Rhode Island Mammals: Species List With Pictures

American Beaver

Castor canadensis

American Mink

Neovison vison

Atlantic Spotted Dolphin

Stenella frontalis

Atlantic White-sided Dolphin

Lagenorhynchus acutus

Beluga, White Whale

Delphinapterus leucas

Big Brown Bat

Eptesicus fuscus

Danger to people

“In Rhode Island, skunks, foxes, woodchucks, raccoons, and bats are classified as Rabies Vector Species (RVS) and can pose a serious health risk.” Rhode Island DEM, Division of Fish & Wildlife

Conservation

RI Species of Greatest Conservation Need (2015 Wildlife Action Plan)

Black Bear

Ursus americanus

Size

Smokies: males average about 6 ft long, 3 ft at the shoulder and 250 lb in summer; females usually just over 100 lb. Missouri: 46 to 78 inches long, 86 to 600 lb.

How to recognize it

• Straight facial profile, rounded erect ears, very short tail
• Short curved claws for climbing

Conservation

RI Species of Greatest Conservation Need (2015 Wildlife Action Plan)

Full Black Bear guide

Black Rat

Rattus rattus

Nonnative

Blue Whale

Balaenoptera musculus

Bobcat

Lynx rufus

Size

Total length 18 to 50 inches, tail 3 to 8 inches, weight 8 to 49 pounds (Missouri). About twice the size of a house cat.

How to recognize it

• Short 'bobbed' tail, 4 to 8 inches, with a black tip and white underneath (Arizona). New Mexico instead describes black bars on top, white underneath and a white tip.
• Pointed ears with tufts at the tips, often with cheek tufts
• Backs of the ears are black with a light central spot

Conservation

RI Species of Greatest Conservation Need (2015 Wildlife Action Plan)

Full Bobcat guide

Bottlenose Dolphin

Tursiops truncatus

Common Dolphin

Delphinus delphis

Common Muskrat

Ondatra zibethicus

Cuvier's Beaked Whale

Ziphius cavirostris

Dense-beaked Whale

Mesoplodon densirostris

Dwarf Sperm Whale

Kogia sima

Eastern Chipmunk

Tamias striatus

Eastern Cottontail

Sylvilagus floridanus

Eastern Coyote

Canis latrans

Size

About 3.5 to 4 feet long including the tail and roughly 2 feet tall at the shoulder; weight varies by region: Arizona 20 to 30 lb, Florida average about 28 lb, Georgia 25 to 45 lb

How to recognize it

• Large pointed ears, long narrow nose, bushy black-tipped tail
• Like a slender medium-sized dog, much smaller than a wolf
• Paw track about 2 inches long (Florida)

Full Eastern Coyote guide

Eastern Gray Squirrel

Sciurus carolinensis

Eastern Mole

Scalopus aquaticus

Conservation

RI Species of Greatest Conservation Need (2015 Wildlife Action Plan)

Eastern Red Bat

Lasiurus borealis

Danger to people

“In Rhode Island, skunks, foxes, woodchucks, raccoons, and bats are classified as Rabies Vector Species (RVS) and can pose a serious health risk.” Rhode Island DEM, Division of Fish & Wildlife

Conservation

RI Species of Greatest Conservation Need (2015 Wildlife Action Plan)

Feral Cat, Domestic or House Cat

Felis catus

Nonnative

Feral Dog, Domestic Dog

Canis familiaris

Nonnative

Fin Whale

Balaenoptera physalus

Conservation

RI Species of Greatest Conservation Need (2015 Wildlife Action Plan)

Fisher

Pekania pennanti

Size

New York: males 7 to 15 pounds and 35 to 47 inches; females 3 to 7 pounds and 30 to 37 inches. Figures vary by state.

How to recognize it

• Low to the ground with short legs, small ears and a well-furred tail
• Tail about one-third of total length
• Five toes and sharp semi-retractable claws; bright green eyeshine at night

Full Fisher guide

Gray Fox

Urocyon cinereoargenteus

Danger to people

“In Rhode Island, skunks, foxes, woodchucks, raccoons, and bats are classified as Rabies Vector Species (RVS) and can pose a serious health risk.” Rhode Island DEM, Division of Fish & Wildlife

Gray Seal

Halichoerus grypus

Hairy-tailed Mole

Parascalops breweri

Harbor Porpoise

Phocoena phocoena

Conservation

RI Species of Greatest Conservation Need (2015 Wildlife Action Plan)

