Animals That Start With D

Since you came across this article, you must be wondering about the animals that start with D. Actually, there are some very unique and amazing creatures on this list, and therefore, learning about them can be very interesting. Let’s explore some of the most widely recognized and least known animals that start with D.

Animal Names That Start With D

1. Donkey
2. Dog
3. Deer
4. Duck
5. Dolphin
6. Dodo
7. Draco Volans
8. Dik-Dik
9. Deathwatch Beetle
10. Douc

Well-Known Animals That Start With D

Famous animals beginning with the letter D can be found all over the world, and some of them even live among us. For example, donkeys are one of the animals that start with D and have been domesticated since around 5,000 years ago. The list also includes our beloved little friends – dogs.

1. Donkey

The first animal in the list of animals that start with D is the donkey. Despite being two completely distinct animals, donkeys and horses both belong to the horse family. They were utilized for meat and milk in ancient Egypt and North Africa after being domesticated, and they eventually developed into working animals that could transport people or parcels. Although they move more steadily than horses, they are slower. According to historians, the domestication of donkeys facilitated the ancient world’s various civilizations’ mobility. 

Although donkeys are found in many different civilizations across the world, they are best suited for warm, dry environments. They now have resilient immune and digestive systems because of this adaptation. 
These animals are herbivores, which means they don’t eat meat. They eat a range of things, including oats, hay, grains, and grass, but in some places, they may even consume shrubs and desert plants. They can snag plants with their enormous lips and drag them into their mouths, where they shred the plants apart with their big front teeth and crush them before eating.

2. Dog

Dogs belong to the family Canidae, which comprises wolves, coyotes, dogs, and jackals. The genus Canis means “dog.” One of the earliest creatures that prehistoric people domesticated was the dog.

The physical traits of the canine species are the same for all individuals. Several characteristics are exclusive to canids, including bone structure, behavior, and reproduction. In addition to these distinctive qualities, dogs also stand apart from wolves. 
Dogs are carnivores and have a diet centered on meat since they are derived from wolves. Modern dog food is significantly cheaper than an exclusive meat diet and contains a larger spectrum of nutrients. Nowadays, meat is frequently combined with grains and various vegetables to create dog food.

3. Deer

The next one on the list of animals that start with D is the deer. Deer have spread all over the world and have developed a variety of adaptations to help them survive in hazardous environments. Its majestic antlers, which are utilized for both protection and reproductive signaling, are among the most remarkable features in the animal kingdom. Its incredible speed, agility, and elegance allow it to quickly and expertly jump into action when disturbed.
The deer family is a species of ruminant, a mammal with a four-chambered stomach that can digest and ferment vegetation. To help with this process, different bacteria are present in each compartment of the digestive system. The majority of these animals’ food sources include grass, buds, fruit, leaves, and herbs.

4. Duck

Ducks are often found in areas with ponds, rivers, and lakes. They are considered waterfowl. Except for Antarctica, every continent is home to this bird. While some of them inhabit freshwater environments, others do so in saltwater. Ducks are omnivores, consuming seeds, tiny fish, plants, insects, and crustaceans. They may live for up to ten years. 

An interesting fact about the duck is that all species of it have waterproof feathers. In order to clean their feathers, they can bend their neck backward. A number of predators, such as possums, peregrine falcons, coyotes, hawks, snakes, and raccoons, can hunt adult ducks.
Male ducks, usually known as drakes, have more colorful feathers than females do. The feathers of a drake might have a vivid green, silver, purple, or blue color. On the other hand, females, often known as hens, are typically brown or gray in hue.

5. Dolphin

Dolphins are considered to be playful and cheerful animals. But these creatures’ behavior is considerably more complex than that. Dolphins live in every ocean around the globe, and they mainly reside in the coastal regions. Five species of dolphin are also found in freshwater river systems in South America or Asia. These creatures mostly consume fish, squid, and marine invertebrates. They could also eat small animals or birds on occasion.

Dolphins are among the most intelligent animals on Earth, with brains larger than those of humans. But they aren’t as smart as people. The communication processes of those creatures are pretty complex.Although two and three have been seen, these animals normally only have one offspring. The newborn consumes milk, and mothers train and raises their babies for many years. In the wild, dolphins often live for 10 to 20 years.

