Land Animals (Meaning and Explanation)

We explain what land animals are, the history of their origin and development, their types, characteristics and multiple examples.

terrestrial animals reptiles chameleon — Land animals have skins or plumage that protect them from the outside.

What are the land animals?

In biology, we speak of terrestrial animals to refer to those animals that live preferentially or entirely on land that is, on the continental surface of the planet, unlike aquatic animals, which live mostly in water. Terrestrial animals are physically and organically adapted to life away from water.

In the beginnings of the planet, Life began in water, and spread to the Earth's surface about 500 million years ago approximately, when the first vascular plants left the water. The first animal forms followed about 70 million years later, consisting mostly of arthropods and bony vertebrates.

Initially, animals could only move over land from one aquatic habitat to another for brief periods. But the feeding and territory opportunities of the continental surface, and the arduous competition within the water, motivated adaptation to dry terrain. The process of adaptation of animals to the emerged land is called terrestrialization.

Currently, terrestrial animals constitute an important percentage of life on Earth, highly diversified and almost as abundant as marine life. The highest density of these animals is found in forests and humid tropical jungles. However, it has adapted to practically all climates, habitats and regions of the globe.

Characteristics of land animals

land animals elephants skeleton — Land animals have stronger skeletons to support their weight.

Although terrestrial animals are very diverse among themselves, they share certain minimal traits of adaptation to the terrestrial environment, even though said adaptation may occur through different mechanisms and organs. Thus, the minimum traits of terrestrial animals are:

Breathing The gills and other aquatic respiration mechanisms were left behind, in favor of gas exchange. Oxygen is extracted from the air through the lungs, tracheas, or directly through the skin.
Robust skeletons Since the body weight is less in water than in air, terrestrial animals require strong, non-cartilaginous bone structures, especially in the limbs that support them. In the case of arthropods, the skeleton is on the outside (exoskeleton) and in the case of vertebrates, it is on the inside (endoskeleton). There are exceptions to this rule, in the case of simple beings with an elongated body such as worms, which do not have a skeleton.
Senses adapted to the dry Sight, smell and hearing, essential senses for hunting prey or defending against predators, distinguishing one from the other, must in the case of terrestrial animals adapt to the air, where sound waves move more slowly and There is much more abundance of light.
Prevention of desiccation Being in an environment where moisture is lost instead of gained, terrestrial animals must have skin adapted to prevent moisture loss or with endogenous mechanisms to moisturize it, as well as structures that protect it from cold or heat, such as hair, feathers, etc. For this same reason, terrestrial animals that lay eggs adapted them to have a resistant shell that prevents desiccation.

You may be interested: Warm Blooded Animals

Classification of land animals

land animals squirrel monkey — Arboreal terrestrial animals live mainly on the branches of trees.

It is never easy to classify land animals, since their only truly common aspect is living out of water. But many of them have reproductive cycles that still require it, either going through an aquatic larval phase, or having to deposit their eggs in water, etc.

Thus, the edges (phylum) properly terrestrial in the world there are ten: flatworms, nemertines, nematodes, rotifers, tardigrades, onychophorans, arthropods, mollusks, annelids and chordates.

And depending on their specific habitat, we can distinguish between:

Surface animals Those that inhabit the earth's surface.
Underground animals Those that live in the inner layers of the earth's surface.
Arboreal animals Those who make life in the branches of trees.
Rock animals Those who live in the rocks.
Sand-like animals Those that inhabit sands and gravels of different types.
Troglobite animals Those who live inside caves.
Flying animals Those equipped with wings and that can alternate between the earth's surface, trees, mountains, etc.

Examples of land animals

land animals birds ostrich — Although it cannot fly, the ostrich can run at speeds of up to 70km/h.

Some detailed examples of land animals are:

The elephant (African Loxodonta) Originally from Africa and India, this quadruped mammal of enormous size and a vegetarian diet is famous for its long trunk with which it can pick up objects and even bathe in water holes. Many ancient civilizations used them as living war tanks.
The lion (panthera leo) The largest feline carnivore on the planet and the king of the African Savannah, this enormous animal with yellowish fur is a natural predator that is in danger of extinction. Males have a characteristic dark mane.
The giraffe (Giraffa camelopardalis) Known for its striking yellow fur with geometric brown spots, and for its long neck that allows it to eat the highest leaves of the trees, this four-legged African animal is one of the most exotic known to humanity.
Panda bear (Ailuropoda melanoleuca) One of the bears with the most curious fur in the world: black and white, and with an almost exclusive diet of bamboo, it is perhaps the most famous Asian animal on the verge of extinction. They tend to be slow, sleepy and comfortable, and weigh between 70 and 100 kilograms.
Komodo Dragon (Varanus komodoensis) This enormous reptile native to Indonesia can measure more than two meters in length and weigh almost 90 kilos. It has a very dangerous bite, given that it has a huge amount of bacteria in its mouth.
Ostrich (Struthio camelus) Large running bird, native to Africa and some regions of the Middle East, which is capable of reaching 70 kmph in a race. It has small wings that are not used for flight, and a long, featherless neck.
Orangutan (I put pygmaeus) A species of orange primates with long hair, highly intelligent and with arboreal habits, they are closely related to human beings evolutionarily. Solitary in habit, they have an almost exclusive diet of fruits, leaves and roots.