Editing Amazon basin (section)

== Wildlife ==
[[File:Jaguar in Pantanal Brazil 1 (cropped).jpg|thumb|[[Jaguar]] in the area of Miranda near Amazon basin]]

=== Mammals ===
More than 1,400 species of [[mammal]]s are found in the Amazon, the majority of which are species of [[bat]]s and [[rodent]]s. Its larger mammals include the [[jaguar]], [[ocelot]], [[capybara]], [[Cougar|puma]] and [[South American tapir]].

=== Birds ===
{{Main|Birds of the Amazon}}

About 1,500 [[bird]] species inhabit the Amazon basin.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://rainforests.mongabay.com/0305.htm |title=Diversities of Image |last=Butler |first=Rhett |date=31 July 2012 |website=Mongabay.com |access-date=20 December 2014}}</ref> The [[biodiversity]] of the Amazon and the sheer number of diverse bird species is given by the number of different bird families that reside in these humid forests. An example of such would be the [[cotinga]] family, to which the [[Guianan cock-of-the-rock]] belong. Birds such as [[toucan]]s, and [[hummingbird]]s are also found here. [[Macaw]]s are famous for duck gathering by the hundreds along the clay cliffs of the Amazon River. In the western Amazon hundreds of [[macaw]]s and other [[parrot]]s descend to exposed river banks to consume clay on an almost daily basis,<ref>Munn, C. A. 1994. Macaws: winged rainbows. National Geographic, 185, 118–140.</ref> the exception being rainy days.<ref>{{cite journal | author = Brightsmith D. J. | year = 2004 | title = Effects of weather on parrot geophagy in Tambopata, Peru | journal = Wilson Bulletin | volume = 116 | issue = 2| pages = 134–145 | doi=10.1676/03-087b| s2cid = 83509448 | url = https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/part/209843 }}</ref>

=== Reptiles ===
The [[green anaconda]] inhabits the shallow waters of the Amazon and the [[emerald tree boa]] and [[boa constrictor]] live in the Amazonian tree tops.

Many [[reptile]] species are illegally collected and exported for the international pet trade. Live animals are the fourth largest commodity in the smuggling industry after drugs, diamonds and weapons.<ref>{{cite web|title=Amazon Reptiles|url=https://rainforests.mongabay.com/amazon/reptiles.html|website=Mongabay.com}}</ref>

=== Amphibians ===
More than 1,500 species of [[amphibian]]s swim and are found in the Amazon. Unlike temperate [[frog]]s which are mostly limited to [[habitat]]s near the water, tropical frogs are most abundant in the trees and relatively few are found near bodies of water on the [[forest floor]]. The reason for this occurrence is quite simple: frogs must always keep their [[skin]] moist since almost half of their [[Respiration (physiology)|respiration]] is carried out through their skin. The high [[humidity]] of the rainforest and frequent [[rainstorm]]s gives tropical frogs infinitely more freedom to move into the trees and escape the many [[predator]]s of rainforest waters. The differences between temperate and tropical frogs extend beyond their habitat.

=== Fish ===
[[File:Gregory Moine - Red bellied Piranha (by).jpg|thumb|[[Red-bellied piranha]] (''Pygocentrus nattereri'') is a species of [[piranha]]. This species lives in the Amazon River basin, coastal rivers of northeastern Brazil, and the basins of the [[Paraguay River|Paraguay]], [[Paraná River|Paraná]] and [[Essequibo River]]s.]]

