Mauritania's wildlife has two main influences as the country lies in twobiogeographic realms. The north sits in thePalearctic which extends south from theSahara to roughly 19° north latitude and the south is in theAfrotropic realm. Additionally, Mauritania is an important wintering area for numerous birds which migrate from the Palearctic.

Most of the north to about 19° north latitude is regarded as being in the Palearctic, and is largely made up of theSahara desert and adjacent littoral habitats. South of this is regarded as being in theAfrotropical biogeographic realm, which means that species of a predominantly Afotropical distribution dominate the fauna.^[1] South of the Sahara is theSouth Saharan steppe and woodlands ecoregion^[2] which integrates into theSahelian acacia savanna ecoregion.^[3] The southernmost part of the country lies in theWest Sudanian savanna ecoregion.^[4]

Wetlands are important and the two main protected areas are theBanc d'Arguin National Park which protects rich, shallow coastal and marine ecosystems which integrate with the arid Sahara desert^[5] and theDiawling National Park which forms the northern part of thedelta of theSenegal River.^[6] Elsewhere in Mauritania wetlands are normally ephemeral and rely on the seasonal rainfall and may be very important formigratory birds.^[7]

Most of the larger mammal species have been extirpated from Mauritania. Among theantelopes thescimitar-horned oryx,addax,korrigum anddama gazelle are extinct, thebohor reedbuck,Buffon's kob,dorcas gazelle andred-fronted gazelle are extinct and thebushbuck andslender-horned gazelle are of indeterminate status.^[8] In the area of Diawling National Park, the lastlion was shot in 1970 and there have been no sightings ofmanatees orhippopotamus in recent years.^[6] TheMediterranean monk seal has one of its last strongholds in the world in the coves along theCap Blanc Peninsula nearNouadhibou.^[9] Common extant mammals includefennec fox,African golden wolves,warthogs,African wildcats,Cape hares andpatas monkeys.^[3]

The rich offshore waters of Mauritania are home to a diverse fauna ofcetaceans. Upwellings off the coats create rich feeding grounds for baleen whales and these includeblue whale,sei whale andBryde's whale,^[10] although theNorth Atlantic right whale is now extinct in the eastern Atlantic, it was recorded off Mauritania.^[11] Other cetaceans found off Mauritania's coast includeharbour porpoise,Atlantic spotted dolphin,bottlenose dolphin,sperm whale,short-finned pilot whale andorca.^[12]

Over 500 species of bird have been recorded in Mauritania. Specialities and spectacular species includescissor-tailed kite,Nubian bustard,Arabian bustard,houbara bustard,Egyptian plover,golden nightjar,chestnut-bellied starling,Kordofan lark andSudan golden sparrow.^[13]

The coastal wetlands are of immense importance for over two million wintering Western Palearctic waders, from fifteen different species includingdunlin,bar-tailed godwit,curlew sandpiper andcommon redshank each numbering over 100,000 birds. Other wintering species include more than 30,000greater flamingos. Breeding birds includegreat white pelican,reed cormorant,gull-billed tern,Caspian tern,royal tern andcommon tern, together with two uniquesubspecies ofgrey heronArdea cinerea monicae andEurasian spoonbillPlatalea leucorodia balsaci and an outpost of thewestern reef heron.^[14]

TheWest African crocodile still exists in small numbers in Mauritania.^[15] Other reptiles found include theAfrican chameleon,Senegal chameleon,Nile monitor, various geckos and other lizards, theMali cobra andblack-necked spitting cobra,African rock python, thedesert horned viper and theSaharan sand viper,puff adders are among the snakes, as well as terrestrial, freshwater and marine turtles. In all 86 species of reptile in 21 families have been recorded in Mauritania.^[16] Eleven species of amphibian have been confirmed as occurring in Mauritania but another 19 are expected to be recorded, mainly in the south of the country.^[17]

The marine fish found off Mauritania's coast are an important resource for commercial, subsistence and sport fishing. Estimates put the potential catch at between 400,000 and 700,000 tons.^[18] The rich waters off the Mauritanian coast are host to a variety of species more familiar in more northerly temperate waters such asEuropean seabass,European hake,Norwegian skate andgilt-head bream, as well as species more typical of warmer waters includingwhale shark,Atlantic bluefin tuna,Atlantic sailfish,tarpon andAtlantic blue marlin.^[19] 56 species of freshwater fish have been reported from Mauritania of which 50 have been confirmed as occurring.^[20]

This section is empty. You can help byadding to it.(January 2023)

• Biota of Mauritania
• Wildlife by country

• Articles with short description
• Short description with empty Wikidata description
• Articles to be expanded from January 2023
• All articles to be expanded
• Articles with empty sections from January 2023
• All articles with empty sections