179 Animals in Italian: Explore the Wild Side with Italian Animal Words

Ever wondered what daily feeding time would sound like if Noah (of Noah’s Ark, that is) were Italian?

You’d certainly hear screams of“Pesce! Pesce! (Fish! Fish!) or “Pollo! Pollo!” (Chicken! Chicken!).

Yep, it’d sound exactly like your Italian farmer’s market.

In this post, we’ll add to your Italian vocabulary list by learning all about animals in Italian.

Contents

Pets in Italian

ItalianItalian
Il parrocchetto Budgerigar
Il canarino Canary
Il gatto Cat
Il cincillà Chinchilla
Il cane Dog
Il furetto Ferret
Il pesce Fish
Il gerbillo Gerbil
Il pesce rosso Goldfish
Il porcellino d'India Guinea pig
Il criceto Hamster
Il granchio eremita Hermit crab
L'iguana Iguana
La lucertola Lizard
Il topo Mice
Il maiale vietnamita Pot-bellied pig
Il coniglio Rabbit
Il ratto Rat
Il serpente Snake
La tartaruga Tortoise

Farm Animals in Italian

ItalianEnglish
Il toro Bull
Il pollo Chicken
La mucca Cow
L'asino Donkey
L'anatra Duck
La capra Goat
L'oca Goose
La gallina Hen
Il cavallo Horse
Il maiale Pig
La quaglia Quail
Il gallo Rooster
La pecora Sheep
Il tacchino Turkey

Wild Animals in Italian

ItalianEnglish
Il castoro Beaver
La lince rossa Bobcat
Il ghepardo Cheetah
Lo scimpanzé Chimpanzee
Il coyote Coyote
L'elefante Elephant
La volpe Fox
La giraffa Giraffe
Il gorilla Gorilla
L'orso grizzly Grizzly bear
Il riccio Hedgehog
L'ippopotamo Hippopotamus
La iena Hyena
Il giaguaro Jaguar
Il canguro Kangaroo
Il koala Koala
Il leopardo Leopard
Il leone Lion
La lince Lynx
L'ocelot Ocelot
La lontra Otter
Il panda Panda
L'orso polare Polar bear
Il procione Raccoon
Il panda rosso Red panda
Il rinoceronte Rhino
Il leopardo delle nevi Snow leopard
Lo scoiattolo Squirrel
La tigre Tiger
Il lupo Wolf
La zebra Zebra

Marine Animals in Italian

This list includes animals in Italian that live both in and around the water.

ItalianEnglish
L'anemone di mare Anemone
Il barracuda Barracuda
Il pesce pagliaccio Clownfish
Il corallo Coral
Il granchio Crab
Il delfino Dolphin
L'anguilla Eel
La passera di mare Flounder
Lo squalo martello Hammerhead shark
La medusa Jellyfish
L'aragosta Lobster
Il lamantino Manatee
La manta Manta ray
Il narvalo Narwhal
Il polpo Octopus
L'ostrica Oyster
Il salmone Salmon
La sardina Sardine
Il cavalluccio marino Sea horse
La lumaca di mare Sea snail
La tartaruga marina Sea turtle
L'echino marino Sea urchin
La foca Seal
Lo squalo Shark
Il gambero Shrimp
La balenottera Sperm whale
Il calamaro Squid
La stella marina Starfish
Il pesce spada Swordfish
Il tonno Tuna
Il tricheco Walrus
La balena Whale

Birds in Italian

ItalianEnglish
L'albatros Albatross
L'aquila calva Bald eagle
L'uccello Bird
La ghiandaia Blue jay
Il canarino Canary
Il casuario Cassowary
Il corvo Crow
L'aquila Eagle
L'emu Emu
Il falcone Falcon
Il fenicottero Flamingo
L'oca Goose
Il falco Hawk
L'airone Heron
Il calao Hornbill
Il colibrì Hummingbird
Il martin pescatore Kingfisher
Il kiwi Kiwi
Il dacelo Kookaburra
La gazza Magpie
Lo struzzo Ostrich
Il gufo Owl
Il pappagallo Parrot
Il pavone Peacock
Il pellicano Pelican
Il falco pellegrino Peregrine falcon
Il fagiano Pheasant
Il piccione Pigeon
Il geococcyx / il corridore della strada Roadrunner
Il pettirosso Robin
Il gabbiano Seagull
Il serpentario Secretary bird
Il passero Sparrow
La cicogna Stork
La rondine Swallow
Il tucano Toucan
L'avvoltoio Vulture
Il picchio Woodpecker

