From Sunrise to Sunset – Diurnal Animals Of The World
Squirrels Squirrels are rodents of the family Sciuridae, found commonly across Europe, Africa and the Americas. Some live on the ground, others in the trees and some known as flying squirrels are even built for gliding through the canopies.
Cows Domestic Cows or Cattle (Bos taurus) are a common livestock species, with populations on every continent except Antarctica. All cattle display typical diurnal behaviour, with grazing mainly taking place through daylight hours and most of their sleep occurring at night.
Sheep Domestic Sheep (Ovis aries) are another common livestock species, with a population estimated to be close to one billion around the globe. They are a typical flock animal and live in a diurnal cycle. Physically they are better designed for living an active life through the day, while resting at night. Their vision is not well equipped to deal with darkness.
Dogs The domestic dog (Canis familiaris) can take on many different guises across the many different dog breeds, but they are all of the same species of canid, and descended from wolves. They are the only member of the canidae family that live a diurnal life.
The Great Apes All of the members of the Hominidae family, known as the great apes or hominids (including us humans), are diurnal by nature. Most, such as the orangutan, gorilla and chimpanzee, sleep in a troop of up to several dozen members, either on land or in the trees, depending on the species.
Ducks Ducks, are of the family Anatidae, and while all ducks are in this family, not all Anatidae are ducks. There are many different species, but the family also include swans and geese, which collectively with ducks, come to over 170 different species. Together these animals are known as waterfowl.
Eagles There are many birds that are crepuscular, and there are many that are diurnal. Eagles (birds of the family Accipitridae) are usually the latter. There are 68 species of Eagle, across several genera, and all except 14 of these species are found exclusively in Europe.
Chickens There are lots of breeds of chicken, both natural and hybrid around the world. They all however, come from the same species (Gallus gallus domesticus), which is a domesticated species of wildfowl. They are a common livestock species, kept for meat, eggs and as show birds.
Horses Horses (Equus ferus caballus) are typically diurnal or crepuscular, though some believe that they don’t fit any of these cycles, including nocturnal. This is because horses only sleep very little over a 24 hour period, and are therefore active for some of the night as well as the day. They also take several naps during the day, standing up.
Meerkats The Meerkat (suricate Suricata suricatta) is also called a ‘Suricate’. It is a small member of the mongoose family whose range extends from South West Angola to South Africa.
Bees There are over 20,000 species of bees in the world in nine recognised families. There are still many unclassified species therefore the total population could be even higher. However these little pollinators are in danger, with numbers in great decline with pesticides and agricultural products, as well as the decline in ‘wild’ areas they need for food being major threats.