Skip to content

Animal facts

Discover the remarkable lives of animals, one fact at a time.

Lemur

  • The name "lemur" comes from the Latin <em>lemures</em>, the spirits of the dead in Roman belief.
  • Many lemurs are nocturnal, although several species, such as ring-tailed lemurs and sifakas, are active by day.
  • The indri is one of the largest living lemurs, weighing around 6–9.5 kg. This comparison concerns living species.

Leopard

  • Pound for pound, the leopard is one of the strongest of the big cats.
  • It can climb trees even while carrying heavy prey, and it often rests on branches.
  • It often carries its prey up into trees so that lions and hyenas cannot steal it. Related profile: Lion. Related profile: Hyena.

Leopard gecko

  • Leopard geckos have movable eyelids and can blink.
  • Their clawed toes have no adhesive pads.
  • A replacement tail differs structurally from the original.

Lion

  • A lion's roar can be heard up to 8 km away.
  • It is the second-largest cat in the world, after the tiger.
  • Lions roar to mark their territory and to call scattered members of the pride.

Lizard

  • Lizards include iguanas, chameleons, geckos, monitors and skinks. Classification and species totals change as research progresses.
  • Lizards and their relatives have lived on Earth for more than 200 million years.
  • Most lizards have movable eyelids, while snakes do not. Some lizards, such as many geckos, also lack movable eyelids and lick their eyes clean.

Llama

  • Llamas were domesticated from the wild guanaco at least 4,000-5,000 years ago.
  • A llama can carry about 25-30% of its body weight.
  • Llamas usually spit at other llamas, and only rarely at people.

Lobster

  • Lobsters turn red only when cooked.
  • A lobster has a crusher claw and a cutter claw.
  • Lobsters taste with their legs and smell with small antennules.

Lowland streaked tenrec

  • The lowland streaked tenrec produces sounds by rubbing specialised spines together.
  • Earthworms are its main food.
  • It is not a hedgehog: it belongs to Tenrecidae.

Lynx

  • There are four species of lynx: the Eurasian lynx, the Iberian lynx, the Canada lynx and the bobcat.
  • The Eurasian lynx is the largest; big males can weigh around 30 kg.
  • The Carpathian Mountains, including Romania, are home to one of the largest lynx populations in Europe.

Malayan tiger

  • Genetic research published in 2004 showed that Malayan tigers differ from Indochinese tigers.
  • The name jacksoni honours Peter Jackson, a famous tiger conservationist.
  • The Malayan tiger is Malaysia's national animal, and two tigers support Malaysia's coat of arms.