List of mammals of Tunisia

This is a list of the mammal species recorded in Tunisia. Of the mammal species in Tunisia, three are critically endangered, three are endangered, nine are vulnerable, and two are near threatened. One of the species listed for Tunisia can no longer be found in the wild.

The following tags are used to highlight each species' conservation status as assessed by the International Union for Conservation of Nature:

Order: Macroscelidea (elephant shrews)
Often called sengis, the elephant shrews or jumping shrews are native to southern Africa. Their common English name derives from their elongated flexible snout and their resemblance to the true shrews.


 * Family: Macroscelididae (elephant shrews)
 * Genus: Elephantulus
 * North African elephant shrew, E. rozeti

Order: Rodentia (rats and mice)
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.
 * Suborder: Hystricognathi
 * Family: Hystricidae (Old World porcupines)
 * Genus: Hystrix
 * Crested porcupine, H. cristata
 * Suborder: Sciurognathi
 * Family: Gliridae (dormice)
 * Subfamily: Leithiinae
 * Genus: Eliomys
 * Asian garden dormouse, E. melanurus
 * Family: Dipodidae (jerboas)
 * Subfamily: Dipodinae
 * Genus: Jaculus
 * Lesser Egyptian jerboa, Jaculus jaculus
 * Greater Egyptian jerboa, Jaculus orientalis
 * Family: Muridae (mice, rats, voles, gerbils, hamsters, etc.)
 * Subfamily: Gerbillinae
 * Genus: Dipodillus
 * North African gerbil, Dipodillus campestris
 * Genus: Gerbillus
 * Anderson's gerbil, Gerbillus andersoni
 * Lesser Egyptian gerbil, Gerbillus gerbillus
 * Pygmy gerbil, Gerbillus henleyi
 * James's gerbil, Gerbillus jamesi
 * Lataste's gerbil, Gerbillus latastei
 * Balochistan gerbil, Gerbillus nanus
 * Lesser short-tailed gerbil, Gerbillus simoni
 * Tarabul's Gerbil, Gerbillus tarabuli
 * Genus: Meriones
 * Libyan jird, Meriones libycus
 * Shaw's jird, Meriones shawi
 * Genus: Pachyuromys
 * Fat-tailed gerbil, Pachyuromys duprasi
 * Genus: Psammomys
 * Fat sand rat, Psammomys obesus
 * Thin sand rat, Psammomys vexillaris
 * Subfamily: Murinae
 * Genus: Apodemus
 * Wood mouse, Apodemus sylvaticus
 * Genus: Lemniscomys
 * Barbary striped grass mouse, Lemniscomys barbarus
 * Genus: Mus
 * Algerian mouse, Mus spretus
 * Family: Ctenodactylidae
 * Genus: Ctenodactylus
 * Common gundi, Ctenodactylus gundi

Order: Lagomorpha

 * Family: Leporidae (rabbits and hares)
 * Genus: Lepus
 * Cape hare, L. capensis

Order: Erinaceomorpha (hedgehogs and gymnures)
The order Erinaceomorpha contains a single family, Erinaceidae, which comprise the hedgehogs and gymnures. The hedgehogs are easily recognised by their spines while gymnures look more like large rats.


 * Family: Erinaceidae (hedgehogs)
 * Subfamily: Erinaceinae
 * Genus: Atelerix
 * North African hedgehog, Atelerix algirus
 * Genus: Hemiechinus
 * Desert hedgehog, Hemiechinus aethiopicus

Order: Soricomorpha (shrews, moles, and solenodons)
The "shrew-forms" are insectivorous mammals. The shrews and solenodons closely resemble mice while the moles are stout-bodied burrowers.


 * Family: Soricidae (shrews)
 * Subfamily: Crocidurinae
 * Genus: Crocidura
 * Whitaker's shrew, Crocidura whitakeri
 * Genus: Suncus
 * Etruscan shrew, Suncus etruscus

Order: Chiroptera (bats)
The bats' most distinguishing feature is that their forelimbs are developed as wings, making them the only mammals capable of flight. Bat species account for about 20% of all mammals.
 * Family: Vespertilionidae
 * Subfamily: Myotinae
 * Genus: Myotis
 * Long-fingered bat, M. capaccinii
 * Geoffroy's bat, M. emarginatus
 * Felten's myotis, Myotis punicus
 * Subfamily: Vespertilioninae
 * Genus: Eptesicus
 * Serotine bat, Eptesicus serotinus
 * Genus: Hypsugo
 * Savi's pipistrelle, H. savii
 * Genus: Otonycteris
 * Desert long-eared bat, Otonycteris hemprichii
 * Genus: Pipistrellus
 * Kuhl's pipistrelle, Pipistrellus kuhlii
 * Common pipistrelle, Pipistrellus pipistrellus
 * Rüppell's pipistrelle, Pipistrellus rueppelli
 * Subfamily: Miniopterinae
 * Genus: Miniopterus
 * Common bent-wing bat, M. schreibersii
 * Family: Rhinopomatidae
 * Genus: Rhinopoma
 * Egyptian mouse-tailed bat, R. cystops
 * Lesser mouse-tailed bat, R. hardwickei
 * Family: Rhinolophidae
 * Subfamily: Rhinolophinae
 * Genus: Rhinolophus
 * Blasius's horseshoe bat, R. blasii
 * Mediterranean horseshoe bat, R. euryale
 * Greater horseshoe bat, R. ferrumequinum
 * Lesser horseshoe bat, R. hipposideros
 * Mehely's horseshoe bat, R. mehelyi
 * Subfamily: Hipposiderinae
 * Genus: Asellia
 * Trident leaf-nosed bat, Asellia tridens

Order: Cetacea (whales)
The order Cetacea includes whales, dolphins and porpoises. They are the mammals most fully adapted to aquatic life with a spindle-shaped nearly hairless body, protected by a thick layer of blubber, and forelimbs and tail modified to provide propulsion underwater.


