Animals That Start With Q

Animals, big or small, can be found in every nook and cranny of the world. They are in our homes, yards, farms, and the wild. Even we humans are considered to be animals, specifically mammals. Many marvelous animals may not be as famous as others. 

This article explores some of the most interesting well-known, and less-known animals that start with Q. 

Animal Names That Start With Q

1. Quail
2. Queen Snake
3. Quokka
4. Queen Alexandra’s Birdwing
5. Quagga
6. Quoll

Well-known Animals That Start With Q

Generally speaking, not many animals start with Q. Our list of well-known creatures starts with the quail. Some species of those birds have actually been domesticated. Additionally, an interesting animal is the queen snake, typically found in northern America. And lastly, let’s also explore the quokka – which is also called the “world’s happiest animal.” 

1. Quail

Quails are first in the list of well-known animals that start with Q. The native range spans significant portions of Europe, Asia, North America, and the northern part of Africa. Throughout history, several species of those animals have been domesticated for their flesh and eggs. Even today, people in particular regions frequently hunt wild quail.

Quail birds live on the land most of the time. Since it might be challenging for them to maintain extended flights due to their squat proportions. There is a significant difference in the species. However, these are little birds that are typically larger than robins and smaller than crows.

They have short, broad wings, tiny heads, and a long, square tail. The feather placement and coloring on the underside give it a scaly look. Some species’ upper breasts may also have speckling. Their bills are designed like those of the seedeaters. 

Although these birds are omnivores, they mostly eat a vegetarian diet. Although chicks like eating insects, as they become older, their diet progressively changes to include more plant matter. They occasionally consume grasshoppers and worms in addition to leaves, barley, seeds, wheat, fruit, and flowers. 

Some species, like Gambel’s quail, are easily able to modify their diet to the season and their fluid requirements. Those animals that start with Q will consume cactus fruits and berries when they are there.

2. Queen Snake

The queen snakes are another interesting animals that start with Q. They have no venom and a semi-aquatic nature. They can be found in areas of the United States and Canada. Those snakes prefer to live near streams and watersheds. 

Queen snakes typically come out to hunt during the day, and their main prey is crayfish. With their behavior, the queen snakes resemble greeted snakes. Those creatures have an olive green color; depending on the habitat, they can also be dark brown or gray. On the body, those animals that start with Q have yellow stripes.

There are four darker stripes between these lighter ones. The only snake of its kind and location with stripes running longitudinally on its belly is the queen snake, which makes it simple to recognize.

Queen snakes are extremely shy, non-venomous, and unthreatening, especially near people. 90% of a snake’s daily diet consists of crayfish. The snake uses its excellent sense of smell to seek out these watery crustaceans. 

3. Quokka

The last of our well-known animals that start with Q are quokkas. A quokka is a marsupial typically found in the regions of Australia. Those small wallabies have small legs and also small thin-furred tails. Those animals typically graze for food. Quokka is most frequently observed in dense forests, open woodland, and scrubs. They try to be close to the water sources. The Quokka may sometimes be found at the fringes of wetlands too. 

The Quokka is an extremely gregarious and friendly species that lives in tiny family groupings that are typically male-dominated. As for the habits, those animals are not territorial and there can even be 150 individuals in one area. Even though they often coexist peacefully in these settings, battles between the sexes have been known to occur, especially on hot days when they vie for the coolest locations.

The quokka is a nocturnal creature that spends most of the scorching day sleeping in the forest shades. The Quokkas scavenge for food at night, moving through the tall grass in secret. They are herbivores, which means that the only thing they eat is vegetation found around them, like other wallaby species.

In addition to the grass and vegetation, when it becomes available, they will also consume berries and fruits. Quokkas are known to climb into trees and consume their food whole without chewing. The undigested material is subsequently regurgitated by the quokka in the shape of a cud, which is also consumed. They can go without water for a long time and get all the hydration they need from the vegetation they consume.

