Affiliation: Air

Location Sighted: Northern Air Temple and the Cave of Two Lovers

Description: The firefly is a small insect. It has a short grayish-black body, two tiny eyes, and two wings. The wings appear to emit a pale bluish light. The pocket of natural gas on which the temple was built necessitates the use of a non-flammable light source when venturing deep into the mountain, so the Mechanist uses fireflies in his lanterns for this reason.

Real world Connection: Fireflies, also known as lightning bugs, are beetles. They are characterized both by their nocturnal habits and by the special light generating organs in their abdomens. The male fireflies use this organ to emit light in specific patterns in order to attract a mate. Firefly larvae, also known as glowworms, glow as a defense mechanism to ward off predators. If ingested, the chemicals in the glowworm can prove fatal.

The fireflies employed by the Mechanist appear to have luminous wings that glow continuously. This is a marked difference from real world fireflies, whose light generating organs reside in their abdomens and only fluoresce intermittently to attract mates. The Mechanist's fireflies resemble the common housefly more than the real world lightning bug.

Affiliation: Earth

Location Sighted: In the Earth Kingdom forest seen in the episode "Jet."

Description: The flying beetle is a small green insect. It has six legs and its back shell is segmented into four sections. It has a very small head and two small, curly antennae. To fly, it opens up its shell to allow a concealed set of wings to emerge.

Real world Connection: Beetles are one of the most successful orders of life in the world and have literally millions of distinct species. This variety makes it virtually impossible to establish a direct connection between the beetle seen on the show and any particular species. Beetles do, however, share some common characteristics. All beetles have a hard exoskeleton or shell that covers their abdomen and can open to reveal a set of wings. Not all beetles are able to fly, though, and some beetles have even lost the inner wings altogether. These insects also play a vital role in the food chain as they mostly feed on decaying organic matter.

Affiliation: Air

Location Sighted: Aang's animal guide, Appa, is the only flying bison we have seen alive in present day. He transports Aang and his friends from one location to the next on their journey.

Description: The flying bison is a huge, two-ton, fluffy beast with six pawed legs and a large, broad, beaver-like tail. Two curved horns protrude out of its head and it has big, dark eyes. The flying bison's body is large enough that a platform can be harnessed to its back for groups of people to sit in. Traditionally an Air Nomad animal, it has the ability to fly and maneuver in the air. It can also use its large tail to create powerful gusts of air to blow back enemies. It has an airbender arrow on its forehead, as well, though it is currently unknown if this is a natural marking or if the airbenders branded them in some way.

Real world Connection: The real life bison shares a similar history to the flying bison in that they were a very abundant species until foreigners came and hunted them down, reducing their numbers to near extinction. Real world bison share the same horns and fluffy exterior, though their tails are small and they have four legs with hooves instead of six legs with paws. The other half of the flying bison appears to be beaver-like in appearance. Beavers share the same type of tail and have similar noses, only not as wide.

Affiliation: Air (or spirit?)

Location Sighted: Sighted in Aang's vision in the Earth Kingdom swamp.

Description: A white boar with large wings attached to its back.

Real world Connection: The flying boar seen in the swamp resembles a trademark symbol of John Steinbeck's, the pigasus₁. A pun on the mythological Pegasus, or flying horse, Steinbeck often signed his name accompanied by a drawing of the winged pig, and eventually added a Latin motto to it which means "to the stars on the wings of a pig." The pigasus symbolizes aspiration.

The flying pig in Avatar may also be a visual form of the term "when pigs fly," an idiom that means something will never happen. Since it would appear pigs do in fact fly in the world of Avatar, it can be deduced that anything is possible there.

Source-Center for Steinbeck Studies
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Affiliation: Earth

Location Sighted: The agrarian area between the outer and inner walls of Ba-Sing-Se.

Description: These graceful grazers have the heads of antelopes, adorned with spiral horns, and the bodies of red foxes. The fur on their upper parts is rust-red colored; their underparts, the areas around their eyes, and the tips of their fox-like tails are white.

