Full Species List
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The following is a full list of mammal species found in and around the British Isles, totalling 107.
Cut off from the continent around 8,000 years ago, as the ice retreated and re-opened the North Sea and English Channel, our native mammal fauna was fixed. Since then a number of introductions have taken place, such that today we have:
28 native terrestrial mammals, 2 native marine mammals (N)
18 native bats
13 introduced or naturalised species (I)
5 terrestrial island mammals (Isl)
30 cetaceans found in and around our waters
9 vagrant mammals: 4 bat species and 5 pinnipedia (seals) (found only occasionally)
4 feral species (F) and 2 domesticated / managed species
Mole by Derek Crawley
Insectivora (Insectivores)
- Hedgehog – Erinaceus europaeus (N)
- European mole – Talpa europaea (N)
- Common shrew – Sorex araneus (N)
- Pygmy shrew – Sorex minutus (N)
- Water shrew – Neomys fodiens (N)
- Lesser white-toothed shrew – Crocidura suaveolens (Isl)
- Greater white-toothed shrew – Crocidura russula (Isl)
Hare by Alex White
Lagomorpha (Rabbits and hares)
- European rabbit – Oryctolagus cuniculus (I)
- Brown hare – Lepus europaeus (I)
- Mountain hare – Lepus timidus (N)
- Irish hare – Lepus timidus hibernicus (N)
Harvest Mouse by Beth Arkwright
Rodentia (Rodents)
- Red squirrel – Sciurus vulgaris (N)
- Grey squirrel – Sciurus carolinensis (I)
- Eurasian beaver – Castor fiber (N)
- Hazel dormouse – Muscardinus avellanarius (N)
- Edible dormouse – Glis glis (I)
- Bank vole – Myodes glareolus (N)
- Skomer vole – Myodes glareolus skomerensis (Isl)
- Field vole – Microtus agrestis (N)
- Common vole – Microtus arvalis
- Guernsey vole – Microtus arvalis sarnius (Isl)
- Orkney vole – Microtus arvalis orcadensis (Isl)
- Water vole – Arvicola amphibius (N)
- Harvest mouse – Micromys minutus (N)
- Wood mouse – Apodemus sylvaticus (N)
- Yellow-necked mouse – Apodemus flavicollis (N)
- House mouse – Mus musculus (N)
- Brown rat – Rattus norvegicus (I)
- Black rat – Rattus rattus (I)
Polecat by Richard Bowler
Carnivora (Carnivores)
- Wildcat – Felis silvestris (N)
- Feral cat – Felis catus (F)
- Red fox – Vulpes vulpes (N)
- Badger – Meles meles (N)
- Otter – Lutra lutra (N)
- Pine marten – Martes martes (N)
- Stoat – Mustela erminea (N)
- Weasel – Mustela nivalis (N)
- Polecat – Mustela putorius (N)
- Feral ferret – Mustela furo (F)
- American mink – Neovison vison (I)
Red deer by Kyle Moore
Artiodactyla (even-toed ungulates)
- Wild boar – Sus scrofa (N)
- Red deer – Cervus elaphus (N)
- Sika deer – Cervus nippon (I)
- Fallow deer – Dama dama (I)
- Roe deer – Capreolus capreolus (N)
- Chinese water deer – Hydropotes inermis (I)
- Reeves’ muntjac deer – Muntiacus reevesi (I)
Perrisodactyla (odd-toed ungulates)
- Feral horse (Exmoor / Dartmoor pony) – Equus ferus caballus (managed)
Marsupial
- Red-necked wallaby – Macropus rufogriseus (I)
Bechstein’s bat by Fiona Mathews
Chiroptera (Bats)
- Greater horseshoe bat – Rhinolophus ferrumequinum
- Lesser horseshoe bat – Rhinolophus hipposideros
- Alcathoe bat – Myotis alcathoe
- Whiskered bat – Myotis mystacinus
- Brandt’s bat – Myotis brandtii
- Bechstein’s bat – Myotis bechsteinii
- Daubenton’s bat – Myotis daubentonii
- Greater mouse-eared bat – Myotis myotis
- Natterer’s bat – Myotis nattereri
- Serotine bat – Eptesicus serotinus
- Leisler’s bat – Nyctalus leisleri
- Noctule bat – Nyctalus noctula
- Common pipstrelle bat – Pipistrellus pipistrellus
- Soprano pipistrelle bat – Pipistrellus pygmaeus
- Nathusius’ pipistrelle bat – Pipistrellus nathusii
- Barbastelle bat – Barbastella barbastellus
- Brown long-eared bat – Plecotus auritus
- Grey long-eared bat – Plecotus austriacus
Harbour seal by Ben Andrew
Pinnipedia (Seals)
- Harbour seal – Phoca vitulina (N)
- Grey seal – Halichoerus grypus (N)
Vagrant British seal species with restricted distribution:
- Bearded seal – Erignathus barbatus
- Harp seal – Pagophilus groenlandicus
- Hooded seal – Cystophora cristatus
- Ringed seal – Pusa hispida
- Walrus – Odobenus rosmarus
Bottlenose dolphins by Nick Clayton
Cetacea (Whales, dolphins and porpoises inc. vagrants)
- North Atlantic right whale – Eubalaena glacialis
- Bowhead whale – Balaena mysticetus
- Humpback whale – Megaptera novaeangliae
- Blue whale – Balaenoptera musculus
- Fin whale – Balaenoptera physalis
- Sei whale – Balaenoptera borealis
- Minke whale – Balaenoptera acutorostrata
- Northern bottlenose whale – Hyperoodon ampullatus
- Cuvier’s beaked whale – Ziphius cavirostris
- Sowerby’s beaked whale – Mesoplodon bidens
- Pygmy sperm whale – Kogia breviceps
- Dwarf sperm whale – Kogia sima
- Sperm whale – Physeter macrocephalus
- Beluga – Delphinapterus leucas
- Killer whale or orca – Orcinus orca
- False killer whale – Pseudorca crassidens
- Long-finned pilot whale – Globicephala melas
- Risso’s dolphin – Grampus griseus
- Atlantic white-sided dolphin – Lagenorhynchus acutus
- White-beaked dolphin – Lagenorhynchus albirostris
- Common dolphin – Delphinus delphis
- Striped dolphin – Stenella coeruleoalba
- Bottlenose dolphin – Tursiops truncatus
- Harbour porpoise – Phocoena phocoena
- Blainville’s beaked whale – Mesoplodon densirostris
- Gervais’ beaked whale – Mesoplodon europaeus
- True’s beaked whale – Mesoplodon mirus
- Narwhal – Monodon monoceros
- Melon-headed whale – Peponocephala electra
- Fraser’s dolphin – Lagenodelphis hosei
Vagrant species and those without established populations in the UK
- Raccoon – Procyon lotor
- Red-necked wallaby – Macropus rufogriseus (I)
- Reindeer – Rangifer tarandus (I / current population domesticated from Sweden)
- Parti-coloured bat – Vespertilio murinus
- Kuhl’s pipistrelle bat – Pipistrellus kuhlii
- Northern bat – Eptesicus nilssoni
- Hoary bat – Lasiurus cinereus
Feral colonies and populations
- Feral goat – Capra aegagrus hircus (F)
- Feral Sheep – Ovis aries (F)
- Cattle – Bos primigenius (domesticated)
- Feral horse (Exmoor / Dartmoor pony) – Equus ferus caballus (managed)