About 2,500 [[fish]] species are known from the Amazon basin and it is estimated that more than 1,000 additional [[undescribed species]] exist.<ref name="Junk2007">{{citation |author1=Junk, W.J. |author2=M.G.M. Soares |author3=P.B. Bayley | year=2007 | title=Freshwater fishes of the Amazon River Basin: their biodiversity, fisheries, and habitats | journal=Aquatic Ecosystem Health and Management | volume=10 | issue=2 | pages=153–173 | doi=10.1080/14634980701351023 |s2cid=83788515 }}</ref> This is more than any other river basin on Earth, and Amazonia is the center of diversity for [[Neotropical fish]]es.<ref name="AlbertReis2011">{{cite book|author1=James S. Albert|author2=Roberto E. Reis|title=Historical Biogeography of Neotropical Freshwater Fishes|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_Suu7a-ERdMC&pg=PA308|year=2011|isbn=978-0-520-26868-5|page=308|publisher=University of California Press }}</ref> About 45% (more than 1,000 species) of the known Amazonian fish species are [[Endemism|endemic]] to the basin.<ref name=Reis2016>{{cite journal | author = Reis R.E. | author2 = Albert J.S. | author3 = Di Dario F. | author4 = Mincarone M.M. | author5 = Petry P. | author6 = Rocha L.A. | year = 2016 | title = Fish biodiversity and conservation in South America | journal = Journal of Fish Biology | volume = 89 | issue = 1| pages = 12–47 | doi=10.1111/jfb.13016| pmid = 27312713 | url = https://zenodo.org/record/896303 | doi-access = free }}</ref> The remarkable species richness can in part be explained by the large differences between the various parts of the Amazon basin, resulting in many fish species that are endemic to small regions. For example, fauna in [[Clearwater river (river type)|clearwater rivers]] differs from fauna in [[Whitewater river (river type)|white]] and [[blackwater river]]s, fauna in slow moving sections show distinct differences compared to that in [[rapids]], fauna in small streams differ from that in major rivers, and fauna in shallow sections show distinct differences compared to that in deep parts.<ref>{{cite journal | author = Stewart D. J. | author2 = Ibarra M. | year = 2002 | title = Comparison of Deep-River and Adjacent Sandy-Beach Fish Assemblages in the Napo River basin, Eastern Ecuador | journal = Copeia | volume = 2002 | issue = 2| pages = 333–343 | doi=10.1643/0045-8511(2002)002[0333:codraa]2.0.co;2| s2cid = 86617207 }}</ref><ref>Mendonça, F. P., W. E. Magnusson, J. Zuanon and C. M. Taylor. (2005) ''Relationships between habitat characteristics and fish assemblages in small streams of Central Amazonia.'' Copeia 2005(4): 751–764</ref><ref name=Duncan>Duncan, W.P.; and Fernandes, M.N. (2010). ''Physicochemical characterization of the white, black, and clearwater rivers of the Amazon Basin and its implications on the distribution of freshwater stingrays (Chondrichthyes, Potamotrygonidae).'' PanamJAS 5(3): 454–464.</ref> By far the most diverse orders in the Amazon are [[Characiformes]] (43% of total fish species in the Amazon) and [[Siluriformes]] (39%), but other groups with many species include [[Cichlidae]] (6%) and [[Gymnotiformes]] (3%).<ref name="Junk2007"/>

In addition to major differences in behavior and ecology, Amazonian fish vary extensively in form and size. The largest, the [[arapaima]] and [[piraiba]] can reach {{convert|3|m|ft|abbr=on}} or more in length and up to {{convert|200|kg|lb|abbr=on}} in weight, making them some of the [[List of largest fish|largest strict freshwater fish]] in the world.<ref>{{FishBase | genus = Arapaima | species = gigas | month =September | year = 2017}}</ref><ref>{{FishBase | genus = Brachyplatystoma | species = filamentosum | month =September | year = 2017}}</ref> The [[bull shark]] and [[common sawfish]], which have been recorded far up the Amazon, may reach even greater sizes, but they are [[euryhaline]] and often seen in marine waters.<ref>{{FishBase | genus = Carcharhinus | species = leucas | month =September | year = 2017}}</ref><ref>{{FishBase | genus = Pristis | species = pristis | month =September | year = 2017}}</ref> In contrast to the giants, there are Amazonian fish from several families that are less than {{convert|2|cm|in|abbr=on|1}} long. The smallest are likely the ''[[Leptophilypnion]]'' sleeper gobies, which do not surpass {{convert|1|cm|in|abbr=on|1}} and are among the [[smallest fish]] in the world.<ref>{{cite journal| author=Roberts, T.R. | year=2013 | title=Leptophilypnion, a new genus with two new species of tiny central Amazonian gobioid fishes (Teleostei, Eleotridae)| journal=Aqua, International Journal of Ichthyology | volume=19 | issue=2 | pages=85–98}}</ref>

