There are millions of different animal species living on Earth, with new ones being discovered all the time. Each week, we take a closer look at some of the amazing animals wandering, flying or swimming about, zooming in on the amazing adaptations that help them survive and thrive, from the bottom of the ocean to the highest mountain peaks.
Discover more amazing animals
—Animal quiz: Test yourself on these fun animal trivia questions
—Evolution: Facts about the processes that shape the diversity of life on Earth
—32 of the world's smartest animals / loudest animals / most dangerous animals
Latest about amazing animals
King of the cave centipede: The deadly, blind giant that evolved in the darkness of a Romanian cave
The venomous centipede crawled into the Movile Cave millions of years ago and adapted to live in the pitch black, surrounded by deadly gases.
Labord's chameleon: The color-changing lizard that drops dead in 4 months
Labord's chameleons are only found in Western Madagascar and have developed a live fast die young life cycle to cope with the extreme environmental conditions.
Mount Kaputar pink slug: The giant hot-pink mollusk found only on a single, extinct volcano
The 8-inch, bright pink slug has been isolated in a "sky island" for millions of years.
Antarctic scale worm: The glitzy frilly horror show with giant protruding jaws that look like Alien's xenomorph
This deep-sea polar worm looks like it can't decide if it's dressed for a glitzy party or a gruesome massacre.
Giant phantom jelly: The 33-foot-long ocean giant that has babies out of its mouth
Giant phantom jellies were discovered in 1899 and since then have only been spotted around 120 times.
Common degu: Oversized hamsters with societies governed by pee
Common degus clean themselves and communicate with urine, and they can detach their own tails to escape predators.
Turkey vulture: The bird that vomits acid up to 10 feet and poops antiseptic onto its legs
Turkey vultures feed on dead carcasses, helping to lower greenhouse gas emissions.
Orange dwarf cave crocodiles: The crocs that crawled into a cave, ate bats, and started mutating into a new species
The skin of dwarf crocodiles found living in a cave in Gabon is turning orange from swimming in guano. It's unclear how long they've been down there, but genetic research indicates they may be morphing into a new species.
