Pfeffer’s Reed Snake

Reptiles > Snakes

Pfeffer’s Reed Snake (Calamaria pfefferi) is an exquisitely adapted, diminutive fossorial serpent endemic to the subtropical primary forests of the Ryukyu Archipelago in southwestern Japan. Named in honor of German zoologist Georg Pfeffer, this secretive...

Shore Dotterel

Birds > Shorebirds

The Shore Dotterel (Thinornis novaeseelandiae), known in Māori as the ‘tūturuatu,’ is one of the world’s rarest and most endangered shorebirds, endemic to New Zealand. Instantly recognizable by its distinctive black facial mask, prominent...

Caspian Seal

Mammals > Pinnipeds

The Caspian Seal (Pusa caspica) is the sole marine mammal inhabiting the landlocked waters of the Caspian Sea, the world’s largest inland water body. Diverging from Arctic ringed seals millions of years ago when ancestral seas receded, this small, spotted...

Black-fronted Piping Guan

Birds > Guans & Curassows

The Black-fronted Piping Guan (Pipile jacutinga), or ‘Jacutinga,’ is a magnificent cracid endemic to the highly imperiled Atlantic Forest of South America. Clothed in glossy blue-black plumage offset by bold white wing patches and a spectacular cobalt-blue...

Kashmir Musk Deer

Mammals > Even-Toed Ungulates

The Kashmir Musk Deer (Moschus cupreus) is an elusive, primitive ungulate that navigates the precipitous alpine cliffs and subalpine forests of the western Himalayas. Lacking antlers entirely, adult males possess formidable, curved ivory-like tusks that protrude...