The Amazon supports very large fisheries, including well-known species of large catfish (such as ''[[Brachyplatystoma]]'', which perform long breeding [[Fish migration|migrations]] up the Amazon), [[arapaima]] and [[tambaqui]], and is also home to many species that are important in the [[aquarium trade]], such as the [[Oscar (fish)|oscar]], [[Discus (fish)|discus]], [[Pterophyllum|angelfish]], [[Corydoras|''Corydoras'' catfish]] and [[neon tetra]].<ref name="Junk2007"/> Although the true danger they represent often is greatly exaggerated, the Amazon basin is home to several feared fish species such as [[piranha]]s (including the famous [[Red-bellied piranha|red-bellied]]), [[electric eel]], [[river stingray]]s and [[Candiru (fish)|candiru]].<ref name="Sleen2017">{{cite book | veditors = van der Sleen P, Albert JS | year=2017 | title=Field Guide to the Fishes of the Amazon, Orinoco, and Guianas | publisher=Princeton University Press | isbn=978-0691170749 }}</ref>

Several [[cavefish]] species in the genus ''[[Phreatobius]]'' are found in the Amazon, as is the cave-dwelling ''[[Astroblepus pholeter]]'' in the far western part of the basin (Andean region).<ref name="Aldemarp2001">{{cite book | editor=Romero, Aldemaro | title=The Biology of Hypogean Fishes | year=2001| series=Developments in environmental biology of fishes | volume=21 | isbn=978-1402000768 }}</ref> The [[Tocantins River|Tocantins]] basin, arguably not part of the Amazon basin, has several other cavefish species.<ref name="Aldemarp2001"/> The deeper part of the major Amazonian rivers are always dark and a few species have adaptions similar to cavefish (reduced pigment and eyes). Among these are the knifefish ''[[Compsaraia]]'' and ''[[Orthosternarchus]]'', some ''[[Cetopsis]]'' whale catfish (especially ''C. oliveirai''), some ''[[Xyliphius]]'' and ''[[Micromyzon]]'' banjo catfish,<ref>{{cite book|last1= Fenolio|first1=Danté|year=2016|title=Life in the Dark: Illuminating Biodiversity in the Shadowy Haunts of Planet Earth|publisher=Johns Hopkins University Press|isbn=978-1421418636}}</ref> and the loricariid catfish ''[[Loricaria]] spinulifera'', ''L. pumila'', ''[[Peckoltia pankimpuju]]'', ''[[Panaque bathyphilus]]'' and ''[[Panaqolus]] nix'' (these five also occur in "normal" forms of shallower waters).<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Lujan|first1=Nathan. K.|last2=Chamon|first2=Carine. C.|year=2008|title=Two new species of Loricariidae (Teleostei: Silurifomes) from main channels of the upper and middle Amazon Basin, with discussion of deep water specialization in loricariids|journal=Ichthyological Exploration of Freshwaters|volume=19|pages=271–282}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |author1=Thomas, M.R. |author2=L.H.R. Py-Daniel  | year=2008 | title=Three new species of the armored catfish genus Loricaria (Siluriformes: Loricariidae) from river channels of the Amazon basin | journal=Neotrop. Ichthyol. | volume=6 | issue=3 | doi=10.1590/S1679-62252008000300011 | pages=379–394| doi-access=free }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |author1=Cramer, C.A. |author2=L.H.R. Py-Daniel  | year=2015 | title=A new species of Panaqolus (Siluriformes: Loricariidae) from the rio Madeira basin with remarkable intraspecific color variation | journal=Neotrop. Ichthyol. | volume=13 | issue=3 | doi=10.1590/1982-0224-20140099 | pages=461–470| doi-access=free }}</ref> The perhaps most unusual habitat used by Amazonian fish is land. The [[splash tetra]] is famous for laying its eggs on plants above water, keeping them moist by continuously splashing on them,<ref>{{Cite web
| url = http://voices.nationalgeographic.com/2013/09/27/fish-that-lay-eggs-out-of-the-water-freshwater-species-of-the-week/
| title= Fish That Lay Eggs Out of the Water
| last= Howard | first= Brian Clark
| date= 27 September 2013
| work = National Geographic
| series= Water Currents
| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20150528110345/http://voices.nationalgeographic.com/2013/09/27/fish-that-lay-eggs-out-of-the-water-freshwater-species-of-the-week/
| archive-date= 28 May 2015
}}</ref> the [[South American lungfish]] can survive underground in a mucous cocoon during the dry season,<ref>{{cite web|author=SeriouslyFish | title=Lepidosiren paradoxa | url=http://www.seriouslyfish.com/species/lepidosiren-paradoxa/ | access-date=30 April 2017}}</ref> some small [[Rivulidae|rivulid]] killifish can jump over land between water sources (sometimes moving relatively long distances, even uphill) and may deliberately jump onto land to escape aquatic predators,<ref>{{cite web | author=Vermeulen, F. | url=http://www.itrainsfishes.net/content/rivulus_introduction_001.php | title=The genus Rivulus | publisher=itrainsfishes.net | access-date=6 May 2017 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120430065543/http://www.itrainsfishes.net/content/rivulus_introduction_001.php | archive-date=30 April 2012 | url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |author1=Turko, A.J. |author2=P.A. Wright | year=2015 | title=Evolution, ecology and physiology of amphibious killifishes (Cyprinodontiformes) | journal=Journal of Fish Biology | volume=87 | issue=4 | pages=815–835 | doi=10.1111/jfb.12758| pmid=26299792 }}</ref> and an [[undescribed species]] of worm-like ''Phreatobius'' catfish lives in waterlogged [[leaf litter]] near (not in) streams.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.planetcatfish.com/catelog/species.php?species_id=646|title=Cat-eLog: Heptapteridae: ''Phreatobius'': ''Phreatobius'' sp. (1)|author=Planet Catfish|publisher=Planet Catfish|access-date=30 April 2017|archive-date=23 October 2006|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061023092123/http://www.planetcatfish.com/catelog/species.php?species_id=646|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |author1=Henderson, P.A. |author2=I. Walker | year=1990 | title=Spatial organization and population density of the fish community of the litter banks within a central Amazonian blackwater stream | journal=Journal of Fish Biology | volume=37 | issue=3 | pages=401–411 | doi=10.1111/j.1095-8649.1990.tb05871.x}}</ref>

