(WILDLIFE PICTURES/FUN ANIMAL FACTS) The tiny creatures of the world can sometimes be fascinating, and sometimes they can be downright adorable. Pictured below you’ll find 24 of the world’s tiniest animals. Which one do you find cutest?
1. Royal Antelope
The Royal Antelope is the world’s smallest species of antelope, standing only 10-12 inches high as adults. Their slender but powerful legs allow them to jump up to eight feet in a single bound.
2. Brookesia Micra Chameleon
Adult males of the B. micra species grow to only just over a half-inch (16 millimeters) from nose to bottom, making them one of the smallest vertebrates ever found on Earth.
3. Bumblebee Bat
The bumblebee bat, also known as Kitti’s hog-nosed bat, is the world’s smallest bat and the smallest mammal in the world based on skull size. The IUCN lists the animal as vulnerable.
4. Satomi’s Pygmy Seahorse
Pygmy seahorses are a group of seven species of miniature syngnathids (technical name for seahorses and pipefish) fish that live in the Coral Triangle region of southeast Asia. They range in length from 1.4 to 2.7 cm between the tip of the tail to the end of the snout.
5. Pink Fairy Armadillo
Unlike in all other armadillos, the pink fairy’s shell is not fully attached to its body, instead connecting with a membrane that runs along the spinal column.
6. Virgin Islands Dwarf Gecko
The Virgin Island Dwarf Gecko, otherwise known as the Sphaero, weighs just about as much as a U.S. dime, and can fit their entire body on one as well!
7. Speckled Padloper Tortoise
Because Cape speckled tortoises spend so much time hiding in rocky areas, scientists don’t know a lot about some of their habits. For instance, little is known about their rituals of courtship, mating, and nesting.
8. Dwarf Sloth
Pygmy three-toed sloths are pretty laid back even as sloths go, but there’s serious trouble in the Caribbean paradise where these highly specialized mangrove dwellers hang out. They were only recognized as a species in 2001, and with their population perhaps already numbering less than 1,000, time is rapidly running out.
9. Baluchistan Pygmy Jerboa
This species, only found in the hot deserts of Pakistan and Afghanistan, is said to be the world’s smallest rodent, measuring 5-centimerers-long on average.
10. Vechur Cow
Vechur cattle originated in the area around the village of Vechur in the southwest state of Kerala, India. The tiny gentle cows were so greatly valued that at one time wellwishers presented them as wedding gifts.
11. Paedophryne Amauensis Frog
The world’s smallest known vertebrate is a frog the size of a housefly, one that still seems extremely tiny when put on a U.S. dime. Paedophryne amauensis inhabits New Guinean rain forests.
12. Smallest Octopus Wolfi
Octopus Wolfi was discovered and officially classified in 1913. These tiny octopuses measure only 0.6 inches in length and weigh less than 0.035 ounces. They are mostly found in the Indo-Pacific region.
13. Pygmy Goat
The pygmy goat today is used for milk and meat like its bigger relatives, in addition to being kept as a pet. The National Pygmy Goat Association has strict requirements for registering an animal. The goats must have specific coloring and be shorter than two feet from the base of the neck to the ground.
14. Etruscan Shrew
The Etruscan shrew is the smallest mammal in the world by mass. On average it weighs less than two grams, and has a body length of about four centimeters.
15. Fennec Fox
The fennec fox is the smallest of all the world’s foxes. They dwell in the sandy Sahara and elsewhere in North Africa. Their ears measure up to six inches.
16. Borneo Pygmy Elephant
The pygmy elephants of Borneo are baby-faced with oversized ears, plump bellies and tails so long they sometimes drag on the ground as they walk. They are the smallest elephants in Asia.
17. Irukandji Jellyfish
The Irukandji Jellyfish inhabits waters of Australia. This is a deadly jellyfish, which is only 2.5 centimeters in diameter, which makes it difficult to spot. It is believed to be the most venomous creature in the world.
18. Little Blue Penguin
The blue or little penguin, also known in Maori as korora, can be found in many places around New Zealand and Southern Australia and is the world’s smallest penguin. It’s small size and unusual habitat makes it rarely seen.
19. Tamaulipas Pygmy Owl
The Tamaulipas Pygmy Owl is a species of owl in the Strigidae family. It is endemic to Mexico and is one of the smallest owls in the world at an average length of 13.5 cm.
20. Sabah Rhinoceros
The world’s smallest rhinoceros, the Sabah rhino, is very close to extinction. Only a few, if any, are left on their small island in Asia.
21. Pygmy Anteater
The silky anteater is the world’s smallest anteater species and is little bigger than a human hand. It is rarely seen due to its small size and its nocturnal and arboreal lifestyle.
22. Roborovski Hamster
Robo dwarf hamsters, or Roborovski dwarf hamsters, are the fastest and smallest dwarf hamsters. In fact, a robo dwarf hamster can run over a hundred miles in a single night.
23. Mediterranean Miniature Donkey
The Miniature Mediterranean Donkey is a unique and entirely separate breed of donkey. Their height generally averages between 30 inches and 34 inches. A miniature donkey will not thrive on its own. Donkeys are herd animals and will pine without a companion.
24. Ouessant Sheep
Ouessant Sheep are a small and compact breed of sheep which comes from the small island of Ouessant, about 12 miles off the most westerly point of Brittany. Reached by ferry or small aircraft the island covers some 6 square miles, with harsh weather, strong winds and storms.
— Kayla Newcomer, exclusive to Global Animal
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