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  1. The Elder Scrolls: Tamriel
  3. Lore

Fauna

The Fauna of Tamriel

A Continental Ecology of Beasts, Predators, and Myth

Foundational Framework

Fauna in Tamriel does not exist independently of myth. Beasts are shaped by climate, divine residue, Daedric interference, and long-term magical saturation. Many creatures fill roles unseen in mundane worlds: some replace technology, others replace religion, and some act as mobile disasters. Fauna defines roads, borders, settlement patterns, and warfare logistics. Every province evolves around what hunts it, what feeds it, and what worships it.

Creatures are broadly categorized as Domestic, Wild, Predatory, Apex, and Mythic/Sacred, though overlap is common.

SKYRIM — Boreal and Alpine Fauna

Domestic and Utility Animals

  • Nordic horses (thick-coated, frost-resistant)

  • Cattle (high-fat breeds)

  • Mountain goats

  • Chickens

  • Nordic hounds (sled, guard, and war variants)

Common Wildlife

  • Snow deer

  • Elk

  • Hares

  • Arctic foxes

  • Ice marmots

  • Alpine ravens

Predatory Fauna

  • Wolves (pack-oriented, aggressive in winter scarcity)

  • Ice wolves (magically hardened subspecies)

  • Brown bears

  • Snow bears

  • Frostbite spiders (dungeon-adapted arthropods)

  • Sabre cats

Apex / Territorial Threats

  • Trolls (regenerative giants tied to cold climates)

  • Ice wraiths (elemental predators)

  • Mammoths (semi-domesticated by giants)

Mythic / Cultural Beasts

  • Dragons (cyclical apex beings)

  • Spirit elk (Nordic myth manifestation)

  • Hagraven-bound beasts

CYRODIIL — Riverlands and Temperate Forest

Domesticated

  • Imperial war horses

  • Oxen

  • Sheep

  • Pigs

  • Poultry

Common Fauna

  • Red deer

  • Foxes

  • Boars

  • Beavers

  • River fish (catfish, carp, salmon)

Predators

  • Wolves

  • Black bears

  • Mountain lions

  • Giant snakes (Niben tributaries)

Apex / Dungeon Fauna

  • Minotaurs (semi-mythic, territorial)

  • Ogres

  • Will-o’-the-Wisps

Symbolic / Cultural

  • Imperial eagles

  • Cavalry bloodlines of war horses

HIGH ROCK — Moorlands and Coasts

Domestic

  • Breton horses

  • Sheep

  • Dairy cattle

  • Guard mastiffs

Common Wildlife

  • Hill deer

  • Badgers

  • Hare

  • Ravens

  • Gulls

Predators

  • Wolves

  • Dire foxes

  • Giant bats

  • Marsh crocodiles

Apex / Magical Threats

  • Harpies

  • Wyrd-beasts (nature-twisted fauna)

  • Sea serpents

Cultural Creatures

  • Fey-touched animals

  • Wyrd familiars

MORROWIND — Volcanic and Ashland Fauna

Domestic / Utilitarian

  • Guar (pack, dairy, meat)

  • Silt striders (arthropod transport)

Common Species

  • Scrib

  • Kwama workers

  • Cliff racers (pre-eradication)

  • Ash beetles

Predators

  • Nix-hounds

  • Alits

  • Shalks

  • Feral Kwama guardians

Apex / Horror

  • Kagouti

  • Ash ghouls

  • Corprus beasts

  • Dwemer automata (classified as fauna in practice)

Sacred / Mythic

  • Tribunal-altered guardians

  • Ghostfence spirits

VALENWOOD — Jungle Canopy and Root Realms

Domestic (Limited by Green Pact)

  • Hunting hawks

  • Trained insects

  • Pack reptiles

Common Wildlife

  • Tree-dwelling monkeys

  • Jungle boars

  • Lizards

  • Amphibians

  • Canopy birds

Predatory Fauna

  • Giant snakes

  • Panther variants

  • Spider colonies

  • Venomous insects

Apex / Territorial

  • Jungle trolls

  • Shapeshifting beasts

  • Root-walkers (plant-animal hybrids)

Sacred Fauna

  • Y’ffre spirit-beasts

  • Wild Hunt transformations

SUMMERSET ISLES — Curated Biosphere

Domesticated

  • Pedigree Altmeri horses

  • Temple animals

  • Messenger birds

Common Wildlife

  • Crystal lizards

  • Shore crabs

  • Songbirds

Predators

  • Reef sharks

  • Arcane serpents

  • Bound hunting constructs

Restricted / Mythic

  • Psijic guardians

  • Flesh atronach analogs

Symbolic Creatures

  • Ancestral echo-beasts

  • Phoenix myths

HAMMERFELL — Desert and Littoral Fauna

Domestic

  • Camels

  • Horses

  • Pack lizards

Common Wildlife

  • Jackals

  • Desert foxes

  • Lizards

  • Scorpions

Predators

  • Desert lions

  • Sand vipers

  • Giant scorpions

Apex / Mythic

  • Dune worms

  • Werelions

  • Yokudan spirit beasts

BLACK MARSH — Wetland Nightmares

Domestic (Tribal)

  • Trained swamp reptiles

  • Amphibious pack beasts

Common Wildlife

  • Marsh fish

  • Frogs

  • Leeches

  • Insect swarms

Predators

  • Swamp panthers

  • Crocodiles

  • Flesh-eating eels

Apex / Horror

  • Marsh behemoths

  • Hydra variants

  • Sentient plant-beasts

Sacred

  • Hist-bound creatures

  • Spirit-infused fauna

ELSWEYR — Lunar Ecology

Domestic

  • Senche mounts

  • Pack cats

Common Wildlife

  • Desert antelope

  • Jungle birds

  • Lizards

Predators

  • Sand cats

  • Jungle panthers

  • Moon-mad beasts

Mythic / Sacred

  • Alkosh avatars

  • Lunar phantoms

CROSS-PROVINCIAL FAUNA

Common

  • Mudcrabs

  • Slaughterfish

  • Skeevers

Predators

  • Troll variants

  • Giant spiders

Mythic / Magical

  • Atronachs

  • Daedric beasts

  • Undead animals

Extinct / Cyclical Species

  • Dragons

  • Cliff racers

  • Yokudan leviathans

  • Dwemer constructs

Summary

Fauna in Tamriel is infrastructure and ideology made flesh. Beasts shape roads before empires do. Predators determine borders before kings. Mythic creatures enforce divine will more effectively than priests.

In Tamriel, the wilderness does not wait to be explored.
It hunts first.