Real world Connection: The horns of the fox antelope resemble the distinctive spiral horns of the male Black Buck (Antilope cervicapra) native to the grasslands of the Indian sub-continent. Females and young of this medium-sized antelope species are fawn-yellow, while the males darken in color as they mature until they become almost black (hence the species name). Both sexes have white underparts. Only the males possess horns, which can grow up to two feet in length. The Black Buck is considered one of the fastest land mammals, and can reach speeds of up to 50 miles per hour. The Black Buck was once one of the most abundant antelope species in the Indian sub-cotinent, but it's population has severely declined due to to excessive hunting and the destruction of their natural habitat.

In body shape and coloration the The fox antelope resembles the red fox (Vulpes vulpes). Red foxes range in color from grayish, to yellow, to flame-red. Native to most of the northern hemisphere, they are the most widely dispersed carnivore species on the planet. They can be found in various habitats, and even thrive in urban and semi-urban settings. Essentially omnivorous, foxes mainly prey on small rodents and rabbits, but will also eat insects and fruit.

Affiliation: Earth

Location Sighted: Draft insect seen used by the sand people of the Si Wong Desert.

Description: This creature is a giant insect with a large green shell that serves as its body. It has small black eyes and, like all insects, it has six legs. These creatures have been domesticated and are used like oxen to pull large, heavy loads.

Real world Connection: Beetles are one of the most successful orders of life in the world and have literally millions of distinct species. This variety makes it virtually impossible to establish a direct connection between the beetle seen on the show and any particular species. Beetles do, however, share some common characteristics. All beetles have a hard exoskeleton or shell that covers their abdomen and can open to reveal a set of wings. Not all beetles are able to fly, though, and some beetles have even lost the inner wings altogether. These insects also play a vital role in the food chain as they mostly feed on decaying organic matter.

Affiliation: Earth/Air

Location Sighted: This creature was found served as a meal for the people in the Earth Kingdom swamp.

Description: An enormous brown-green insect with tiny translucent wings and red eyes. It appears to have eight legs in total and has a very large thorax compared to the rest of its body.

Real world Connection: This enormous insect resembles the common fruit fly, except that it is the size of a small dog. Relative to the rest of its body, the giant fly's wings are tiny and appear to be far too small to allow it to fly. If it was in fact able to fly when alive then this is a trait it shares the bumblebee, whose wingspan also appears to be too small to allow for flight.

Affiliation: Water

Location Sighted: The Serpent's Pass

Description: This gigantic green monster is incredibly fierce and dangerous. It appears to attack any and everything that attempts to pass through the water it inhabits. The body is very long and large with various fins on the back. Its head has large red eyes and a very long mouth which contains a great amount of teeth and an equally long tongue. It has two fins on either side of its face that go outward and appear fan like. It also has two large whiskers, one on either side of the nose. The creature is very similar to the Unagi and may be related.

Real world Connection: The Giant Serpent seems to be inspired by the eastern mythological creatures, Oriental Dragons, or else the Chinese dragon. Unlike the western folk lore, the Oriental Dragon is a long snake like creature with arms and legs. These dragons share the same eyes and whiskers as the Giant Serpent as well as general body shape (minus the legs and arms).

Affiliation: Air

Location Sighted: The Earth Kingdom swamp

Description: A pretty small insect, the glow fly's features are not distinguishable due to the intense luminosity of its light. When it is lit up fully, the bug appears to be much larger than usual.

Real world Connection: The lightning bug (or firefly) is likely the closest real life connection to the glowing bug seen in Avatar. Certain species of adult fireflies are able to emit light using an enzyme inside their abdomens. The flash patterns of light that they blink are used to attract mates. This bioluminescence is generally not as bright as that of the insect seen in Avatar; while the glow fly produced enough light to see by for about a yard around, the light of an adult lightning bug couldn't cover such a broad range.

Affiliation: Water

Location Sighted: In the Earth Kingdom river or pond near Aunt Wu's village seen in the episode "The Fortuneteller."