 * Suborder: Mysticeti
 * Family: Balaenopteridae
 * Genus: Balaenoptera
 * Common minke whale, Balaenoptera acutorostrata
 * Fin whale, Balaenoptera physalus
 * Subfamily: Megapterinae
 * Genus: Megaptera
 * Humpback whale, Megaptera novaeangliae
 * Family: Balaenidae
 * Genus: Eubalaena
 * North Atlantic right whale, Eubalaena glacialis (possible)
 * Suborder: Odontoceti
 * Superfamily: Platanistoidea
 * Family: Delphinidae (marine dolphins)
 * Genus: Steno
 * Rough-toothed dolphin, Steno bredanensis
 * Genus: Delphinus
 * Short-beaked common dolphin, Delphinus delphis
 * Genus: Orcinus
 * Orca, Orcinus orca
 * Genus: Pseudorca
 * False killer whale, Pseudorca crassidens
 * Genus: Globicephala
 * Long-finned pilot whale, Globicephala melas
 * Genus: Grampus
 * Risso's dolphin, Grampus griseus
 * Genus: Stenella
 * Striped dolphin, Stenella coeruleoalba
 * Genus Tursiops
 * Common bottlenose dolphin, Tursiops truncatus
 * Family Physeteridae (sperm whales)
 * Genus: Physeter
 * Sperm whale, Physeter catodon
 * Superfamily Ziphioidea (beaked whales)
 * Family Ziphidae
 * Genus: Ziphius
 * Cuvier's beaked whale, Ziphius cavirostris

Order: Carnivora (carnivorans)
There are over 260 species of carnivorans, the majority of which feed primarily on meat. They have a characteristic skull shape and dentition.


 * Suborder: Feliformia
 * Family: Felidae (cats)
 * Subfamily: Felinae
 * Genus: Caracal
 * Caracal, C. caracal
 * Genus: Felis
 * African wildcat, F. lybica
 * Genus: Leptailurus
 * Serval, L. serval reintroduced
 * Family: Viverridae
 * Subfamily: Viverrinae
 * Genus: Genetta
 * Common genet, G. genetta
 * Family: Herpestidae (mongooses)
 * Genus: Herpestes
 * Egyptian mongoose, H. ichneumon
 * Family: Hyaenidae (hyaenas)
 * Genus: Hyaena
 * Striped hyena, H. hyaena
 * Suborder: Caniformia
 * Family: Canidae (dogs, foxes)
 * Genus: Canis
 * African golden wolf, C. lupaster
 * Genus: Vulpes
 * Rüppell's fox, V. rueppellii
 * Red fox, V. vulpes
 * Fennec fox, V. zerda
 * Family: Mustelidae (mustelids)
 * Genus: Ictonyx
 * Saharan striped polecat, Ictonyx libyca
 * Genus: Lutra
 * Eurasian otter, L. lutra
 * Family: Phocidae (earless seals)
 * Genus: Monachus
 * Mediterranean monk seal, M. monachus possibly extirpated

Order: Artiodactyla (even-toed ungulates)
The even-toed ungulates are ungulates whose weight is borne about equally by the third and fourth toes, rather than mostly or entirely by the third as in perissodactyls. There are about 220 artiodactyl species, including many that are of great economic importance to humans.
 * Family: Suidae (pigs)
 * Subfamily: Suinae
 * Genus: Sus
 * Wild boar, S. scrofa
 * Family: Cervidae (deer)
 * Subfamily: Cervinae
 * Genus: Cervus
 * Red deer, C. elaphus
 * Barbary stag, C. e. barbarus
 * Family: Bovidae (cattle, antelope, sheep, goats)
 * Subfamily: Antilopinae
 * Genus: Gazella
 * Cuvier's gazelle, G. cuvieri
 * Dorcas gazelle, G. dorcas
 * Rhim gazelle, G. leptoceros
 * Subfamily: Caprinae
 * Genus: Ammotragus
 * Barbary sheep, A. lervia
 * Subfamily: Hippotraginae
 * Genus: Oryx
 * Scimitar oryx, O. dammah vagrant

Extinct
The following species are locally extinct in the country:
 * Addax, Addax nasomaculatus. Though the last animal disappeared in 1932, it has been successfully reintroduced since 2007 from specimens from Niger and others kept in zoos. It was able to reproduce in the wild and even able to multiply outside of the fenced enclosure of the large national park where it had been reintroduced.
 * Hartebeest, Alcelaphus buselaphus
 * Aurochs, Bos primigenius
 * North African elephant, Loxodonta africana pharaohensis
 * Barbary macaque, Macaca sylvanus
 * Dama gazelle, Nanger dama
 * Lion, Panthera leo
 * Leopard, Panthera pardus
 * Brown bear, Ursus arctos