Microlophus is a genus of tropidurid lizards native to South America. Around 20 species are recognized and 10 of these are endemic to the Galápagos Islands, where they are commonly known as lava lizards. The remaining, which often are called Pacific iguanas, are found in the Andes and along the Pacific coasts of Chile, Peru, and Ecuador.
The pygmy beaked whale, also known as the bandolero beaked whale, Peruvian beaked whale and lesser beaked whale, is the smallest of the mesoplodonts and one of the newest discoveries. There were at least two dozen sightings of an unknown beaked whale named Mesoplodon sp. A before the initial classification, and those are now believed to be synonymous with the species. The species was formally described in 1991, based on ten specimens obtained from Peru between 1976 and 1989, including a 3.72 m (12.2 ft) adult male as the type specimen. A specimen that stranded at Paracas, Peru in 1955 has since been identified as a pygmy beaked whale. Since 1987, there have been an additional 40 sightings of the species, for a total of 65.
Located about 2300 miles (3680 km) from the nearest continental shore, the Hawaiian Islands are the most isolated group of islands on the planet. The plant and animal life of the Hawaiian archipelago is the result of early, very infrequent colonizations of arriving species and the slow evolution of those species—in isolation from the rest of the world's flora and fauna—over a period of at least 5 million years. As a consequence, Hawai'i is home to a large number of endemic species. The radiation of species described by Charles Darwin in the Galapagos Islands which was critical to the formulation of his theory of evolution is far exceeded in the more isolated Hawaiian Islands.
Achatinella is a tropical genus of colorful land snails in the monotypic Achatinellidae subfamily Achatinellinae. Species are arboreal pulmonate gastropod mollusks with some species called Oʻahu tree snails or kāhuli in the Hawaiian language.
Odobenocetops is an extinct genus of small toothed whale known from Chile and Peru. Its fossils are found in Miocene-aged marine strata of the Bahía Inglesa Formation and Pisco Formation. Two species of Odobenocetops are currently recognized, O. peruvianus and the slightly younger O. leptodon.
Trimusculus is a genus of medium-sized air-breathing sea snails or false limpets, marine pulmonate gastropod molluscs in the family Trimusculidae.
Telmatobius peruvianus, also known as the Peru water frog, is a species of frog in the family Telmatobiidae. This semiaquatic frog is endemic to Andean highlands in southeastern Peru and far northern Chile where found in streams and small rivers. It is threatened by habitat loss, pollution, collection for human consumption and infection by chytrid fungi, and it has not been seen in Chile since 1986.
Achatinellidae is a family of tropical air-breathing land snails, terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusks in the superfamily Pupilloidea.
Archaeogeryon is an extinct genus of crab from the Miocene, the type species in the genus is Archaeogeryon peruvianus. Despite the species name, the crab is only known from the Guadal Formation, Chile.
Chorus giganteus is a species of sea snail in the family Muricidae. It is endemic to the coast of Chile, where it occurs from Antofagasta (23° S) to the south of the country at depths of 8–30 metres (26–98 ft). It is a benthic predator that lives on rocks in temperate waters. It has been overexploited by local fishermen in much of its range.
Macrocyclidae is a family of air-breathing land snails, terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusks in the superfamily Acavoidea.
Bayerius is a genus of sea snails, marine gastropod mollusks in the family Buccinidae, the true whelks.
Microlophus peruvianus, the Peru Pacific iguana, is a species of lava lizard endemic to the Ecuador, Peru, and Chile. The species is commonly attributed to the genus Microlophus but has been attributed to the genus Tropidurus.
Lobatus peruvianus, commonly known as the Peruvian conch or the cock's comb conch, is a species of large sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Strombidae, the true conchs and their allies.
Bosque Andino Patagónico, also known as Patagonian Andean forest, is a type of temperate to cold forest located in southern Chile and western Patagonia in Argentina at the southern end of South America. The climate here is influenced by humid air masses moving in from the Pacific Ocean which lose most of their moisture as they rise over the Andes. The flora is dominated by trees, usually of the genus Nothofagus.
Polycladus is a genus of land planarians from South America, currently comprising a single species, Polycladus gayi, which occurs in the Valdivian Forest, Chile.