Description: This fish is chubby and green with a broad face that has whiskers, but no lips. It has a short dorsal fin that goes from the top of its head all the way down its spine and two greenish-yellow fins on either side of its body. This fish also has a habit of repeatedly jumping high out of the water.

Real world Connection: Although there are no solid green catfish like the one seen in Avatar, catfish inhabit freshwater habitats throughout the world . While most identify catfish by their barbels--the whisker-like sensory organs on either side of its face--not all catfish have them. What distinguishes all catfish is that, unlike most fish, they do not have scales and they all share certain head and swimbladder characteristics.

Affiliation: Air

Location Sighted: On the shoulder of the Pirate Captain.

Description: This creature has feathers and is capable of flight, but has many reptilian characteristics as well. It has a parrot-like beak and a feathered tail, but its wings end in claws and it moves on all four limbs when it chooses not to fly. Its feet also seem to lack the reversed toe characteristic of all modern birds, giving it a more reptilian appearance. The green parrot also has a small dorsal fin on its back.

Real world Connection: It has long been thought that birds evolved from dinosaurs, and possible links between the two have been studied intensely. The earliest known bird, archaeopteryx₁, shares many characteristics with the green parrot in Avatar. It has feathered wings, but also claws. Archaeopteryx also lacks the reversed toe of modern birds, instead having the reptilian structure of dinosaurs.

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Affiliation: Water

Location Sighted: Outlying islands of the Fire Nation.

Description: This creature is a cross between an iguana and a seal. It's head is lizard-like and it has the central row of spines from it's cranium to the tip of it's long tail, typical of the iguana. Its torso is seal shaped, but its long, lizard-like legs end with enlarged, webbed feet.

Real world Connection: The sealguanas may be based on two iguana species. Green iguanas are large herbivorous arboreal lizards found in Central and South America. Although green in color, in their habitat and habits the sealguanas resemble another species more: the Galapagos Islands' marine iguanas. These are semi-aquatic grayish lizards who roost and bask on the island's volcanic-rock cliffs, occasionally diving into the cold waves to feast on algae.

Common Seals occurs along coastlines of the northern hemisphere. They are large (up to 6 feet long) aquatic mammals who spend most of their time in the ocean, in pursuit of fish and other prey. They come on land, usually to the same territorial base, to rest and breed. In the water they are powerful swimmers, streamlined and graceful. On land they galumph about laboriously, due to the diminished flexibility of their hind limbs.

Nick.com states "The call of the sealguana is a melodious sound. Sailors used to believe that the sealguanas were actually beautiful mermaids calling to them. But when they got up close, they saw they were just scaly creatures and killed them for food".

Affiliation: Earth

Location Sighted: The derelict Fire Navy ship in "The Boy in the Iceberg."

Description: Small, furry rodents that have slightly feline facial features. Their fur is white and they have small, flattened tails. They make squealing noises much like hamsters or mice.

Real world Connection: These little creatures seem most connected to real life hamsters and domestic cats. Hamsters are small, four-legged, omnivorous rodents that are often kept as pets. The best connection might be to the Winter White Hamsters, whose fur turns completely white as the days shorten heading into winter.

The domestic cat is a small, furry four-legged mammal of the felidae family. The many different breeds of domestic cat make it nearly impossible to make a direct connection between any particular type and the animal in Avatar.

Affiliation: Earth

Location Sighted: The prairie or steppe regions of the Earth Kingdom.

Description: Singing groundhogs are small, brown furry rodents. They live in huge colonies on wide open prairies. With an ear for music, these creatures will respond to single tones from a flute or other instrument by repeating that tone back to the player.

Real world Connection: The Singing Groundhog seems most closely related to the real life prairie dog, who also enjoys popping up out of little holes in the ground, rather than the groundhog. Prairie dogs are small, furry rodents that are native to the grasslands of North America. They are highly social animals who live in large colonies dug into the earth.

Affiliation: Air

Location Sighted: A pet shop in Ba-Sing-Se.

