25 Examples of Animals without Tails (A to Z List +Pictures)

Examples of animals without tails include American black bears, bonobo, capybara, centipedes, and chimpanzees.

The animal kingdom has many creatures without tails. Some are born without them, others have their tails lost to injury or disease. Scientists have studied the effects of being tailless on animals and found that it can be both an advantage and a disadvantage.

There is no question that evolution has favored those who lose their tail over generations of life in the wild.

Animals with short torsos have an easier time escaping predators because they don’t need to worry about balancing on two legs while running away from danger (though they may not be as good at climbing trees).

Examples of Animals without Tails

1. American Black Bear

The American black bear is the smallest of the three bears species found in North America, and they are also the most common. Adults weigh between 160 and 600 pounds, measure about five feet long from head to rump, and have a shoulder height of about 3 feet.

Black bears have short fur that ranges in color from light brown to nearly black, depending on the subspecies and location.

One of the most characteristic features of black bears is their long, sickle-shaped claws, which are about two inches in length.

2. Araucana Chickens

These chickens are known for their lack of tails and hard-shelled eggs. They originated in Chile and are a popular breed in the United States.

3. Barbary Macaque

The Barbary macaque is a small monkey with reddish-brown fur, which makes it easily distinguishable from the other members of the genus Macaca. Its face and ears are black in color.

They are some of the few monkeys that do not have tails.

4. Bonobos

The bonobo is a great ape and the closest living relative to humans. They are found in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Bonobos are very social animals and live in groups of up to 150 members. They are known for their sexual promiscuity and use sex as a way to resolve conflicts. Bonobos have no tail.

5. Capybara

The capybara is a rodent that lives in South America. They are the largest rodents in the world and can weigh up to 150 pounds.

Capybaras have short, brown fur and no tail. They spend most of their time in the water, where they eat aquatic plants. Capybaras are considered a threatened species because they are hunted for their meat and fur.

6. Centipedes

Centipedes (Chilopoda) do not have a tail. They are carnivores and they eat insects, spiders, worms, etc…

Related Article: Do Centipedes Eat Snails?

7. Chimpanzees

Chimpanzees do not have tails. They have long, black hair and opposable thumbs. Chimpanzees live in Africa and eat mostly fruit, but also insects, eggs, and meat.

Related Article: Do Chimpanzees Eat Birds?

8. Crabs

Crabs have no tails. These sea creatures are related to shrimp and lobsters, but they’re less than half a foot long when fully grown.

Instead of walking sideways as their relatives do, crabs move around in circles by shuffling forward on the tips of their legs while pulling along the rest of their bodies with one front leg at a time.

Their front claws are especially well-developed, and they use them to grab onto passing food or victims in the case of male crabs that fight each other for female attention.

The fighting is done with their back legs while waving a claw around as if it were an imaginary sword.

9. Frogs 

Frogs have long, slimy tails that help them to swim. Some frogs lose their tails as they grow older, but others never grow a tail in the first place.

10. Gibbons

These animals are normally found in Southeast Asia. They can be recognized by their long arms and legs, which they use to swing from tree to tree as well as for social interactions with other gibbons.

Gibbons typically live alone or in small groups that consist of a male, several females, and the offspring.

11. Gorillas

Gorillas are the largest of the living primates with no tails. They are closely related to humans, and their DNA is 98% similar to ours.

Gorillas live in Africa and can be found in a number of different habitats, from rain forests to dry woodlands. There are two species of gorilla—the mountain gorilla and the lowland gorilla.

12. Guinea Pigs

Guinea pigs are small rodents that were originally from South America. They have short, smooth fur and no tail. Guinea pigs make great pets and are very friendly. They come in a variety of colors, including brown, black, white, and spotted.

13. Humans

One of the most distinctive features of human beings is that we lack tails. Other primates, such as gorillas and chimpanzees, have long tails.

But humans evolved from a tail-less ancestor about six million years ago. Scientists aren’t sure why this happened, but they think it might have something to do with our upright posture.

Without a tail to help us balance, we had to evolve other ways of staying upright.

14. Hyrax

The hyrax is a small, four-legged mammal that resembles a hedgehog. It has no tail and is found in Africa and the Middle East.

Hyraxes are herbivores and eat leaves, fruit, flowers, and bark. They live in colonies of up to 100 animals. Hyraxes are very social animals and communicate with each other using a variety of vocalizations.

15. Jellyfish

Jellyfish are the most primitive animals in the ocean. They don’t have a backbone, heart, or brain. They do not have a tail but do have tentacles to catch their food.

16. Kiwi

The kiwi is a flightless bird that is found in New Zealand. This bird has no tail feathers, which makes it unique among birds. The kiwi uses its wings to help it move around, and its strong legs allow it to run quickly.

Kiwis are brown or black in color, and they have a long beak that is used for eating insects and other small animals.

17. Koalas

7Koalas are one of the few animals that have no tails. They use their strong arms to climb and hold onto trees. Koalas eat mostly eucalyptus leaves, which give them a lot of energy. They can be found in Australia and parts of New Guinea.

18. Manx Cat

The Manx Cat is a breed of cat that has no tails. This is because the cats have a genetic mutation that causes them to lack a tail.

The Manx Cat is considered to be a natural breed, meaning that it does not come from any specific line of cats. Instead, the Manx Cat is believed to have originated on the Isle of Man, which is located in the British Isles.

19. Millipedes

The millipede is a type of arthropod belonging to the group with no tails. The number and variety of species, which can reach lengths up to 14 inches (35 cm), have earned them the name “thousand-leggers.”

Centipedes do not have heads: Centipedes are typically slender, elongated animals that can be distinguished from millipedes by their number of legs (one pair per body segment in centipedes, two pairs per body segment in millipedes). Some tropical species have relatively large heads.

20. Octopus

Octopuses don’t have tails. Instead, they have eight long, flexible arms that they use to swim and catch prey. These arms can also be used for defense, as the octopus can wrap them around an attacker to hold them at bay. The octopus’ lack of a tail makes it very agile in the water.

21. Orangutans

The orangutan is the largest arboreal mammal in the world. They are found in the rainforests of Borneo and Sumatra.

These animals have long reddish-brown hair, and males can weigh up to 200 pounds. Orangutans are the only Great Ape that does not have a tail.

22. Siamangs

Siamangs are a type of gibbon, and they are the largest of all the gibbons. They live in Southeast Asia, and they mostly eat fruits and insects. Unlike other gibbons, Siamangs do not have tails. This is because their tails are completely absorbed into their bodies while they are still embryos.

Some scientists believe that Siamangs are one of the most intelligent apes in the world, and their brains have even been compared to that of humans.

23. Spiders

Spiders are some of the animals without tails. They have eight legs and spin webs to catch their prey. Some people are afraid of spiders, but they are actually very helpful in controlling the population of pests like mosquitoes.

24. Starfish

Starfish have no arms or legs, but they do have five “arms” that extend from the central disc of their bodies. Sea urchins are another animal without tails because they don’t possess any structures similar to limbs and/or digits such as you to find in many other animals, including humans (think arms and legs).

25. Toads

Toads are a common sight in gardens and parks, and while they may look cute, they can be quite dangerous. Toads have no tails, which means that they cannot use them to defend themselves against predators. As a result, toads rely on their toxic skin secretions to deter predators.

Garreth

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.