Russian Animals

Just like many other countries, Russia has its own, Russian animals. Bears -  especially the Russian brown bear, wolves, foxes, hares, hedgehogs, Arctic foxes, Siberian tigers, lynx, sables, weasels and minks are considered by many Russians to be the principal Russian animals.

Some of these animals are found in other parts of the world, too, but most of them live only in Russia. There’s a saying that if you doubt the origin of an animal, ask yourself if you can make a hat out of it. If yes, then it lives in Russia! Russian animals - or rather their fur - often save people who live in the north of Russia from extreme minus temperatures and keep them warm throughout very long, dreary, and freezing cold winters.

Russian animals are also frequently mentioned in Russian folklore. Animals are the main characters in many Russian fairytales: they are given human abilities, including the ability to speak, wit or stupidity, and a sense of humour.

You will learn the names of Russian animals as well as their correct pronunciation with our interactive online Russian language course, RT Learn Russian.