Jessica Paster The Future is Green
Animals that start with I – The animal world seems always having its own way to make us, the human, feel amazed. Sure, you may have heard the phenomenon of the biggest crab in the world or how the gorilla and chimpanzee have a very close DNA system to us.
Sure, there are still many kinds of animal in the world along with their uniqueness. In this page, anyway, some animals with I initial are enlisted. How are they and how are their characteristic features? Here is the information for you.
1. Iguana
Iguana is one of the lizards that commonly live in the tropical areas including in the Central and South America, Caribbean, and some countries in Asia. There are mainly two species of Iguana, known as the green and the small Antilles iguana.
Both two species have folds on the skin below the jaws. The skin tends to be thickened and in rows starting from the brisket to the tail. Despite the two eyes it has, there is one more eye on his head. This third eye is known as the Parietal eye, shaping like a small stick right on the head. Meanwhile, the back part of the neck is covered by scales that slightly look like the long nails.
2. Ibis
Ibis is a kind of bird in the family of Threskiornithidae. Some main characteristic features of Ibis are the long and crooked beak and the chubby body shape. The body is covered by the feathers with various colors like black, white, and red. The name Ibis itself comes from the Greek that refers the word “bird”.
Ibis lives in colonies and they dig the mud to look for the prey. The foods are commonly the crustaceans and small insects. Mostly, the species of Ibis make their nest on the trees. Particularly for the red Ibis, they stay on the tropical islands. They are mainly found on the islands in the area of the Caribbean ocean.
3. Impala
Impala is one of the antelopes and the endemic animals of Africa. Most of them are found in the steppe areas particularly on the south of the Sahara desert. Aside from in the steppe, this animal can also be seen in the African forest with enough water supply.
Impala is well-known as a fast runner. It is also able to jump highly up to 3 m. Although it is predicted that there might be more species in the past, nowadays, there are only 2 of them that are discovered, namely Melampus and the black-faced Impala.
4. Indian Star Tortoise
Indian Star Tortoise is a type of land tortoises with the relatively small sizes compared to the others. This tortoise is famous for its beautiful shell. The shell has a metallic brown color so that slightly, it looks like a big chunk of gold. Meanwhile, the same color can also be seen on their dotty legs.
This animal is found in the areas of South Asia including India and Sri Lanka. However, the Indian and Srilanka star tortoise has some differences although they are in the same name. The Srilanka Indian Star tends to have more “stars” on its shell compared to the India’s.
5. Indian Rhinoceros
Indian Rhinoceros is a big mammal commonly found in India and Nepal. In general, the rhinoceros lives freely in the meadows and forest areas right on the slope of the Himalaya Mountain. Although the body is very big, it can run faster up to 55 km per hour. Meanwhile, the animal is able to swim well also.
Different from other types of rhinoceros, the Indian rhinoceros is more recognized through the skin that looks folded and scratched. The body skin is generally in grey as well as it has a very good vision and smelling system.
6. Indochinese Tiger
Indochinese tiger is one of the tiger’s sub-species with the habitats in the areas of China, Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, and Vietnam. Physically, this tiger has a smaller size and lighter weight compared to any other tigers including the Bengal tiger. Besides, the colors are also darker although they still have some tiger characteristics like the brown fur and the black stripes.
In nature, these tigers are found in the hills and forest. However, the population is continuously decreased so that some protections must be conducted. Approximately, the number of Indochina tigers is now only around 350.
7. Indri
Indri or babakoto is a type of primate in which the population has been really limited. It is included in the group of lemur and it is known as the biggest lemur that still survives nowadays. Yes, the height of this animal is around 64-72 cm with the approximate weight of 6 kg.
The characteristic features of Indri are the black hair pattern and it is able to stand up straight when climbing up the tree. This primate is monogamous and it lives along with the family in colonies. Indri is also classified as an herbivore as it likes eating leaves, seeds, and fruits so much.
8. Indian Palm Squirrel
This cute animal has some unique characteristic features. One of them is the three stripes right on the back in black and light grey from the back to the tail. Meanwhile, the other parts of the body are dominated by the brown. Initially, this animal is known as a pest that attacks people’s plantations. But now, the Indian palm squirrel is also considered a pet for some people.
As a member of rodent animals, the favorite foods are the seeds. Uniquely, this animal is often mentioned in the Indian stories and even myths. In Hinduism, this animal is even forbidden to be harmed no matter it has eaten the people’s crops.
9. I’iwi
I’iwi is a sub-species of hummingbird widely found in the Hawaiian areas. The other name of this animal is Scarlet Honeycreeper for its feathers that are dominated by the red color on the body. Meanwhile, it also has a pair of blue wings and a sharp beak. The size of this bird is relatively small. With the striking color, I’iwi indeed looks beautiful and more visible compared to the other birds.
Nowadays, the remaining population of the bird is not more than 350,000. Besides, they can be found in some islands only including Hawai’i, Maui, and Kaua. The primary food consume by this bird is the nectar, directly sucked from the flowers around.
10. Ibex
Ibex is a goat-like animal that lives in some desert areas in Aljazeera, Jordanian, Israel, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Egypt, and other countries in Africa and the Middle East. Previously, this animal is considered one of the sub-species for a similar animal living in Alpena, known as the Ibex Alpena. But then, the scientists agreed that both are different species.
