Urban Animals
Please note that this is a partial guide listing several of the most common urban animals. This is not comprehensive, and you may find animals that are not in the guide.
Birds
American Robin
The Robin is a common bird in neighborhoods, and is actually the state bird of Michigan. It is easily recognizable by its red belly.
Blue Jay
Blue Jays are rather large, noisy birds with bright blue feathers and a white belly. They are some of the smartest backyard birds and are great problem solvers.
Photo by Mfd/ GFDL, CC-BY 3.0 (Wikimedia).
Cardinal
Cardinals are striking birds. The boys are bright red with a black "mask" and an orange beak, while girls are brown with red on their wings, tail, and head crest.
Photo by Kaitlyn Tatro.
Sparrow
While there are several different species of sparrow, they look rather similar and can be hard to tell apart. Generally, sparrows are small brown birds with brown, black, or reddish markings. The most common urban sparrow is the European House Sparrow (pictured).
Photo by Mathias Appel (Wikimedia).
Pigeon
Pigeons are a bird originally from Europe and Asia. Now they are very common across the United States and like to eat food from our trash and garbage.
Photo by Josh215 (Wikimedia).
Mourning Dove
Mourning Doves are closely related to pigeons and look kind of like brown pigeons. They eat food off of the ground and are often found in flocks wandering around underneath bird feeders.
Photo by Arnold C (Buchanan-Hermit) (Wikimedia).
Finches
Like sparrows, finches are small birds that can sometimes be hard to tell apart. The most common finches in southeast Michigan are the House finch (bottom and center), the Purple finch, and the American Goldfinch (top).
Chickadee
Chickadees are small songbirds that eat small seeds and insects. They are easily recognizable by their black "hat" and "beard."
Photo by Talshiarr (Wikimedia).
Starling
Starlings are another bird from Europe that were introduced into the US in the 1800s. They are now one of the most common backyard birds in the Eastern US.
Photo by CheepShot/ cc-by-2.0 (Wikimedia).
Grackle
Grackles are large, black birds with shiny heads. They flock to neighborhoods (and bird feeders) in the spring and fall.
Photo by Andy Reago & Chrissy McClarren/ cc-by-2.0 (Wikimedia).
Downy Woodpecker
Downy Woodpeckers are small woodpeckers that frequent bird feeders and urban trees. They have a characteristic black and white pattern, and boys have a small red patch on the back of their head.
Photo by Kaitlyn Tatro.
Red-Bellied Woodpecker
A larger woodpecker, the Red-Bellied Woodpecker has a bright red "hat" and zebra stripes on its back. Its belly is also white despite its name.
Photo by Kaitlyn Tatro.
Hawk
Hawks are large birds sometimes mistaken for eagles. While they are not extremely common, hawks will come to neighborhoods to hunt the birds and mammals that live there. There are several different types of hawk, but they can sometimes be hard to tell apart.
Canada Goose
If you are by a body of water, Canada Geese are common birds. They will paddle around on any water body and eat the grass from the surrounding areas.
Mallard
Like Canada Geese, Mallards are attracted to almost all water bodies. The boys have a bright green head (left), while the girls are brown all over (right).
Mammals
Squirrel
Squirrels are common urban animals that can be found in just about every city across the country. While there are a few different types of squirrel, they all have long, bushy tails and eat mostly seeds and nuts.
Chipmunk
Chipmunks are related to squirrels, but do not have the big, bushy tails that squirrels do. Chipmunks are brownish orange with black or brown stripes. They live in holes in the ground.
Opossum
Opossums look like large white rats, but they are actually more closely related to Kangaroos. Although they may look strange, Opossums are actually good for the environment, as they eat lots of bugs that we don't like.
Photo by Risssa (Wikimedia).
Raccoon
Raccoons generally come out at night and like to raid people's trash cans for food.
Skunk
Skunks are nocturnal animals that live in many cities. Like raccoons, they will eat food from our trash. Their famous smell is only used in self defense.
Photo from Wikimedia.
