Fauna
[FAH-nə]
Part of speech: noun
Origin: Latin, 18th century
1.
The animals of a particular region, habitat, or geological period.
Examples of Fauna in a sentence
"The fauna in the Serengeti includes the increasingly rare black rhino."
"A trip to the aquarium is a great way to study the fauna of the sea."
About Fauna
This word derived from a modern Latin application of Fauna, a Roman rural goddess and sister of Faunus, in the late 18th century.
Did you Know?
There’s a reason “flora and fauna” are often paired together. The word “fauna” became popular after Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus used it in the title of his 1746 catalog, “Fauna Svecica.” It detailed all the animals in his country, and he paired the word as a companion to “flora” within the text.