Some of the major fish groups of the Amazon basin include:<ref name="Sleen2017"/>
* Order [[Gymnotiformes]]: Neotropical electric fishes
* Order [[Characiformes]]: characins, tetras and relatives
* Family [[Potamotrygonidae]]: river stingrays
* Family [[Arapaimidae]]: bonytongues
* Family [[Loricariidae]]: suckermouth catfishes
* Family [[Callichthyidae]]: armored catfishes
* Family [[Pimelodidae]]: pimelodid catfishes
* Family [[Trichomycteridae]]: pencil catfishes
* Family [[Auchenipteridae]]: driftwood catfishes
* Subfamily [[Cichlinae]]: pike cichlids, peacock cichlids and relatives
* Subfamily [[Geophaginae]]: Eartheaters and Neotropical dwarf cichlid
* Subfamily [[Poeciliinae]]: guppies and relatives

=== Insects ===
{{See also|List of butterflies of the Amazon River basin and the Andes}}

More than 90% of the animal species in the Amazon are [[insect]]s,<ref>{{cite web|title=Amazon Insects|url=https://rainforests.mongabay.com/amazon/insects.html|website=Mongabay.com}}</ref> of which about 40% are [[beetle]]s (Coleoptera constituting almost 25% of all known types of animal life-forms.)<ref name=insenc>[[#refPowell|Powell (2009)]]</ref><ref>{{cite book|title=Species Diversity in Space and Time|author=Rosenzweig, Michael L. |publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-0-521-49952-1|year=1995}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |author=Hunt, T. |title=A Comprehensive Phylogeny of Beetles Reveals the Evolutionary Origins of a Superradiation |journal=Science |volume=318 |issue=5858 |pages=1913–1916 |year=2007 |pmid=18096805 |doi=10.1126/science.1146954 |bibcode = 2007Sci...318.1913H |last2=Bergsten |first2=J. |last3=Levkanicova |first3=Z. |last4=Papadopoulou |first4=A. |last5=John |first5=O. St. |last6=Wild |first6=R. |last7=Hammond |first7=P. M. |last8=Ahrens |first8=D. |last9=Balke |first9=M. |last10=Caterino |first10=M. S. |last11=Gomez-Zurita |first11=J. |last12=Ribera |first12=I. |last13=Barraclough |first13=T. G. |last14=Bocakova |first14=M. |last15=Bocak |first15=L. |last16=Vogler |first16=A. P. |s2cid=19392955 |display-authors=etal}}</ref>

Whereas all of Europe has some 321 [[butterfly]] species, the [[Manú National Park]] in Peru (4,000 hectare-survey) has 2,300 species, while [[Tambopata National Reserve]] (5,500 hectare-survey) has at least 1,231 species.