List of mammals of Georgia (U.S. state)
This is a full list of the mammals native to the U.S state of Georgia.
The following tags are used to highlight each species' conservation status as assessed by the International Union for Conservation of Nature:
E | Extinct | No reasonable doubt that the last individual has died. |
EW | Extinct in the wild | Known only to survive in captivity or as a naturalized populations well outside its previous range. |
Ex | Extirpated | The species no longer can be found in Georgia, but can be found outside the state. |
CR | Critically endangered | The species is in imminent risk of extinction in the wild. |
EN | Endangered | The species is facing an extremely high risk of extinction in the wild. |
VU | Vulnerable | The species is facing a high risk of extinction in the wild. |
NT | Near threatened | The species does not meet any of the criteria that would categorize it as risking extinction but it is likely to do so in the future. |
LC | Least concern | There are no current identifiable risks to the species. |
DD | Data deficient | There is inadequate information to make an assessment of the risks to this species. |
I | Introduced | The species is not native to the state of Georgia, but was artificially introduced by humans. |
Some species were assessed using an earlier set of criteria. Species assessed using this system have the following instead of near threatened and least concern categories:
LR/cd | Lower risk/conservation dependent | Species which were the focus of conservation programs and may have moved into a higher risk category if that program was discontinued. |
LR/nt | Lower risk/near threatened | Species which are close to being classified as vulnerable but are not the subject of conservation programmes. |
LR/lc | Lower risk/least concern | Species for which there are no identifiable risks. |
Subclass: Theria
Infraclass: Metatheria
Marsupials are an infraclass of pouched mammals that was once more widely distributed. Today they are found primarily in isolated or formerly isolated continents of Gondwanan origin. Georgia's only extant marsupial, the Virginia opossum is a relatively recent immigrant from South America. South American marsupials are thought to be ancestral to those of Australia and elsewhere.
Order: Didelphimorphia
- Family: Didelphidae (American opossums)
- Subfamily: Didelphinae
- Genus: Didelphis
- Virginia opossum, Didelphis virginiana LC
- Genus: Didelphis
- Subfamily: Didelphinae
Infraclass: Eutheria
Superorder: Afrotheria
Order: Sirenia (manatees and dugongs)
Sirenia is an order of fully aquatic, herbivorous mammals that inhabit rivers, estuaries, coastal marine waters, swamps, and marine wetlands. All four species are endangered. They evolved about 50 million years ago, and their closest living relatives are elephants. Manatees are the only extant afrotherians in the Americas. However, a number proboscid species, some of which survived until the arrival of Paleo-Indians, once inhabited the region. Mammoths and mastodons all formerly lived in Georgia.
- Family: Trichechidae
- Genus: Trichechus
- West Indian manatee, Trichechus manatus VU
- Genus: Trichechus
Superorder: Xenarthra
Order: Cingulata (armadillos)
Armadillos are small mammals with a bony armored shell. There is only one extant species present in Georgia. Their much larger relatives, the pampatheres and glyptodonts, once lived in North and South America but went extinct following the appearance of humans.
- Family: Dasypodidae (long-nosed armadillos)
- Subfamily: Dasypodinae
- Genus: Dasypus
- Nine-banded armadillo, Dasypus novemcinctus LC
- Genus: Dasypus
- Subfamily: Dasypodinae
Magnorder: Boreoeutheria
Superorder: Euarchontoglires
Order: Rodentia
Rodents make up the largest order of mammals, with over 40% of mammalian species. They have two incisors in the upper and lower jaw which grow continually and must be kept short by gnawing. Most rodents are small though the capybara can weigh up to 45 kg (100 lb).
- Suborder: Castorimorpha
- Family: Castoridae (beavers)
- Genus: Castor
- American beaver, Castor canadensis
- Genus: Castor
- Family: Geomyidae (pocket gophers)
- Genus: Geomys
- Southeastern pocket gopher, Geomys pinetis
- Genus: Geomys
- Family: Castoridae (beavers)
- Suborder: Hystricomorpha
- Family: Myocastoridae
- Suborder: Sciuromorpha
- Family: Sciuridae (squirrels)
- Subfamily: Sciurinae
- Tribe: Sciurini
- Genus: Sciurus
- Eastern gray squirrel, Sciurus carolinensis
- Eastern fox squirrel, Sciurus niger
- Genus Tamiasciurus
- American red squirrel, Tamiasciuris hudsonicus
- Genus: Sciurus
- Tribe: Pteromyini
- Genus: Glaucomys
- Southern flying squirrel, Glaucomys volans
- Genus: Glaucomys
- Tribe: Sciurini
- Subfamily: Xerinae
- Tribe: Marmotini
- Genus: Tamias
- Eastern chipmunk, Tamias striatus
- Genus: Marmota
- Woodchuck, Marmota monax
- Genus: Tamias
- Tribe: Marmotini
- Subfamily: Sciurinae
- Family: Sciuridae (squirrels)
- Suborder: Myomorpha
- Family: Cricetidae
- Subfamily: Arvicolinae
- Genus: Ondatra
- Muskrat, Ondatra zibethicus
- Genus: Microtus
- Meadow vole, Microtus pennsylvanicus
- Woodland vole, Microtus pinetorum
- Genus: Myodes
- Southern red-backed vole, Myodes gapperi
- Genus: Neofiber
- Round-tailed muskrat, Neofiber alleni
- Genus: Ondatra
- Subfamily: Neotominae
- Genus: Neotoma
- Eastern woodrat, Neotoma floridana
- Genus: Ochrotomys
- Golden mouse, Ochrotomys nuttalli
- Genus: Peromyscus
- Cotton mouse, Peromyscus gossypinus
- White-footed mouse, Peromyscus leucopus
- Deer mouse, Peromyscus maniculatus
- Oldfield mouse, Peromyscus polionotus
- Genus: Reithrodontomys
- Eastern harvest mouse, Reithrodontomys humulis
- Genus: Neotoma
- Subfamily: Sigmodontinae
- Genus: Oryzomys
- Marsh rice rat, Oryzomys palustris
- Genus: Sigmodon
- Hispid cotton rat, Sigmodon hispidus
- Genus: Oryzomys
- Subfamily: Arvicolinae
- Family: Dipodidae
- Subfamily: Zapodinae
- Genus Napaeozapus
- Woodland jumping mouse, Napaeozapus insignis
- Genus: Zapus
- Woodland jumping mouse, Zapus hudsonius
- Genus Napaeozapus
- Subfamily: Zapodinae
- Family: Muridae (mice, rats, voles, gerbils, hamsters, etc.)
