- By Ridam Sharma
- Sat, 26 Apr 2025 11:28 PM (IST)
- Source:JND
List Of Animals With The Longest Tails: The environment is filled with unique and beautiful creatures. With each having an extraordinary organ or prowess, animals truly make the world a uniquely breathtakingly beautiful place. Surprisingly, some of these beautiful animals have astonishingly long tails, due to various factors, from adaptation and helping animals survive to thrive and even attract mates in their environments. Let’s check out the list of more than 15 animals with long tails.
Which Animal Has the Longest Tail?
The extinct dinosaur Barosaurus, which was at times referred to as Barlowosaurus, is believed to have had the absolute longest tail in history, which exceeded 20 meters (65 feet) in length. This extremely long tail aided in balancing its lengthy neck and body.
However, the Whiptail stingray owns the longest tail of any living organism in the world, with its tail up to 14 feet (4.3 meters) long, which is often twice as long as its body.
Among land mammals, the giraffe has the longest tail, which reaches up to 8 feet or 2.4 meters long. On the other hand, when it comes to tail-to-body proportion, the Asian grass lizard, scientifically known as Takydromus sexlineatus, has the longest tail, which is longer than three times its body.
For birds, the male long-tailed widowbird might have a tail as bigger as four times its body length.
Why Do Animals Have Long Tails?
Long tails are useful for many things, including balance, for running, climbing, or jumping. For example, spider monkeys and kangaroos. While in birds the long tail is a display of courtship, for example, in widowbirds and peacocks.
Long tails can also be their for defence, for example, Stingrays employ their tails as a defensive weapon. While Giraffes and cows swat pests away with their tails.
List Of Top 15+ Animals With the Longest Tails:
| Animal | Tail Length | Tail-to-Body Ratio | Notable Feature / Use |
|---|---|---|---|
| Barosaurus (extinct) | 20+ meters (65+ feet) | ~1:1 | Balance for a long neck |
| Whiptail Stingray | 4.3 meters (14 feet) | 2:1 | Defence, swimming |
| Giraffe | 2.4 meters (8 feet) | 1:1 | Swatting insects |
| Asian Grass Lizard | 22.5 cm (8.9 inches) | 3:1 | Balance, display |
| Long-tailed Widowbird | 50 cm (19.7 inches) | 4:1 | Mating display |
| Jerboa | 16 cm (6.4 inches) | 2:1 | Balance for jumping |
| Spider Monkey | 86 cm (34 inches) | 1.6:1 | Grasping, climbing |
| Ring-tailed Lemur | 63 cm (25 inches) | 1.4:1 | Balance, communication |
| Green Basilisk | 60 cm (24 inches) | 2:1 | Balance, running on water |
| Common Thresher Shark | 3 meters (9 feet) | 1:1 | Hunting (slapping prey) |
| Peacock | 1.5 meters (5 feet) | 1.6:1 | Courtship display |
| Red Kangaroo | 1 meter (3 feet) | 1:1 | Balance while hopping |
| Indian Gray Langur | 90 cm (35 inches) | 1:1 | Balance, communication |
| Guizhou Golden Monkey | 70 cm (27 inches) | 1:1 | Balance in trees |
| Maine Coon Cat | 45 cm (17.5 inches) | 1:1 | Warmth, balance |
| Long-eared Jerboa | 16 cm (6.4 inches) | 2:1 | Jumping, balance |
Read Also: List Of 10 Animals That Have The Longest Tongue
Read Also: List Of 10 Animals That Are No Longer Extinct: Dire Wolves Come Back To Life After 12,000 Years