Description: The feathers on all but the heads of these dove-sized birds are lime-green colored. Their heads are yellow, except for the area around the eyes which is white, and an orange spot on the cheek. They have peach colored parakeets-like beaks, suited for seed-cracking.

Real world Connection: These birds are a combination of an introduced species that has suceeded greatly in the US, and an endemic North American Parrot species, which is now extinct.House Sparrows (Passer domesticus) are native to Eurasia and North Africa, and have been introduced everywhere else in the wolrd (except Antarctica). 100 sparrows were released in Brooklin in 1851. From this original stock, (plus a few 'transplants' and additional introductions) the birds have spread throughout North America. They live in areas inhabited and modified by humans, but cannot thrive in unaltered wilds. They are possibly the most common bird in the in the US (estimated to number 150,000,000), although their numbers are presently declining.The sparrowkeet's coloration and body shape closely resemble those of the The Carolina Parakeet (Conuropsis carolinensis), the only parrot species native to the eastern United States. These birds were mostly green, their heads were yellow, and the area around the eyes dark red. By the later half of the 19th century, the Carolina parakeet's habitat was encroached on by human settlements and they were hunted as crop-destroying pests. They were also hunted for their plumage and collected as pets. The last specimen died in captivity in 1918. In recent dacades, a population of a similar species, the Monk Parakeet (Myiopsitta monachus), was accidentally introduced into the US via the pet trade.

Affiliation: Spirit

Location Sighted: Soaring through the Spirit World

Description: An enormous white bird with tufts of spiky feathers atop its head. It has long legs and a very long, thin neck, which is outstretched as it flies.

Real world Connection: Although the spirit crane very closely resembles the snowy egret or the white heron in appearance, it does not fly with its neck pulled back as these species do. Crane species are water birds that live in wetlands, eating small fish, insects, amphibians, and certain plants. In Japanese mythology, cranes are symbols of longevity, and in China they are considered mystical creatures. "Heavenly cranes" or "blessed cranes" in this tradition were often messengers of wisdom and were said to carry Taoist sages back and forth between heavenly realms on their backs. It is no wonder we see this animal in the Spirit World.

Affiliation: Spirit

Location Sighted: The oasis in the center of the Northern Water Tribe city.

Description: The two koi fish are a healthy two or three feet in length. The black koi has a single white spot on its head while the white koi has a single black spot.

Real world Connection: Koi are a domesticated, very colorful variety of the common carp, and are closely related to the goldfish. Around 200 years ago, the Japanese noticed the beautiful color patterns on some of the carp and bred them for these markings. Koi come in many different colors, including red, orange, yellow, white, silver, and black, and they are bred for certain markings and color patterns. Color patterns are very specific for Japanese koi, though the forms both closely resemble the tancho kohaku variety of koi fish, which is a white fish with a single red spot on its head.

Unlike the elephant koi, these fish appear to be normally sized and colored. The koi forms of the two spirits are probably very old, and it is believed that koi are capable of living for more than a century as long as they are healthy and protected from predators.

Affiliation: Spirit

Location Sighted: Walking behind Koh's tree in the spirit world.

Description: This creature is an enormous, furry, four legged animal that is largely canine in appearance. It has a black nose and brown fur over most of its body, except for a patch of light brown or beige fur around each of its eyes. It is unknown whether this spirit is intelligent or not.

Real world Connection: Wolves are carnivorous, four legged mammals native to the northern hemisphere who share common ancestry with the domestic dog. Their size and weight tend to increase the further north one travels. Wolves are social animals and live in packs that adhere to a strict social hierarchy that is dominated by an alpha male and female.

Affiliation: Water

Location Sighted: South Pole

Description: The facial features of tigerseals are predominantly feline, with cat-like ears, snout, and whiskers. The rest of the animal resembles a seal, with flippers, a sleek body, and tail. Adult tigerseals appear to be approximately five to six feet in length and are gray with a pattern of black stripes. Tigerseal pups have the same markings as their parents, but appear to be only about two to three feet in length.

