning a “good swimmer”, a genus of boa.
11. Capybara: Capybaras are large rodents, although they look like beavers. They live in Central and South America. When sensing danger, they produce warning barks, alerting other members of the group. Besides barking, Capybaras can also purr, squeal, grunt, and even whistle.
12. Amazon river dolphin/Pink dolphin: Also known as boto or bufeo or simply pink river dolphin, this species is found in the river basins of Amazon and Orinoco. They come in many shades of pink and have the largest brains and bodies of any freshwater dolphin.