- Family: Cricetidae
Superorder: Laurasiatheria
Order: Artiodactyla
Family: Bovidae
- Bison bison, American bison Ex
Family: Cervidae
- Dama dama, fallow deer I
- Odocoileus virginianus, white-tailed deer
- Cervus canadensis, elk Ex
Family: Suidae
- Sus scrofa, wild boar I
Order: Carnivora
Family: Canidae
- Canis latrans, coyote
- Canis lupus, gray wolf Ex
- Canis rufus, red wolf Ex
- Urocyon cinereoargenteus, gray fox
- Vulpes vulpes, red fox
Family: Felidae
- Lynx rufus, bobcat
- Puma concolor, mountain lion Ex
Family: Mephitidae
- Mephitis mephitis, striped skunk
- Spilogale putorius, eastern spotted skunk
Family: Mustelidae
- Lontra canadensis, North American river otter
- Mustela frenata, long-tailed weasel
- Mustela nivalis, least weasel
- Mustela vison, American mink
Family: Phocidae
- Cystophora cristata, hooded seal
- Phoca vitulina, harbor seal
Family: Procyonidae
- Procyon lotor, raccoon
Family: Ursidae
- Ursus americanus, American black bear
Order: Cetacea
Family: Balaenidae
- Eubalaena glacialis, north Atlantic right whale
Family: Eschrichtiidae
- Eschrichtius robustus, gray whale Ex
Family: Balaenopteridae
- Balaenoptera brydei, Bryde's whale
- Balaenoptera physalus, fin whale
- Balaenoptera musculus, blue whale
- Balaenoptera acutorostrata, common minke whale
- Balaenoptera borealis, sei whale
- Megaptera novaeangliae, humpback whale
Family: Delphinidae
- Feresa attenuata, pygmy killer whale
- Globicephala macrorhynchus, short-finned pilot whale
- Pseudorca crassidens, false killer whale
- Stenella coeruleoalba, striped dolphin
- Stenella frontalis, Atlantic spotted dolphin
- Stenella attenuata, pantropical spotted dolphin
- Stenella clymene, clymene dolphin
- Stenella longirostris, spinner dolphin
- Steno bredanensis, rough-toothed dolphin
- Lagenodelphis hosei, Fraser's dolphin
- Tursiops truncatus, common bottlenose dolphin
- Delphinus delphis, short-beaked common dolphin
- Peponocephala electra, melon-headed whale
- Orcinus orca, killer whale
Family: Physeteridae
- Physeter macrocephalus, sperm whale
Family: Kogiidae
- Kogia breviceps, pygmy sperm whale
- Kogia simus, dwarf sperm whale
Family: Ziphiidae
- Mesoplodon densirostris, Blainville's beaked whale
- Mesoplodon europaeus, Gervais' beaked whale
- Mesoplodon mirus, True's beaked whale
- Ziphius cavirostris, Cuvier's beaked whale
Order: Chiroptera
Family: Molossidae
- Tadarida brasiliensis, Mexican free-tailed bat
Family: Vespertilionidae
- Corynorhinus rafinesquii, Rafinesque's big-eared bat
- Eptesicus fuscus, big brown bat
- Lasionycteris noctivagans, silver-haired bat
- Lasiurus borealis, eastern red bat
- Lasiurus cinereus, hoary bat
- Lasiurus intermedius, northern yellow bat
- Lasiurus seminolus, Seminole bat
- Myotis austroriparius, southeastern myotis
- Myotis grisescens, gray bat
- Myotis leibii, eastern small-footed myotis
- Myotis lucifugus, little brown bat
- Myotis septentrionalis, northern long-eared myotis
- Myotis sodalis, Indiana bat
- Nycticeius humeralis, evening bat
- Pipistrellus subflavus, eastern pipistrelle
Order: Eulipotyphla
Family: Soricidae
- Blarina brevicauda, northern short-tailed shrew
- Blarina carolinensis, southern short-tailed shrew
- Cryptotis parva, least shrew
- Sorex cinereus, cinereus shrew
- Sorex dispar, long-tailed shrew
- Sorex fumeus, smoky shrew
- Sorex hoyi, American pygmy shrew
- Sorex longirostris, southeastern shrew
- Sorex palustris, American water shrew
Family: Talpidae
- Condylura cristata, star-nosed mole
- Parascalops breweri, hairy-tailed mole
- Scalopus aquaticus, eastern mole
Order: Lagomorpha
Family: Leporidae
- Sylvilagus aquaticus, swamp rabbit
- Sylvilagus floridanus, eastern cottontail
- Sylvilagus obscurus, Appalachian cottontail
- Sylvilagus palustris, marsh rabbit