Animals in Sri Lanka - like safari everywhere

There is certainly plenty of wildlife in Sri Lanka. In fact, you sometimes wonder if you really need to go on safari - it feels like the whole country is a safari in itself. Today we present the animals we saw (some of them super cute!) and also other animals that can be seen in Sri Lanka.

Animals of Sri Lanka - in alphabetical order

Sri Lanka has a wealth of wildlife, both on land and in water. We have far from seen all the animals in Sri Lanka, but some of them we managed to see during our tour. Some we saw on safari or river safari, but others we saw while sitting in a hotel or strolling around a temple. Here we present animals in Sri Lanka, in alphabetical order.

apes

When in Sri Lanka, there is a very high chance of seeing monkeys. It's probably more unlikely that not see monkeys. The monkeys seem to be everywhere, but for some reason they seem especially fond of temples. The most common monkeys are macaques and hulmans.

Dolphins and whales

Off the southern coast of Sri Lanka, it is possible to take boat trips to see dolphins and whales. This was actually on our wish list, but there was a bit too much on that list, so we couldn't do it all.

Squirrels

There are two types of squirrels in Sri Lanka, palm squirrels and giant squirrels. We saw the cute little palm squirrels many times. Unfortunately, we didn't see the giant squirrel, but apparently it can grow up to 45 cm long and weigh up to three kilos.

Elephants

In Sri Lanka, the Asian elephant is found in both domesticated and wild conditions. For example, we saw a domesticated elephant being washed in a river. We also saw several wild elephants when we were on the safari in Minneriya National Park.

Fish

There are many different both freshwater and saltwater fish in Sri Lanka. We saw small sharks at Ahungalla Sea Turtles. In addition, we tried the fish spa and saw a very special jellyfish ...

Bats

Among other things, there are bats of the flying dog variety in Sri Lanka. We don't know if these were the ones we saw, but we did see a type of bat among the temples and caves in Anuradhapura.

Birds

There are plenty of fine birds in Sri Lanka, and you can see them both on safari in the national parks and at other times when you're out and about.

Grodor

The tropical climate allows frogs to thrive, and there are over 250 species of frogs on the island.

Deer

There is a roe deer-like deer called the axis deer, and a deer called the sambar deer.

Dogs

We saw lots of dogs in Sri Lanka. The dogs look pretty much the same and roam around towns and villages. Sometimes they mingle a bit with the monkeys (or the monkeys mingle with the dogs).

Felines

Apart from the leopard, there are some other interesting felines in Sri Lanka. Among them is a feline called the rusty-spotted cat, which is closely related to the leopard cat. This is one of the smallest wild cats in the world.

Crocodiles

There are crocodiles in Sri Lanka, and the guide on our river safari told us that there are crocodiles there, but they are shy and avoid the sound of motorised boats.

Leopards

When you talk about animals in Sri Lanka, you have to mention leopards! We didn't see a leopard, but we met other Swedes who saw a leopard up close in Yala National Park.

Lip bears

The sloth bear is a relatively small bear with long dark fur. There is a chance of seeing it in some national parks, but it is relatively shy.

Mungo

The mongoose is a mammal that feeds on insects, larvae, crabs and in some cases snakes. Apparently these are found in Sri Lanka.

Ormar

Apparently there are a lot of snakes in Sri Lanka. Most are harmless, but some can be really poisonous. Fortunately, we didn't see any snakes at all.

Jackal

The Sri Lankan savannah is home to the jackal, or golden jackal as it is also known. The animal resembles a Swedish fox or wolf.

Turtles

There are several different turtles in Sri Lanka, and we saw sea turtles when we visited Ahungalla Sea Turtles on the west coast.

Spindles

Apparently there are several different spiders on the island, some of which are poisonous. We didn't see a single spider, but that was just as well.

Water buffalo

Water buffalo are found here and there and we saw some from a distance during our safari, but didn't get any good photos.

Wild boar

Wild boar are apparently plentiful in Sri Lanka's forests, and this is one of the animals you can see on safari. On the other hand, they are both shy and possibly aggressive.

lizards

There are lots of different lizards in Sri Lanka, and during our two weeks we saw the house gecko, chameleon and water monitor.