Why Do Animals Have Tails?

Tails come in all shapes, sizes, and colors. Most vertebrates (creatures with backbones) have tails. Your dogs and cats both have them—even if they’re just little stubs. And creatures like fish and birds have tails too. So, what’s a tail’s tale?

God made each tail to help his creatures survive and thrive in a fallen world.

Tails have lots of purposes, but one thing’s for sure: God made each tail to help his creatures survive and thrive in our fallen world. Keep reading to find out some specific ways an animal uses its tail.

Balance

Some animals, like kangaroos and cats, use their tails to balance. Squirrels might also use their tails to help them stabilize as they jump high up in the trees.

Navigation

Have you ever seen a monkey use its tail to swing from branch to branch? Some tails help an animal get around. Monkeys and possums have a special kind of tail that can hold them up when it’s wrapped around a tree branch. Many sea creatures also have tails that help them get from place to place, including fish, dolphins, whales, and sharks.

Communication

A tail can say a lot. Wolves and dogs show their emotions with their tails. They wag their tails when they’re feeling friendly. When they feel excited or curious, they hold their tails high and their ears forward. If they feel afraid or nervous, they might tuck their tails between their legs and flatten their ears. When ready to attack, they might stick their tails straight out.

Other animals use their tails to communicate danger. Deer flash the white underside of their tails to warn other deer of danger. Beavers slap their tails on the water when they detect a threat.

Warmth

Some foxes and snow leopards use their tails like a blanket to keep warm in the winter.

Defense

Better watch out for these treacherous tails! Creatures like rattlesnakes, iguanas, and stingrays use their tails to protect themselves. And animals like horses, zebras, giraffes, and cows use their tails like a flyswatter to shoo away pesky insects.

Nourishment

Alligators and beavers store fat in their tails to use for energy during winter when there isn’t much food available.

No Tails Here!

Some animals break the rules! These animals are vertebrates, but they don’t have tails:

• Kiwi bird
• Guinea pigs
• Apes (gorillas, chimpanzees, orangutans, gibbons)
• Koala
• Fruit bat
• Capybara

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