Brazilian Amazon Animals

Spectacularly there are an estimated 15,000 different kinds of Brazilian Amazon animals that you can see and so if you wanted to see each one of them you"d need to spend several months in the Amazon or read a very big book! The following, however, are some of the more colorful Brazilian Amazon Animals you might come across as you explore an area that covers 40% of Brazil"s landmass:

The Anaconda Snake
Made famous around the world by the film of the same name, the anaconda snake is also known as the water boa. The snake lives in water and swamps surrounding the Amazon and is nocturnal. Be careful though, boas are the largest type of snake there is and anaconda are the largest type of boa there is!

Two types of anaconda can be seen in the Amazon: yellow and green, with the yellow being smaller than the green.

The Jaguar
The largest and most powerful member of the Amazon cats, the jaguar is revered locally as being a matchless hunter: leanly built and stealth in action. The jaguar is the King of the Amazonian food chain - and when you bear in mind some of its competition, that"s some claim to fame! You"re best chances of seeing a jaguar are if you are in a forest area, near a stream, close to nightfall - but be very careful as this is also the time the jaguar is looking for prey.

The Manatee
The manatee is also known as the water ox - and is the Amazon"s largest marine mammal. A fully grown adult manatee will weigh over a thousand pounds and measure over nine feet long! Now considered an endangered species, the manatee"s closest living relative is the elephant.

The Piranha
Moves such as James Bond made in the 1970s and 1980s have made the piranha a worldwide phenomenon. But, did you know that there are 20 different species of the piranha in the Amazon and nearly all of them are vegetarian? In fact, the only species of piranha that can strip flesh of an animal in double quick time are the red-bellied piranha.

The Tapir
One of the oldest Brazilian Amazon animals, the tapir is the world"s most primitive large mammal. Also the region"s largest land herbivore, the tapir is easily recognized by its unusual proboscis, which functions like an elephant trunk.

The Tucuxi and the Boto Dolphin (the River Dolphin)
Surely one of the Amazon"s most amazing sights is the sight of the river dolphin. However, did you know that historically river dolphins also used to live in the River Ganges? Sadly no more; and if you want to take in the special sight of seeing a fresh water river dolphin you"ll need to visit the Amazon, as this is the only place left where you can find them.

The Vampire Bat
Get this - there are 950 different species of bats in the Amazon, so you"d best like them! The Amazonian vampire bats are the only true vampire bat in the world, i.e. the eat blood! In order to do this, the vampire bat has had to adapt its body so that it can move about silently without being detected. Carefully though, it is not unheard of for vampire bats to sneak up on humans and use their razor sharp teeth to scoop out small amounts of human skin; thereby letting your blood flow, which it then laps up (in much the same way as your cat at home does with the milk!).