Less Known Animals That Start With D

Some of the less known animals that start with D include the Deathwatch beetle, Dik-Dik, Douc, Draco Volans lizard, and Dodo. Unfortunately, the Dodo flightless bird is currently extinct.

6. Dodo

After making a cameo appearance in Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland as a minor character, the dodo bird gained significant global popularity. Despite having a reputation for being clumsy, anatomical investigations indicate that the dodo was able to sprint very quickly. There isn’t a lot of information available regarding this bird’s diet. The majority of our knowledge is based on descriptions and assumptions drawn from its anatomy.
The dodo bird once lived in isolation on the island of Mauritius, which is located in the Indian Ocean east of Madagascar. Since Mauritius at the time was largely covered in woods, it is possible that the dodo evolved to survive in areas with plenty of vegetation. European sailors may have been the first people to ever see a dodo because the island was utterly deserted when they arrived.

7. Draco Volans

A male Draco Volans is a lizard that measures around 7.7 inches in length, including the tail, while females measure approximately 8 inches. The enormous “wings”, which also have elongated ribs, mainly support the gliding and are one of the most distinctive features of this creature. Draco Volans enjoy the tropical environment and are found in the southern Asian rainforests.

The animal uses its dewlap to get the correct direction when flying, and it also attracts the opposite gender. The dewlap of the male is bright yellow. A lizard will either fully or partially extend its dewlap and wings when it comes into contact with another member of its species. It also bobs up the entire body. A male will start making circles and flaunting when he comes across a female.

8. Dik-Dik

Dik-dik is a small species of antelope. They dwell in the eastern and southern parts of Africa and live a nocturnal life. Their dark fur is camouflage and makes them less invisible during the night. They are heavily preyed upon and have a significant role in the food chain. Most of the water that these animals’ bodies require is absorbed from plants and vegetation that they eat. These wild animals live five to ten years.

Their habitat is mainly shrubland and some woodland regions in a warm climate. Due to their tiny size, they stay away from locations with thick grass. Some of the predators of those little mammals include leopards, hyenas, and eagles.
Dik-Diks are herbivores and subsist on a diet of berries, grass, roots, and plants. Eating plants helps them to maintain moisture and provides them with needed water. They thus don’t frequently need to drink water from creeks or streams.

9. Deathwatch Beetle

The deathwatch beetle is widely distributed in both Europe and North America. The larvae live inside old, rotting trees or structures that have been softened by fungus. One of their preferred hosts is Oak. Their tunneling can harm the wood because those little creatures will dig and tunnel until the tree runs out of food. 

Although it may consume a wide variety of wood, old oak seems to be one of its preferred prospective hosts. The repetitive tapping sound that the deathwatch beetles make during mating, which is really a component of their activity, was previously thought to be a presage of death and a sign of a bad omen. 
The Deathwatch beetle’s diet generally consists of softwood. The larvae’s stomach has digestive proteins that can break the wood’s strong cellulose down. Xylophagy is the scientific name for an herbivore that eats wood.

10. Douc

The douc is a monkey that belongs to the Old World. It has the appearance of a long-bearded sage. With a coat that features tones of white, red, gray, and black, the red-shanked species are considered to be the most colorful monkeys.

Deforestation poses a serious threat to these fun and cute creatures. The woods of Laos, Vietnam, and Cambodia are home to these monkeys. The red-shanked can be spotted in plains and mountains up to 6000 feet in elevation. Evergreen and deciduous woods are the habitats of black-shanked and gray-shanked doucs.

Douc monkeys are folivores, meaning they consume leaves, particularly young and fragile leaves. They will also consume fruit, buds, flowers, and seeds. It’s interesting to note that they prefer unripe fruit to overripe fruit because it upsets their stomach. Doucs are particularly picky eaters and will reject any leaves, flowers, or fruits that don’t meet their criteria.

Bottom Line

The list of animals that start with D is very long and includes many unique and spectacular species. We discussed some of the least known and most known animals, including our little friends, dolphins, and dogs, as well as some of the less familiar, extinct, or legendary animals.