Country · FR

Animals in France

45 animal species on file have openly licensed sighting records from France, 15 of them threatened. Records include captive animals and introduced populations.

Tick-off checklist What did I see in France?

Species recorded: 45
Threatened: 15
Groups represented: 9
Sighting records: 4,285,075

None on record
1–7
8–12
13–17
18+

species per country · small islands are not drawn at this scale

Which well-known animals are recorded in France?

The most looked-up species with records here.

What kinds of animals are recorded in France?

Mammals
red fox, grey wolf, lion, jaguar …
12 species
Birds
mallard, european robin, bald eagle, peregrine falcon …
11 species
Reptiles
green turtle, nile crocodile, american alligator
3 species
Amphibians
fire salamander, common frog, dyeing dart frog
3 species
Fish
atlantic salmon, great white shark, ocean sunfish, whale shark …
5 species
Insects
honey bee, monarch butterfly, seven-spot ladybird, emperor dragonfly …
5 species
Crustaceans
american lobster
1 species
Molluscs
helix pomatia, giant squid
2 species
Other invertebrates
common jellyfish, earthworm, common starfish
3 species

Which threatened animals are recorded in France?

Species listed as Vulnerable, Endangered or Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List. The category is global, not specific to France.

Common name	Scientific name	Family	Status	Records here
Lion	Panthera leo	Felidae	Vulnerable	11
Tiger	Panthera tigris	Felidae	Endangered	2
Leopard	Panthera pardus	Felidae	Vulnerable	5
Snowy owl	Bubo scandiacus	Strigidae	Vulnerable	75
Cheetah	Acinonyx jubatus	Felidae	Vulnerable	1
Atlantic puffin	Fratercula arctica	Alcidae	Vulnerable	2,031
Blue whale	Balaenoptera musculus	Balaenopteridae	Endangered	23
Northern giraffe	Giraffa camelopardalis	Giraffidae	Vulnerable	1
Fire salamander	Salamandra salamandra	Salamandridae	Vulnerable	77,444
Great white shark	Carcharodon carcharias	Lamnidae	Vulnerable	7
Ocean sunfish	Mola mola	Molidae	Vulnerable	3,773
Whale shark	Rhincodon typus	Rhincodontidae	Endangered	3
Chimpanzee	Pan troglodytes	Hominidae	Endangered	1
Wandering albatross	Diomedea exulans	Diomedeidae	Vulnerable	10
Giant oceanic manta ray	Mobula birostris	Myliobatidae	Endangered	3

All animals recorded in France

Open this list in the browser to filter and sort it

Common name	Scientific name	Family	Status	Records here
Mallard	Anas platyrhynchos	Anatidae	Least Concern	728,722
European robin	Erithacus rubecula	Muscicapidae	Least Concern	1,486,823
Red fox	Vulpes vulpes	Canidae	Least Concern	238,771
Grey wolf	Canis lupus	Canidae	Least Concern	46,019
Bald eagle	Haliaeetus leucocephalus	Accipitridae	Least Concern	3
Peregrine falcon	Falco peregrinus	Falconidae	Least Concern	112,919
Lion	Panthera leo	Felidae	Vulnerable	11
Common kingfisher	Alcedo atthis	Alcedinidae	Least Concern	275,886
Jaguar	Panthera onca	Felidae	Near Threatened	1
Tiger	Panthera tigris	Felidae	Endangered	2
Leopard	Panthera pardus	Felidae	Vulnerable	5
Western barn owl	Tyto alba	Tytonidae	Least Concern	94,243
Atlantic salmon	Salmo salar	Salmonidae	Near Threatened	784,864
Honey bee	Apis mellifera	Apidae	Data Deficient	44,650
Snowy owl	Bubo scandiacus	Strigidae	Vulnerable	75
Cheetah	Acinonyx jubatus	Felidae	Vulnerable	1
Eurasian beaver	Castor fiber	Castoridae	Least Concern	39,711
Atlantic puffin	Fratercula arctica	Alcidae	Vulnerable	2,031
Blue whale	Balaenoptera musculus	Balaenopteridae	Endangered	23
Emperor penguin	Aptenodytes forsteri	Spheniscidae	Near Threatened	10
Northern giraffe	Giraffa camelopardalis	Giraffidae	Vulnerable	1
Fire salamander	Salamandra salamandra	Salamandridae	Vulnerable	77,444
Great white shark	Carcharodon carcharias	Lamnidae	Vulnerable	7
Green turtle	Chelonia mydas	Cheloniidae	Least Concern	229
Monarch butterfly	Danaus plexippus	Nymphalidae	Least Concern	26
Seven-spot ladybird	Coccinella septempunctata	Coccinellidae	Not recorded	34,530
Common frog	Rana temporaria	Ranidae	Least Concern	101,748
Common bottlenose dolphin	Tursiops truncatus	Delphinidae	Least Concern	29,919
Ocean sunfish	Mola mola	Molidae	Vulnerable	3,773
Whale shark	Rhincodon typus	Rhincodontidae	Endangered	3
Chimpanzee	Pan troglodytes	Hominidae	Endangered	1
Scarlet macaw	Ara macao	Psittacidae	Least Concern	5
Emperor dragonfly	Anax imperator	Aeshnidae	Least Concern	126,227
Helix pomatia	Helix pomatia	Helicidae	Least Concern	12,553
Stag beetle	Lucanus cervus	Lucanidae	Not recorded	41,041
Wandering albatross	Diomedea exulans	Diomedeidae	Vulnerable	10
American lobster	Homarus americanus	Nephropidae	Least Concern	1
Nile crocodile	Crocodylus niloticus	Crocodylidae	Least Concern	5
American alligator	Alligator mississippiensis	Alligatoridae	Least Concern	1
Common jellyfish	Aurelia aurita	Ulmaridae	Not recorded	347
Earthworm	Lumbricus terrestris	Lumbricidae	Not recorded	748
Common starfish	Asterias rubens	Asteriidae	Not recorded	1,677
Giant oceanic manta ray	Mobula birostris	Myliobatidae	Endangered	3
Dyeing dart frog	Dendrobates tinctorius	Dendrobatidae	Least Concern	5
Giant squid	Architeuthis dux	Architeuthidae	Least Concern	1

Method: a species is listed if GBIF holds at least one CC0 or CC BY occurrence record for it in France. Zoo animals, escapes and introduced populations are included, and native species nobody has recorded are missing. See the methodology.