Examples of animals that yawn include bears, camels, cats, dogs, and horses.
The animal kingdom is full of fascinating creatures with a wide range of behaviors that we can’t always explain.
One such behavior is yawning, and it’s something that has been observed in many species including humans.
Some animals yawn more than others: dogs and cats do it most often, while fish seem to be immune to the urge.
Examples of Animals that Yawn
Animals yawn because it is a natural reflex to cool down the brain and maintain normal blood circulation. Yawning also stimulates the production of saliva, which washes away bacteria in the mouth.
1. Alpaca
| Scientific Name | Vicugna pacos |
| Type of Animal | Mammal |
| Range | Peru |
| Diet | Herbivore |
Alpaca live in the Andes Mountains of South America. Today, most alpacas are found high in the mountains between Venezuela and Peru.
Alpacas have been domesticated for thousands of years, where they were used to provide meat, wool, work animals on farms, transportation across mountain ranges, and as pack animals during war times.
2. Anteater
| Scientific Name | Vermilingua |
| Type of Animal | Mammal |
| Range | Central and South America |
| Diet | Omnivore |
Anteaters live in Central and South America. They can also be found in Mexico, the Caribbean islands, southern parts of Texas, and Florida.
Anteaters do not like to travel so they stay within their habitat range for most of their life. If you go on a hike through tropical areas it is possible that you see an anteater.
3. Bats
| Scientific Name | Chiroptera |
| Type of Animal | Mammal |
| Range | Worldwide |
| Diet | Omnivore |
Bats can be found all over the world, but they do not live in Antarctica.
Bats are mammals and therefore give birth to living young who survive on their own after weaning. A new baby bat is called a pup or pinkie at its youngest stage of development.
4. Bears
| Scientific Name | Ursidae |
| Type of Animal | Mammal |
| Range | North America, South America, Europe, and Asia |
| Diet | Omnivore |
Bears live in a variety of biomes. A biome is an area with specific climates and ecosystems that are adapted to the plants and animals living there. Bears can be found all over North America, Europe, Asia, Africa—and even Antarctica.
5. Bison
| Scientific Name | Bison |
| Type of Animal | Mammal |
| Range | western United States and Canada |
| Diet | Herbivore |
Bison live in the grasslands and prairies of North America, Europe, and Asia. They are social animals that form herds for protection from predators such as wolves or bears. Bison often lie down to rest during the day and use their heads to pull themselves up when they want to stand again.
This behavior is known as “pinning” and can be seen when they are grazing or just waking up.
Have you ever wondered why bison yawn? Like humans, bison will often stretch their jaws and neck before settling down to sleep in order to prepare for a long night of rest or an afternoon nap.
6. Buffalos
| Scientific Name | Bubalus bubalis |
| Type of Animal | Mammal |
| Range | Africa, North America, Europe |
| Diet | Herbivore |
Buffalos are native to the Americas. They live in grasslands, savannas, and prairies of North America, South America, and Mexico; they also graze on hillsides that were once farmed or logged before these areas revert back into grassland.
Related Article: Are Buffalos Warm-Blooded?
7. Camels
| Scientific Name | Camelus |
| Type of Animal | Mammal |
| Range | Gobi Desert in China |
| Diet | Herbivore |
Camels live in dry regions of central Asia, Africa, and North America. – They are mostly found in desert habitats.
Camels’ mouths cannot close all the way because their upper lips are permanently split. – This is why they often seem to be ‘yawning’.
8. Cats
| Scientific Name | Felis catus |
| Type of Animal | Mammal |
| Range | Worldwide |
| Diet | Carnivore |
Cats yawn just like humans and other animals do. Yawning is actually a reflex that helps to resupply the body with oxygen, as well as calm down or relax them when they are overstressed or nervous about something.
A cat’s brain gets rid of any excess carbon dioxide by breathing it out through its mouth in order to make room for more oxygen. Yawning is a way to aid this process and can be seen from the very young kitten all the way up until they are elderly.
9. Cheetah
| Scientific Name | Acinonyx jubatus |
| Type of Animal | Mammal |
| Range | Africa |
| Diet | Carnivore |
Like the cat, a cheetah is also an animal that yawns. Cheetahs are the fastest cats on earth. They can run up to 80 mph.
However, this is only when they are running after prey or away from danger. When not actively hunting for food or avoiding being eaten, cheetahs sleep around 12 hours a day.
Cheetahs live in Africa and southwest Asia. The cheetah is a large cat, but not the largest. Adult male cheetahs weigh around 160 pounds and females average about 100 pounds.
10. Cows
| Scientific Name | Bos taurus |
| Type of Animal | Mammal |
| Range | Worldwide |
| Diet | Herbivore |
Cows yawn. This is a natural behavior that provides relaxation for them, just like it does for humans! At night time when the cattle are resting, they will get more of their sleep cycles in and so tend to do this type of behavior more often before sleeping.