The height of Ibex is around 70 cm with the weight up to 50 kg. It has brown color with the white gradient around the belly. On some males, there are the darker brown stripes on the back. The main characteristic feature is the horns that are long and circular.
11. Iriomote Cat
The Iriomote cat is one of the sub-species of cat that is found in Iriomote Island, Japan. The cat is proclaimed as critical by some conservation organizations for the number that is less than 250 nowadays. Besides, most of the individuals are in one subpopulation only.
Iriomote itself is a small island that consists of low mountainous areas with the height of up to only 400 meters. The area is covered by the subtropical forest including the mangrove forest in the coastal lines. The Iriomote cat is mainly seen near the water areas like the river, lake, and other places with low levels of humidity.
12. Irukandji Jellyfish
One of the smallest species of jellyfish is namely Irukandji. But even if the size is very small less than 1 cm, it is very deadly. It stings the enemies fast and strongly so that in a short time, the other animals are simply palsied. This way, the jellyfish can just eat them more easily.
Even the human that is stung, he or she can be suffered from cramp and hallucination. For the strong effects from the jellyfish’ stings, there is a term of Irukandji syndrome anyway. This jellyfish is found mostly in the northern side of the Australian ocean. Meanwhile, a few of them is also in the water areas of England, Japan, and Florida.
13. Indian Flying Fox
Indian flying fox is more related to the bat than to the fox. Yes, this animal has wings formed from the thick membranes between the hands and the legs. Besides, it also has a habit just like the bat; hanging on the trees with an upside down position. However, what makes this animal is also known as the fox is due to the brown hair that covers the body.
This species is polygamous. The mating season is conducted annually during the spring season from February to May. Although this animal is classified as the omnivore, the favorite foods are the parts of the plants like fruits and seeds.
14. Indian Red Admiral
Indian Red Admiral or Vanessa indica is a type of butterfly generally found in the highland areas of India. There are some places considered the main habitats of this animal; they are the Himalayas and some hills around.
The general physical appearance of the Indian Red Admiral is actually not so much different from other butterflies. The main characteristics are the domination of the black colors all over the body. Besides, there are orange spots on the middle of each wing as well as the white ones on the wings’ edges.
15. Isopod
The term isopod refers to a group of Crustacean including the germs, ligia, and all the relatives. They live in almost all areas on the earth whether it is the land, the freshwater, and the ocean. Although Isopod has many species as the members, the appearances of those species are relatively the same. They have exoskeleton as well as the color is grey and the body is segmented.
The animal group is also known for having a particular chamber below the thorax as the place to lay the eggs. The cosmopolitan distribution includes more than 10,000 species of isopod. Uniquely, the animal is considered one of the primordial creatures for the discoveries of some fossil estimated from 300 million years ago.
16. Indian Golden Jackal
Indian Golden Jackal has a sort of physical appearance that is very similar to the world. This is a native animal in some areas including Southeast Europe, Southwest Asia, South Asia, and Southeast Asia. The size of this wolf is indeed much smaller compared to the other sub-species. The legs are short as well as the body is covered by the brownish grey fur.
The habitats of Indian Golden jackal are in the valleys and other areas around the water source like the surrounding of the river, lakes, swamps, and the likes. Many types of foods can just be eaten by this animals. They are starting from fruits and seeds to the big animals like buffalo. To consume them, the jackal must compete with some other animals like the fox, the wild cat, and more.
17. Indian Giant Squirrel
If any other squirrels commonly have a relatively small body, this one is quite different. Yes, even the Indian giant squirrels have a sort of body size that is almost similar to the primates. In general, the body’s length is generally around 36 inches from the head to the tails.
Aside from the size which is “giant”, this squirrel still has some more unique features including in term of fur colors. There are the gradations from the black to brown and from brown to red and orange on its entire body. Some of them are even seen with the gradients of purple and maroon. For the foods, they eat fruit, nuts, seeds, and even insects.
18. Indian Peafowl
Peafowl or peacock is one of the rare but famous animals well-known for its beautiful appearance. Meanwhile, the Indian peafowl is one from three that are identified by people alongside the green and Congo peafowl from Southeast Asia and Central Africa.
Indian Peafowl itself is found in India and some other countries around like Pakistan and Bangladesh. The habitats are indeed in the highland including the Himalayan areas. This bird is basically omnivores that eat almost any small things including insects and worms but also flowers and seeds. In the mating season, the male peafowl may spread their stunning feathers to attract the females.
19. Indian Crested Porcupine
This unique porcupine belongs to the family of the Old World Porcupine and it is also classified in the group of rodent animals. Compared to the other species of porcupine, the appearance is quite different in which the thorns are clustered on the middle to the back areas of the body. Meanwhile, the tips of the thorn are in white while the other body parts are in black or dark brown.
The Indian Crested Porcupine is the native animal to the Middle East and Southern Asia. They consume many kinds of plant materials including the fruits, seeds, grains, roots, peels, and the others. Besides, they are often seen eating smaller animals like the insects.
20. Insect
The term “insect” comes from the Latin language “insectum” that means being separated into some parts. It is by seeing the size of insects that is indeed quite small. It is a general name for animals from the class of invertebrate with exoskeleton with chitin.
Commonly, the insects’ body is separated into three parts; they are the head, thorax, and abdomen. Meanwhile, there are also around there pairs of leg connected to Thorax as well as the compound eyes and a pair of antennas. The insect is one of the animal groups with the most variants. There are more than a million species under the category of insects.