Mouse
Mice can be found in almost any type of habitat in an urban area. However, they are secretive and hard to find.
Photo by NPS (Wikimedia).
Insects, Spiders, and Other Invertebrates
Bee
Bees are little flying insects that help pollinate plants and keep our gardens and forests healthy. Bees do not sting people very often, and many bees can't sting at all. Bees come in a variety of colors, including yellow, black, green, and white.
Photo by Kaitlyn Tatro.
Wasp
Wasps look a lot like bees, but have a skinny "waist". Wasps are predators that eat other insects or scavenge our leftover food.
Photo by Kaitlyn Tatro.
Fly
Flies look a lot like bees and wasps. However, they do not sting and most do not bite people.
Photo by Kaitlyn Tatro.
Mosquito
Mosquitoes are a special type of fly. Female mosquitoes will suck animal blood (including human blood), but the boys will drink nectar from flowers.
Photo by James Gathany/ CDC (Wikimedia).
Grasshopper
Grashoppers have long bodies with very long back legs to help them jump long distances. They come in many colors, including green, brown, gray, red, orange, and more.
Cricket
Crickets are relatives of grasshoppers and still have large back legs to help them jump. However, crickets stay closer to the ground and are generally black or brown.
Photo by lastknight (Wikipedia).
Ant
Ants come in various colors and sizes. They are easily recognizable by their body shape. Some ants may have wings during the late spring and summer.
Photo by Kaitlyn Tatro.
Dragonfly
There are many different types of dragonflies that come in every color of the rainbow. All dragonflies hold their wings out like an airplane when they are not flying; damselflies, a close relative, hold their wings straight up.
Beetle
Beetles are insects with hard shells on their backs. There are thousands of kinds of beetles, and they come in many shapes and colors.
Butterfly
Butterflies come in many shapes, sizes, and colors. They all start as caterpillars, which look like worms.
Photo by Kaitlyn Tatro.
Moth
Moths are closely related to butterflies, but are usually fuzzier and less colorful. Like butterflies, moths start as caterpillars.
Photo by Vicki (Wikimedia).
Spider
There are hundreds of kinds of spiders. However, they all have eight legs and two visible body parts. Some build webs while some run around the ground and hunt. No common spiders in Michigan are deadly.
Photo by Kaitlyn Tatro.
Daddy-long-legs
Although they have eight legs, Daddy-long-legs are not spiders. They have one body part instead of two. Daddy-long-legs can not hurt people.
Photo by Insects Unlocked (Wikimedia).
Roly-Poly
Roly-polies are not insects; they are actually closely related to crabs! Roly-polies are usually brown or gray with hard shells. Some can roll into balls, some cannot.
Photo from Wikimedia.
Millipede
Millipedes have hard shells and many legs. They live underground and eat plants.
Photo by USFWS (Wikimedia).=
Centipede
Centipedes also have lots of legs, but they do not have shells like millipedes. Centipedes also live underground, but they eat smaller animals.
Photo from Wikimedia.
Earthworm
Earthworms live underground and eat decaying things. They will come to the surface after it rains.
Photo by Collete Kessler/ USDA NRCS (Wikimedia).
Reptiles and Amphibians
Garter Snake
Garter snakes are common throughout the United States and can be found in rural and urban areas. Garter snakes can be many colors, but usually have three light stripes on their back and sides. Garter snakes are not dangerous to people.
Green Frog
Green frogs can be found by many water bodies like lakes or ponds. Their call sounds like someone plucking on a rubber band.
American Toad
Toads are related to frogs, but they do not need to be as close to water. American toads have bumpy, brownish skin. Toads can not give you warts.
Turtle
If you are by a pond, there may be turtles nearby. There are several kinds of common turtle, but the most common are the Red-eared Slider and the Painted Turtle.
Red-eared Slider Photo by Lugiadoom (Wikimedia). Painted Turtle Photo by USFWS (Wikimedia).
All photos public domain unless license otherwise specified. If no credit is given, photo was taken by Griffin Bray.