11. Crows
| Scientific Name | Corvus |
| Type of Animal | Bird |
| Range | Worldwide |
| Diet | Omnivore |
Crows have often been observed yawning when they wake up or before taking off into flight. Some scientists think that this behavior is linked to tiredness, but it has also been documented in captive birds who were well rested and not stressed.
12. Dogs
| Scientific Name | Canis lupus familiaris |
| Type of Animal | Mammal |
| Range | Worldwide |
| Diet | Omnivore |
Dogs do in fact “yawn” but it can be difficult for humans to recognize the difference between a dog yawn and other behaviors that may look like a yawn.
There are many theories about why dogs ‘yawn’ which include:
– tiredness (this may be related to low levels of oxygen in the blood)
– stress or anxiety at being in a new environment
– an attempt to increase the flow of oxygenated air into the lungs which can be particularly important for dogs who suffer from brachycephalic syndrome (e.g., bulldogs and pugs) whose shortened noses make breathing more difficult.
13. Donkeys
| Scientific Name | Equus asinus |
| Type of Animal | Mammal |
| Range | Worldwide |
| Diet | Herbivore |
Donkeys do, in fact, yawn as well. Yawning is a means of getting oxygen into the body when it becomes low. It also helps to lower carbon dioxide levels in the blood and regulate cooling at night by exposing moist tissues of the mouth cavity to cooler air temperatures.
14. Ducks
| Scientific Name | Anas platyrhynchos |
| Type of Animal | Bird |
| Range | Worldwide |
| Diet | Omnivore |
Scientists think that this behavior has to do with their metabolism. Ducks need a lot of energy for a flight so they yawn in order to get more oxygen into their lungs.
Just like us, ducks also experience sleep deprivation when the air is cold or dry, and they will yawn as a way to compensate.
15. Eagles
| Scientific Name | Haliaeetus leucocephalus |
| Type of Animal | Bird |
| Range | Worldwide |
| Diet | Carnivore |
It looks like an eagle is doing a silent burp, but it’s actually opening its mouth wide to take in more air and cool itself off during a soaring flight.
16. Elephants
| Scientific Name | Loxodonta |
| Type of Animal | Mammal |
| Range | Africa and Asia |
| Diet | Herbivore |
Elephants are known to yawn, but it is unclear if this means they are bored or tired. They might also be stressed out.
Yawning may help them regulate their temperature by helping pull cooler air into the lungs and pushing warmer air out of the trunk.
Sometimes after a good stretch, an elephant will sway back and forth for up to a half-hour.
This is likely some sort of elephant yoga to further stimulate the muscles and ligaments after being in one position for so long while standing on all fours.
17. Fox
| Scientific Name | Vulpes vulpes |
| Type of Animal | Mammal |
| Range | Worldwide |
| Diet | Omnivore |
Yup! Foxes do actually yawn. But they also make a few other awesome facial expressions that can tell us some information about what’s going on for them.
18. Giraffe
| Scientific Name | Giraffa |
| Type of Animal | Mammal |
| Range | East Africa |
| Diet | Herbivore |
Giraffes have very long necks, are known to yawn. There are many theories about why they do this but none of them has been proven definitively.
One possibility is that yawning helps the giraffe get more oxygen into their bodies when their hearts and lungs work faster while fighting off illness or parasites in hot weather conditions.
19. Gorilla
| Scientific Name | Gorilla |
| Type of Animal | Mammal |
| Range | Africa |
| Diet | Omnivore |
Gorillas are the biggest of all primates, so it’s not surprising that their yawns are big too. That kind of size means a lot more air gets into gorilla lungs, which is really important for them being able to do things like run and climb trees quickly.
20. Hare
| Scientific Name | Lepus |
| Type of Animal | Mammal |
| Range | Worldwide |
| Diet | Omnivore |
Hare yawn because they feel sleepy, but it is also a sign of submission.
21. Hedgehog
| Scientific Name | Erinaceinae |
| Type of Animal | Mammal |
| Range | Europe, Asia, and Africa, and in New Zealand |
| Diet | Omnivore |
Hedgehogs yawn as a way to regulate their body temperature, much like humans and other mammals. They do not typically wake up in the middle of the night for this purpose but will instead only yawn during colder times of day (for example, early morning or evening).
22. Hippopotamus
| Scientific Name | Hippopotamus amphibius |
| Type of Animal | Mammal |
| Range | Africa |
| Diet | Omnivore |
Like humans, they do this when they’re tired and want to refresh themselves with oxygen in the brain or if there’s something stressful going on around them that makes them feel nervous. This behavior often comes after their deep sleep.
