Animals That Start With L

50 animals Animals and nature Checked 9 Oct 2026

Here are 50 animals that start with L, each with a one-line description so you can tell what it is. The best-known ones come first, then the full list in A to Z order.

L holds 50 animals, and big cats dominate the opening: lion, lioness, leopard and lynx. Llama and ladybug are easy favourites for little ones.

The word leaf shows up in creatures that hide among plants, such as the leaf insect and the leafcutter ant. Ladybug and ladybird are two names for the same beetle, one more common in America and the other in Britain. The liger is a cross between a lion and a tiger. Fish are plentiful too, from lionfish to lamprey.

Animals starting with L: 50
Best known: lion, lobster
Longest name: largemouth bass
Most are: insects

Best-known animals that start with L

The ones most people will recognise, good for school lists, quizzes and games.

lion
lobster
lizard
leopard
leech
lark
lynx
locust
loon
llama
lioness
ladybug
lemur
lemming
limpet
lionfish
largemouth bass
leafcutter ant
leopard seal
lovebird
lugworm
lyrebird

All animals that start with L

#	Name	What it is	Type
1	lace bug	small bug having body and wings covered with a lacy network of raised lines	insect
2	lady beetle	small round bright-colored and spotted beetle that usually feeds on aphids and other insect pests	insect
3	ladybird	small round bright-colored and spotted beetle that usually feeds on aphids and other insect pests	insect
4	ladybug	small round bright-colored and spotted beetle that usually feeds on aphids and other insect pests	insect
5	lake trout	large fork-tailed trout of lakes of Canada and the northern United States	fish
6	lamprey	primitive eellike freshwater or anadromous cyclostome having round sucking mouth with a rasping tongue	other
7	lantern fly	large brightly marked tropical insect with a process like a snout that was formerly thought to emit light	insect
8	largemouth bass	popular North American freshwater game fish	fish
9	lark	a songbird that lives mainly on the ground in open country; has streaky brown plumage	bird
10	laughing gull	small black-headed European gull	bird
11	leaf beetle	brightly colored beetle that feeds on plant leaves; larvae infest roots and stems	insect
12	leaf insect	tropical insect having a flattened leaflike body; common in southern Asia and the East Indies	insect
13	leaf miner	any of various small moths or dipterous flies whose larvae burrow into and feed on leaf tissue especially of the family...	insect
14	leaf roller	moth whose larvae form nests by rolling and tying leaves with spun silk	insect
15	leafcutter ant	ant that cuts leaves to grow fungus for food	other
16	leatherback	wide-ranging marine turtle with flexible leathery carapace; largest living turtle	reptile
17	leech	carnivorous or bloodsucking aquatic or terrestrial worms typically having a sucker at each end	worm
18	lemming	any of various short-tailed furry-footed rodents of circumpolar distribution	mammal
19	lemon shark	common shallow-water schooling shark of the Atlantic from North Carolina to Brazil and off west Africa; dangerous	fish
20	lemon sole	popular pale brown food flatfish of the Pacific coast of North America	fish
21	lemur	large-eyed arboreal prosimian having foxy faces and long furry tails	mammal
22	leopard	large feline of African and Asian forests usually having a tawny coat with black spots	mammal
23	leopard cat	small spotted wildcat of southern Asia and Malaysia	mammal
24	leopard frog	common North American green or brownish frog having white-edged dark oval spots	amphibian
25	leopard lizard	any of several large lizards with many dark spots; of western United States and northern Mexico	reptile
26	leopard seal	large spotted seal of Antarctic waters	other
27	liger	offspring of a male lion and a female tiger	mammal
28	lightning bug	nocturnal beetle common in warm regions having luminescent abdominal organs	insect
29	limpet	any of various usually marine gastropods with low conical shells; found clinging to rocks in littoral areas	mollusc
30	ling	American hakes	fish
31	linnet	small Old World finch whose male has a red breast and forehead	bird
32	lion	large gregarious predatory feline of Africa and India having a tawny coat with a shaggy mane in the male	mammal
33	lioness	a female lion	mammal
34	lionfish	brightly striped fish of the tropical Pacific having elongated spiny fins	fish
35	little owl	small European owl	bird
36	liver fluke	flatworm parasitic in liver and bile ducts of domestic animals and humans	worm
37	lizard	relatively long-bodied reptile with usually two pairs of legs and a tapering tail	reptile
38	llama	wild or domesticated South American cud-chewing animal related to camels but smaller and lacking a hump	mammal
39	loach	slender freshwater fishes of Eurasia and Africa resembling catfishes	fish
40	lobster	any of several edible marine crustaceans of the families Homaridae and Nephropsidae and Palinuridae	crustacean
41	locust	migratory grasshoppers of warm regions having short antennae	insect
42	loggerhead	very large carnivorous sea turtle; wide-ranging in warm open seas	reptile
43	loon	large somewhat primitive fish-eating diving bird of the northern hemisphere having webbed feet placed far back	bird
44	lory	small brightly colored Australasian parrots having a brush-tipped tongue for feeding on nectar and soft fruits	bird
45	louse	wingless usually flattened bloodsucking insect parasitic on warm-blooded animals	insect
46	lovebird	small affectionate parrot often kept in pairs	bird
47	lugworm	burrowing sea worm of sandy beaches, used as bait	worm
48	luna moth	large pale-green American moth with long-tailed hind wings and a yellow crescent-shaped mark on each forewing	insect
49	lynx	short-tailed wildcats with usually tufted ears; valued for their fur	mammal
50	lyrebird	Australian bird famous for copying sounds	bird

Mammals that start with L

lion
leopard
lynx
llama
lioness
lemur
lemming
liger
leopard cat

Birds that start with L

lark
loon
lovebird
lyrebird
little owl
linnet
lory
laughing gull

Fish that start with L

lionfish
largemouth bass
ling
lemon shark
lemon sole
loach
lake trout

Reptiles that start with L

lizard
loggerhead
leopard lizard
leatherback

Insects that start with L

locust
ladybug
lightning bug
louse
ladybird
leaf roller
lace bug
leaf insect
lantern fly
leaf miner
lady beetle
leaf beetle
luna moth

Worms that start with L

leech
lugworm
liver fluke

Other animals that start with L

leafcutter ant
leopard seal
lamprey

Filter all 50 animals that start with L

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Questions people ask

How many animals start with L?

This list has 50 animals starting with L, from well-known ones like lion, lobster, lizard to rarer kinds.

What animals start with L?

Well-known examples are lion, lobster, lizard, leopard, leech, lark, lynx, locust.

What mammals start with L?

lion, leopard, lynx, llama, lioness.

What birds start with L?

lark, loon, lovebird, lyrebird, little owl.

What fish start with L?

lionfish, largemouth bass, ling, lemon shark, lemon sole.

Source: Princeton WordNet, a public dictionary database, reviewed by our editors to keep only clear, real members of the list. Meanings are short dictionary glosses.

See every letter on one page: animals A to Z