Real world Connection: Tiger seals appear to be a straightforward cross of a tiger and a seal. Tigers are the largest and most powerful of all living cats. They are predatory carnivores and hunt alone. Of the large cats, only the tiger and the jaguar are swimmers. The pattern of a tiger's stripes is unique to each animal and is actually imprinted on their skin. Tigers rely on their stripes for camouflage in the jungle; it's possible the tigerseal stripe patterns serve a similar purpose.

Seals are known as pinnipeds, "fin-foots" or, literally, "winged foots." Seals have large flippers as forelimbs and their bodies are streamlined, narrowing into a substantial tail. Since tigerseals have ears, they would best be classified as fur seals; true seals do not have ears. The tigerseals are seen in "The Boy in the Iceberg" and appear for only a few seconds after Katara frees Aang. The adult tigerseals begin to bark or bray in unison as if heralding the Avatar's return to the world, sounding very similar to normal seals as they do so.

Affiliation: Air

Location Sighted: Near coastal caves in the Fire Nation islands.

Description: Small birds with black and white plumage and blue necks. They have large red/yellow beaks that end in a black tip, and their feet are webbed. According to Nick.com, "they have the ability to fly, but would rather hang out by the ocean and eat cave-hoppers".

Real world Connection: Toucan-puffins are based on two different types of birds: toucans (the beak) and puffins (the body).Puffins are sea birds in the auk family. They have black and white plumage with brightly colored beaks during breeding season. Their wings are adapted for swimming, and they feed primarily by diving for fish and zooplankton. They can also fly by beating their wings rapidly, but usually stay low over the ocean's surface when flying.Toucans are arboreal tropical birds with enormous colorful beaks. They range in size from 4 ounces and 11 inches to 1.5 pounds and 25 inches, depending on the species. Their bodies are short and thick, with rounded tails. Their necks are short, and their beaks can sometimes be more than half the length of the body. Toucans eat mostly fruit but will occasionally eat insects and small lizards.

Affiliation: Earth

Location Sighted: The woods by Iroh and Zuko's cave in "Avatar Day."

Description: A small lizard with yellowish eyes and a crest on its head. The tree chameleon has a spotted green marking pattern along its back and what appears to be very small wings attached to its sides. It also has a long, curled up tail and a long tongue that it uses to catch and eat bugs.

Real world Connection: Chameleons are lizards that are well known for their ability to change colors and blend in with their surroundings. This lizard's feet are equipped with grasping pincers, which allows it to easily climb tree trunks and branches. Its eyes protrude from its face slightly and are able to move independently of one another, giving the chameleon a 360 degree view of its surroundings. The final very unique feature of this reptile is its extensible tongue, which can be shot out of the chameleon's mouth at insects and food that are out of reach; this tongue can be nearly twice the length of its entire body. The tree chameleon of Avatar most closely resembles the veiled (or Yemen) species of chameleon.

Affiliation: Air/Earth

Location Sighted: The Fortuneteller's Village

Description: The duck is a small white bird. It has two webbed feet, two wings and a stubby fan-shaped tail. The duck has gray feathers encircling both its eyes and a yellow bill. Besides the gray eye feathers, the only color on the duck is a band of red skin over its bill. They have a loud, distinctive warble.

Real world Connection: The duck is an aquatic bird that can be found both in salt and fresh water. They are characterized by webbed feet, bills, and water-repellent feathers. Special oils in the duck's skin cause water to bead off its feathers without getting them wet.

The many different breeds and species of duck make it nearly impossible to make a direct correlation with the duck seen in the Fortuneteller's village.

Affiliation: Earth

Location Sighted: The garden pond in the Fire Lord's palace

Description: This creature has the head, neck, webbed feet and tail of a duck, but the body and shell of a turtle. Its neck, tail and most of its head are light brown or beige in color. A dark brown stripe runs from its beak back over its head. Its shell is dark green and its scaly underside is light green or off white.

