Monday 5 October 2026
Thorny devil
It drinks with its skin. Tiny channels between its scales draw water from damp sand to its mouth.
- Lives in
- DesertDeserts and dry scrubland in central and western Australia
More about the thorny devilScientific name, size and Red List status
- Scientific name
- Moloch horridus
- Size
- Up to 21 cm long, tail included
- IUCN Red List
- Least concern
Not threatened at the moment, according to the IUCN Red List. See the assessment
Fact source: Comanns et al., 2017
Tomorrow · Saturday 10 October
A new animal in 19 h 45 min
A hint: it lives on a coral reef.
This week
Every animal so far- Mon 5Thorny devilViewing
- Tue 6Golden tortoise beetle
- Wed 7Pacific barreleye
- Thu 8Okapi
- Fri 9KeaToday
- Sat 10Tomorrow’s animalin 19 h 45 min
- Sun 11
Why Animall
People can’t care about animals they have never heard of.
Scientists still discover thousands of new animal species every year, while many others are disappearing because of habitat loss and climate change. Some die out before anyone has described them.
10,000+
new animal species are described every year.
University of Arizona, 2025
86%
of species on Earth, and 91% in the ocean, have not been described yet.
Mora et al., 2011
73%
average drop in monitored wildlife populations between 1970 and 2020.
WWF Living Planet Report, 2024