Harbor Seal

Phoca vitulina

Conservation

RI Species of Greatest Conservation Need (2015 Wildlife Action Plan)

Harp Seal

Pagophilus groenlandicus

Hoary Bat

Lasiurus cinereus

Danger to people

“In Rhode Island, skunks, foxes, woodchucks, raccoons, and bats are classified as Rabies Vector Species (RVS) and can pose a serious health risk.” Rhode Island DEM, Division of Fish & Wildlife

Conservation

RI Species of Greatest Conservation Need (2015 Wildlife Action Plan)

Hooded Seal

Cystophora cristata

House Mouse

Mus musculus

Nonnative

Humpback Whale

Megaptera novaeangliae

Conservation

RI Species of Greatest Conservation Need (2015 Wildlife Action Plan)

Little Brown Bat

Myotis lucifugus

Danger to people

“In Rhode Island, skunks, foxes, woodchucks, raccoons, and bats are classified as Rabies Vector Species (RVS) and can pose a serious health risk.” Rhode Island DEM, Division of Fish & Wildlife

Conservation

RI Species of Greatest Conservation Need (2015 Wildlife Action Plan)

Long-finned Pilot Whale

Globicephala melas

Long-tailed Weasel

Mustela frenata

Masked Shrew

Sorex cinereus

Meadow Jumping Mouse

Zapus hudsonius

Meadow Vole

Microtus pennsylvanicus

Moose

Alces alces

Size

Alaska: adults 800 lb (small cow) to 1,600 lb (large bull), up to almost 6 feet tall. Elsewhere, NY DEC: bulls 600-1,200 lb, cows 500-800 lb.

How to recognize it

• "Bell": flap of skin and hair hanging from the throat (both sexes)
• Antlers on males only; flat and palmate (hand-shaped), up to five feet wide
• Antlers only on males (ADF&G)

Full Moose guide

Mountain Lion

Felis concolor

Size

Total length 5 to 8.5 feet including a 21 to 37.5 inch tail; males 79 to 265 lb, females 64 to 141 lb (Missouri Department of Conservation).

How to recognize it

• Very large, slender cat with a small head, small rounded ears without tufts and a long, heavy tail.
• The tail may be one-third of the total length; much larger than a bobcat or lynx.
• Tracks: 2.75 to 3.75 inches wide, three lobes at the bottom of the heel pad, claw marks usually absent.

Full Mountain Lion guide

New England Cottontail

Sylvilagus transitionalis

Conservation

RI Species of Greatest Conservation Need (2015 Wildlife Action Plan)

North Atlantic Bottlenose Whale

Hyperoodon ampullatus

North Atlantic Right Whale

Eubalaena glacialis

Conservation

RI Species of Greatest Conservation Need (2015 Wildlife Action Plan)

Northern Long-eared Bat

Myotis septentrionalis

Danger to people

“In Rhode Island, skunks, foxes, woodchucks, raccoons, and bats are classified as Rabies Vector Species (RVS) and can pose a serious health risk.” Rhode Island DEM, Division of Fish & Wildlife

Conservation

RI Species of Greatest Conservation Need (2015 Wildlife Action Plan)

Northern Minke Whale

Balaenoptera acutorostrata

Northern short-tailed Shrew

Blarina brevicauda

Norway Rat

Rattus norvegicus

Nonnative

Orca, Killer Whale

Orcinus orca

Pan-tropical Spotted Dolphin

Stenella attenuata

Porcupine

Erethizon dorsatum

Size

Adults about 30 inches including a 6- to 10-inch tail, 9 to 15 pounds, older adults up to 20 pounds (Pennsylvania). Massachusetts: 25-31 inches, averaging 12 pounds in early spring to 20 in fall. Minnesota: 24 to 40 inches, 18 to 35 pounds.

How to recognize it

• Coat of quills; up to 30,000
• Only North American mammal with coat hairs modified as quills
• Short legs, long claws, high-arching back

Full Porcupine guide

Raccoon

Procyon lotor

Danger to people

“In Rhode Island, skunks, foxes, woodchucks, raccoons, and bats are classified as Rabies Vector Species (RVS) and can pose a serious health risk.” Rhode Island DEM, Division of Fish & Wildlife

Red Fox

Vulpes vulpes

Danger to people

“In Rhode Island, skunks, foxes, woodchucks, raccoons, and bats are classified as Rabies Vector Species (RVS) and can pose a serious health risk.” Rhode Island DEM, Division of Fish & Wildlife