23. Horses
| Scientific Name | Equus caballus |
| Type of Animal | Mammal |
| Range | Worldwide |
| Diet | Herbivore |
When a horse yawns, it generally does so with just its mouth and not the entire head as seen in humans and some other mammals such as dogs.
However, there are times when we will see horses stretch their mouths outwardly — possibly this is similar to humans yawning or perhaps they open their mouths because of stiffness from holding it closed.
24. Hyena
| Scientific Name | Hyaenidae |
| Type of Animal | Mammal |
| Range | Africa and eastwards through Arabia to India |
| Diet | Carnivore |
Hyenas are among the most interesting and misunderstood animals. They come in two types: spotted hyena, and striped hyena.
Striped Hyenas have a very distinct call that sounds like laughter (hence they’re called laughing “hyenas”), while Spotted Hyenas can often be mistaken for wild dogs.
25. Lions
| Scientific Name | Panthera leo |
| Type of Animal | Mammal |
| Range | Africa |
| Diet | Carnivore |
Lions will only yawn if they are in a natural state, and when they become bored or tired and start to get sleepy.
In captivity, it has been observed that some animals show similar behavior whether a cat does the same thing as a way of communicating with each other before going to sleep for example.
A lion may also open his mouth if they feel threatened. It is an evolutionary behavior that has become a warning sign for other members of the species to stay away, especially during the night when it’s more likely to conserve energy and avoid being noticed by possible predators.
26. Monkeys
| Scientific Name | Simiiformes catarrhini |
| Type of Animal | Mammal |
| Range | Worldwide |
| Diet | Omnivore |
Monkeys yawn just like humans do. That is why it makes them very similar to us even though they are not human beings. Yawning happens because of tiredness or boredom and can be a sign that someone lacks oxygen to the brain.
27. Parrots
| Scientific Name | Psittaciformes |
| Type of Animal | Bird |
| Range | Worldwide |
| Diet | Omnivore |
Parrots yawn like other animals and humans do. Parrots, however, also make a mouth movement that is referred to as “yawn-like” or “stretching”. This behavior which mimics human yawning has been observed in many species of parrot including macaws
28. Peacock
| Scientific Name | Pavo cristatus |
| Type of Animal | Bird |
| Range | India, Africa and Sri Lanka |
| Diet | Omnivore |
Peacocks are known for their vibrant feathers and colorful tail plumes, but they also have a rather strange way of communicating.
When peacocks feel threatened or want to show off to a potential mate, they will let out an odd call that is somewhere between a chirp and deep groan – yep! They “yawn!”
Related Article: How Much Does a Peacock Cost?
29. Pigeon
| Scientific Name | Columbidae |
| Type of Animal | Bird |
| Range | Worldwide |
| Diet | Herbivore |
When pigeons are tired, they will show signs of sleepiness by yawning because it helps them to breathe better and relax the muscles in their beaks.
Pigeon’s breathing slows down when they feel sleepy. It has been observed that this sign spreads among other pigeons as well. They will imitate the yawn of a fellow pigeon and become tired as well.
30. Pigs
| Scientific Name | Sus |
| Type of Animal | Mammal |
| Range | Worldwide |
| Diet | Omnivore |
Pigs aren’t the ones that are most often thought of when someone says “yawn”, but it does happen. Pigs tend to yawn when they’re tired, bored, or annoyed with their surroundings.
Sometimes a pig will yawn as part of its way of expressing annoyance towards another animal behaving in an aggressive manner.
31. Sparrows
| Scientific Name | Passeridae |
| Type of Animal | Bird |
| Range | Worldwide |
| Diet | Omnivore |
Sparrows do not yawn in the way humans and most animals do. Instead, they open their beaks very wide and then close them again quickly to move air over a large area of tissue on the palate.
In birds, gaping is performed by movement of both the hyoid apparatus and tongue, whereas in mammalians the hyoid apparatus remains stable while the glottis opens and closes
32. Squirrels
| Scientific Name | Sciuridae |
| Type of Animal | Mammal |
| Range | Worldwide |
| Diet | Herbivore |
Squirrels do in fact also yawn just like any other mammal out there. They don’t only yawn if they are tired or bored though; sometimes they will also stretch or yawn when they are excited or even scared.
33. Tigers
| Scientific Name | Panthera tigris |
| Type of Animal | Mammal |
| Range | Worldwide |
| Diet | Carnivore |
However, this behavior is not seen regularly in the wild. When it comes to captive animals such as zoo felines, there may be more of an inclination towards yawning due to confinement and stress levels.
Hi, I’m Garreth. Living in South Africa I’ve had the pleasure of seeing most of these animals up close and personal. When I was younger I always wanted to be a game ranger but unfortunately, life happens and now at least I get to write about them and tell you my experiences.