noun
fauna
FAW-nuh/ˈfɔːnə/
The animals of a particular region, period, or habitat collectively.
The woodland fauna includes foxes, deer, squirrels, owls, and turtles.
Etymology
Fauna’s name, originally that of a rustic fertility goddess, became a collective term for animal life. Linnaeus popularized it through his catalogue of Swedish animals, pairing it with flora for plants.
In context
the diversity of the fauna here with their parasites and dung ensures the existence of innumerable flies in this way
More examples
- Pollution threatens the pond's fauna, from insects to frogs.
- These fossils reveal the fauna of an earlier geological period.
- The two forests support remarkably different faunas.
Forms
fauna · faunas · faunae
faunal adjective — Relating to a region's collective animal life.