Real world Connection: As the name implies, this animal is a cross between a duck and a turtle. "Duck" is a catch all term for the common fowl of the Anatidae family, which includes geese and swans. Ducks are aquatic birds that can be found both in salt and fresh water. They are characterized by webbed feet, bills, and water-repellent feathers. Special oils in the duck's skin cause water to bead off its feathers without getting them wet. Ducks are well adapted for foraging. They spend most of their lives floating on the surface of small bodies of water looking for fish and insects to eat. They lay their eggs and raise their young on land. They consume insects and grasses when out of the water.

Turtles are ancient reptiles that have been around since the Triassic period and there are two to three hundred species of turtles in existence today. All turtles have a shell that acts as natural body armor to protect them from predators; when threatened the turtle can draw its head and limbs inside the tough casing and away from danger.

Affiliation: Water

Location Sighted: Turtle seals have been seen in great numbers near the Northern Water Tribe city. They fish the coastal waters and take shelter in the many rock caves found among the cliffs and glaciers.

Description: The turtle seal is green with a hard shell around its midsection and four flippers that allow it to swim well in cold water. The creature has a long, sleek neck and head and its face is characterized by small black eyes, small ears, and whiskers. They are social creatures that live in herds and make loud barking noises.

Real world Connection: Turtles are ancient reptiles that have been around since the Triassic period and there are two to three hundred species of turtles in existence today. It is difficult, therefore, to connect the ones seen in the show to a specific species of turtle since the audience has only seen the animals at night. All turtles, however, have a shell that acts as natural body armor to protect them from predators; when threatened the turtle can draw its head and limbs inside the tough casing and away from danger.

Since the seals in Avatar have ears, the closest real world connection is to fur seals (otariidae) rather than to true seals (phocidae), though it is difficult to tell whether turtle seals have any fur or not. Fur seals are aquatic mammals with various subspecies all over the world. Although their limbs have evolved into flippers, they nevertheless retain the ability to walk on land.

Affiliation: Water

Location Sighted: Village of Jang Hui.

Description: These brown fish are just like normal fish, except for the fact that they have two heads, a mutation caused by the pollution in their environment. According to Nick.com, they "aren't pretty, but they are edible."

Real world Connection: Fish are cold-blooded aquatic vertebrates that have gills to breathe and fins to swim, and are usually covered with scales. There are numerous different species of fish, some of which live in rivers and lakes (freshwater fish) and others who live in seas and oceans (saltwater fish), and they can vary in size from less than an inch long to over 50 feet in length. Different species of fish have different diets and predators; some fish eat plankton and are eaten by other fish, who in turn are eaten by larger marine or land animals. Fish are also consumed as food by humans all over the world.

Affiliation: Water

Location Sighted: The bay of Kyoshi Island.

Description: The unagi is an enormous sea serpent that lurks in the bay of Kyoshi Island. Its body, easily several hundred feet in length, is a very dark brown and does not have scales. Sharp spikes line the back of its body from head to tail. The unagi has bright green eyes and a mouth full of sharp, interlocking teeth. A large fin protrudes from the top of its head and appears to be made of approximately seven hollow bone-like structures with connective webbing. The unagi can expand and contract this fin. Below that, on either side of its head, are four bright yellow stripes, possibly its gills. The unagi also has two very long barbels, which Aang can be seen hanging from in "The Warriors of Kyoshi." The unagi's primary food source seems to be the elephant koi which also inhabit the bay of Kyoshi Island.

Real world Connection: "Unagi" is the Japanese word for freshwater eels. Grilled unagi is a delicacy in Japanese cooking, and the meat--prized for its protein, calcium and vitamins--is traditionally eaten during the hottest months of the year. The Avatar unagi is named for the eel and its long serpentine body is its primary connection with that animal.

The sheer size of the unagi and its carnivorous diet hearken back to the plesiosaurs of the Triassic period and the Ichthyosaurs of the Mesozoic era. In many ways, however, the creature has more in common physically with catfish. Catfish, like the unagi, do not have scales on their bodies. They are distinguished by a rather narrow, pointed head and the presence of barbels. Barbels are slender, whisker-like tactile organs near the mouth which contain the fish's taste buds. The barbels are used by catfish to sense food in dark and murky water.