Less-known Animals That Start With Q

The outstanding insect is Queen Alexandra’s birdwing, a butterfly with vibrant and vivid colors. The quoll is an interesting marsupial found in the territories of Papua New Guinea and Australia. And finally, quagga– a subspecies of zebra. 

4. Queen Alexandra’s Birdwing

Queen Alexandra’s birdwing is a very unusual animal that starts with Q. They are renowned for being the world’s largest butterflies. It may be found in Papua New Guinea’s tropical jungles. Queen Alexandra’s birdwing is quite picky about what it eats. It feeds on flowers’ nectar with the help of its lengthy proboscis, which is like a straw. Queen Alexandra’s Birdwing can be supported by hibiscus flowers because they are so large.

As for the visual characteristics, Queen Alexandra’s birdwing has six legs and two compound eyes, a proboscis, antennae, and scale-covered wings. The brown thorax of the female is covered in a patch of red fur, and her rounded brown wings have white markings on them. The male has blue-green wings that are thinner and have a black stripe, as well as a greenish-blue underside with black veins. The abdomens of both are very yellow.

This beauty was named after Alexandra of Denmark, Edward VII’s wife. The IUCN Red List categorizes Queen Alexandra’s birdwing as “endangered.” This is mostly caused by habitat loss. Its rainforest habitat is being cleared more and more to make way for oil palm plantations.

5. Quagga

Quaggas are other animals that start with Q. It is a rare kind of zebra that ceased to exist in the late 19th century. Unlike other zebras, these majestic animals possessed an odd look. Their skins were highly sought after and consequently taken for human use. Historically, all zebras were referred to as quaggas. The quagga was once considered to be an entirely distinct species. Unfortunately, while they were still alive, these species were incredibly underappreciated and undiscovered.

Though it resembled a zebra in appearance, the animal possessed unique characteristics. Its look has frequently been compared to that of a horse. It had lengthy fur on the end of its tail, and it had long, thin legs. The legs were mighty and designed to flee predators and cover large distances. They were capable of traveling at 40 mph. They could also kick fiercely in defense with their legs. 

Animals that start with Q are native to the southern part of Africa. Those animals preferred to live in the shrublands and deserts. Arid and temperate climates were their main homes. These creatures were wandering grazers. They only consumed one kind of food – grass. They simply consumed plants and were not predators of any animals.

6. Quoll

One of the several unusual marsupials found only in the areas of New Guinea and Australia is the quoll. The quoll has been under attack in its natural habitat for several centuries. These rare organisms are fragile and in danger. Their population keeps dropping rapidly over time. 

Those animals that start with Q are carnivorous animals. They are characterized by a body, a pink nose, a hairy tail, large ears, pointed teeth, and a body of black and brown fur. The enormous abdominal pouch that a marsupial uses to carry and shield its developing young is what distinguishes it from other animals. Only the tiger quoll, nevertheless, has a genuine pouch. Skin folds towards the tail are present in the other five species. The breeding season is when these folds begin to form.

The quoll is a scavenger that feeds on practically anything that becomes available, whether alive or dead. They frequently eat birds, rats, insects, mice, frogs, and lizards, among other things. The biggest quoll species have also been observed to eat echidnas, rabbits, possums, medium-sized animals, and birds. The quoll is primarily a carnivore but occasionally eats fruit and some vegetable debris.

In the wild, the quoll must contend with several lethal dangers. Non-native animals like foxes and cats that were brought into Australia have a destabilizing influence on quoll populations. In addition to actively preying on quolls, they also compete with quolls for food.

Bottom Line – Animals That Start With Q

In this article, we discussed extraordinary animals that start with Q. The list of famous creatures includes quail, quagga, and the queen snake. Yet, we mentioned some rare animals you may not have heard of before. Those are quokka, qinling pandas, quoll, and queen Alexdandra’s birdwing.