Reptiles and Amphibians in Italian

ItalianEnglish
L'alligatore Alligator
L'anfibio Amphibian (generic)
Il ceciliano Caecilian
Il camaleonte Chameleon
Il coccodrillo Crocodile
La rana Frog
Il geco Gecko
L'iguana Iguana
Il drago di Komodo Komodo dragon
La lucertola Lizard
Il tritone Newt
Il rettile Reptile (generic)
La salamandra Salamander
Il serpente Snake
Il rospo Toad
La tartaruga Turtle

Insects and Arachnids in Italian

ItalianItalian
La formica Ant
La cimice Bedbug
L'ape Bee
Il coleottero Beetle
La farfalla Butterfly
Lo scarafaggio Cockroach
Il grillo Cricket
La libellula Dragonfly
La lucciola Firefly
La mosca Fly
La cavalletta Grasshopper
L'insetto Insect (generic)
La coccinella Ladybug
La zanzara Mosquito
La falena Moth
La mantide religiosa Praying mantis
Lo scorpione Scorpion
Il ragno Spider
La termite Termite

Collective Animal Nouns in Italian

In English, there are special words for some groups of animals. These are called “collective nouns,” and there are a few worth knowing in Italian, too. Here are a handful to remember:

There are a number of other ways to refer to animals in Italian. The best way to learn more is by using authentic resources, like the immersive, video-based program, FluentU.

FluentU takes authentic videos—like music videos, movie trailers, news and inspiring talks—and turns them into personalized language learning lessons.

You can try FluentU for free for 2 weeks. Check out the website or download the iOS app or Android app.

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Endangered Animals in Italy

Italy is home to a diverse range of native wildlife. But amid the picturesque landscapes and historic cities, there exists a pressing concern for the conservation of its endangered animal species.

Learn more about endangered animals in Italy and what you can do to help at the European Nature Trust.

Here are a few key endangered animals that make their home in Italy:

  • Italian Wolf (Canis lupus italicus): The Italian wolf is a subspecies of the gray wolf and is considered endangered in Italy.
  • Marsican Brown Bear (Ursus arctos marsicanus): This subspecies of brown bear is critically endangered and is found in the central Apennine Mountains.
  • Sardinian Long-Eared Bat (Plecotus sardus): This bat species is endemic to Sardinia and is listed as vulnerable due to habitat loss and disturbance.
  • Loggerhead Sea Turtle (Caretta caretta): In the coastal areas of Italy, loggerhead sea turtles face threats from habitat degradation and fishing. They are considered vulnerable.
  • Northern Bald Ibis (Geronticus eremita): This bird is critically endangered and found in some regions of Italy, particularly Sicily.
  • European Eel (Anguilla anguilla): The European eel is considered critically endangered in Italy due to over-fishing and habitat loss.

 

You’re now ready to go out and speak in Italian about the animal world.

And One More Thing...

If you're as busy as most of us, you don't always have time for lengthy language lessons. The solution? FluentU!

Learn Italian with funny commericals, documentary excerpts and web series, as you can see here:

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FluentU helps you get comfortable with everyday Italian by combining all the benefits of complete immersion and native-level conversations with interactive subtitles. Tap on any word to instantly see an image, in-context definition, example sentences and other videos in which the word is used.

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Access a complete interactive transcript of every video under the Dialogue tab, and review words and phrases with convenient audio clips under Vocab.

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Once you've watched a video, you can use FluentU's quizzes to actively practice all the vocabulary in that video. Swipe left or right to see more examples of the word you’re on.

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FluentU will even keep track of all the Italian words you’re learning, and give you extra practice with difficult words. Plus, it'll tell you exactly when it's time for review. Now that's a 100% personalized experience!

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Start using the FluentU website on your computer or tablet or, better yet, download the FluentU app from the iTunes or Google Play store. Click here to take advantage of our current sale! (Expires at the end of this month.)

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