Affiliation: Air

Location Sighted: Seen as a circus animal in Ty Lee's circus.

Description: The vulture griffin is a large bird that has the head and wings of a vulture and the body of a lion. It's head and neck have no feathers. The wings and upper body have black feathers and it has a ring of white feathers around the base of its neck. Its feet and underbody are that of a lion, with tawny colored fur.

Real world Connection: As its name implies, this creature seems to be a combination of a vulture and the mythical griffin.Vultures are large scavenger birds that are distinguised by their bald heads. These birds live on every continent except Antarctica. In popular culture vultures represent death and are often depicted as circling over the heads of those fated soon to die.Griffins are mythical creatures that have the the body of a lion and the wings and head of an eagle. Mentioned extensively by Greek and Roman writers, the griffin was allegedly a creature of tremendous power and guarded great treasures.

Affiliation: Air

Location Sighted: Before the war, these creatures could be found in abundance in the Southern Air Temple and, presumably, in the other air temples as well. Their numbers are currently lessened, but they still inhabit the air temples. Momo, Aang's winged lemur, travels with

Description: The winged lemur is a small, lightweight creature with special wings attached to its arms to allow flight. Its fur is mostly white with some select black stripes and a black face, which has two proportionately large green eyes. Two very wide and large ears on its head give it fantastic hearing and, being so lightweight, it is very quick and difficult to catch. The lemur seems to have a very acute sense of smell as it is able to detect food from a distance and is not above taking it directly out of the hands of any person who might be holding it at the time. It would appear Air Nomads used to keep these creatures as pets.

Real world Connection: Real-world lemurs are very similar in appearance to the winged lemur with the same basic body shape, color, and face. Real lemurs also share the same type of terrific smell. The other half of the winged lemur's anatomy appears to be bat-like. Bats possess the same large ears that they use for hearing their own screeches, which echo off walls. This gives them their bearings and is called echo-location. The winged lemur's wings are very similar to those of bats, as well, except the lemur uses them to glide rather than flap about erratically as a bat would.

Affiliation: Earth

Location Sighted: The Cave of Two Lovers in the episode of the same name.

Description: A furry brown creature with the body similar to that of a wolf, a bat-like face, and leathery bat wings that fold up under its front two legs.

Real world Connection: The Wolfbat is pretty much exactly what its name indicates: a fusion between a wolf and a bat. Its body is for the most part exactly like that of a wolf, except for the bat wings under its front legs and its rather ugly bat face. It is unclear whether the Wolfbat uses sonar to determine the locations of its prey or if it can see like a wolf.

Affiliation: Earth

Location Sighted: Swamp in the episode "The Blue Spirit".

Description: A palm-sized, brown colored amphibian that lives in a swamp. When frozen, the frog skin secretes a substance that has medicinal purposes, but when it thaws out it's just a normal frog again.

Real world Connection: There are certain species of frogs - including the common wood frog of the United States and Canada - that are actually capable of being frozen and still survive. The amphibian's liver releases glucose (complex sugar) into its blood stream to act as a sort of antifreeze, lowering the freezing temperature of the cells so they remain liquid as the veins and arteries freeze. Though its heart and brain stop functioning, it remains frozen alive under a layer of leaves and dirt. When spring comes and the weather warms, the frogs thaw out over a period of several hours, their hearts restart, and they hop away unharmed. The medicinal possibilities of this inner chemistry are being researched to aid in organ transplant advances.

Since all amphibians have diverse toxin glands with different functions, frogs and toads in particular have been regarded as possessing medicinal attributes as far back as ancient and medieval times. People diluted the toxins for human use, and frog potions were used in various treatments. The Chinese have used chemicals found in toad skin that strengthen heart contractions and slow heart rates to treat heart ailments. Today, scientists are still researching refining the chemicals for use in modern medicine.