Red Squirrel

Tamiasciurus hudsonicus

Risso's Dolphin

Grampus griseus

River Otter

Lontra canadensis

Sei Whale

Balaenoptera borealis

Short-finned Pilot Whale

Globicephala macrorhynchus

Short-tailed Weasel

Mustela erminea

Silver-haired Bat

Lasionycteris noctivagans

Danger to people

“In Rhode Island, skunks, foxes, woodchucks, raccoons, and bats are classified as Rabies Vector Species (RVS) and can pose a serious health risk.” Rhode Island DEM, Division of Fish & Wildlife

Conservation

RI Species of Greatest Conservation Need (2015 Wildlife Action Plan)

Small-footed Bat

Myotis leibii

Danger to people

“In Rhode Island, skunks, foxes, woodchucks, raccoons, and bats are classified as Rabies Vector Species (RVS) and can pose a serious health risk.” Rhode Island DEM, Division of Fish & Wildlife

Conservation

RI Species of Greatest Conservation Need (2015 Wildlife Action Plan)

Smoky Shrew

Sorex fumeus

Conservation

RI Species of Greatest Conservation Need (2015 Wildlife Action Plan)

Snowshoe Hare

Lepus americanus

Southern Bog Lemming

Synaptomys cooperi

Conservation

RI Species of Greatest Conservation Need (2015 Wildlife Action Plan)

Southern Flying Squirrel

Glaucomys volans

Southern Red-backed Vole

Clethrionomys gapperi

Sowerby's Beaked Whale

Mesoplodon bidens

Sperm Whale

Physeter macrocephalus

Star-nosed Mole

Condylura cristata

Striped Dolphin

Stenella coeruleoalba

Striped Skunk

Mephitis mephitis

Danger to people

“In Rhode Island, skunks, foxes, woodchucks, raccoons, and bats are classified as Rabies Vector Species (RVS) and can pose a serious health risk.” Rhode Island DEM, Division of Fish & Wildlife

Tri-colored Bat

Perimyotis subflavus

Danger to people

“In Rhode Island, skunks, foxes, woodchucks, raccoons, and bats are classified as Rabies Vector Species (RVS) and can pose a serious health risk.” Rhode Island DEM, Division of Fish & Wildlife

Conservation

RI Species of Greatest Conservation Need (2015 Wildlife Action Plan)

Virginia Opossum

Didelphis virginiana

Size

Weighs 4 to 7 lb and stands 6 to 8 inches high at the shoulder (South Carolina DNR); about the size of a house cat

How to recognize it

• Long pointed nose, black hairless ears, dark eyes, nearly hairless grasping (prehensile) tail
• Long scaly tail and a pointed snout ending in a pink nose
• Opposable thumb-like big toe (hallux) on each hind foot

Full Virginia Opossum guide

Water Shrew

Sorex palustris

Conservation

RI Species of Greatest Conservation Need (2015 Wildlife Action Plan)

West Indian Manatee

Trichechus manatus

Size

Adults typically 9-10 ft long and about 1,000 lb; can exceed 13 ft and 3,500 lb. Calves weigh about 60-70 lb at birth.

How to recognize it

• Two front flippers and a large, round, flattened paddle-shaped tail
• Often only the snout breaks the surface when it breathes
• Signs on the water: a swirl, or a back, snout, tail or flipper breaking the surface

Full West Indian Manatee guide

White-beaked Dolphin

Lagenorhynchus albirostris

White-footed Mouse

Peromyscus leucopus

White-tailed Deer

Odocoileus virginianus

Wolf

Canis lupus

Size

Adults about 40 to 175 pounds depending on sex and region; on average about five to six feet long (Isle Royale), up to 6 feet including the tail (Washington), and 26 to 34 inches at the shoulder. Twice the size of a coyote.

How to recognize it

• Longer legs, larger feet, wider head and snout, shorter ears, narrow body and straight tail compared with most coyotes and dogs.
• Tracks about 5 inches long by 4 inches wide, with claws showing.
• Long, drawn-out howls, audible up to five miles.

Full Wolf guide

Woodchuck

Marmota monax

Danger to people

“In Rhode Island, skunks, foxes, woodchucks, raccoons, and bats are classified as Rabies Vector Species (RVS) and can pose a serious health risk.” Rhode Island DEM, Division of Fish & Wildlife

Woodland Jumping Mouse

Napaeozapus insignis

Woodland Vole

Microtus pinetorum