Best Wildlife Encyclopedias: 4 Animal Reference Books
Best Mammal Encyclopedias: 5 Picks for Broad and Focused Coverage
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Choosing a mammal encyclopedia can be tricky when you’re deciding how broad a reference you need and what details you’d like to look up.
These titles include broad mammal coverage as well as species and group accounts, with reference details and illustrations that vary by book.
This time, we’ll round up five titles, from multi-volume references to a mini encyclopedia.
Quick-reference table of recommended products
| Product name | Binding/format | Coverage | Page count (pages) | Volume count (volumes) | Illustrations/artworks (count and type) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Walker’s Mammals of the World (sixth edition) | Hardcover | Account of every mammal genus | 2,015 | 2 | 550 black-and-white illustrations |
| The Princeton Encyclopedia of Mammals | Paperback | Every living mammal | 976 | — | 1,529 color illustrations, 163 line illustrations, and 172 color maps |
 National Geographic Kids Ultimate Mammalpedia | Hardcover | Information about more than 200 mammals | 272 | — | Photographs, colorful graphics, and fact boxes |
 Walker’s Mammals of the World: Monotremes, Marsupials, Afrotherians, Xenarthrans, and Sundatherians | Hardcover | 19 orders across five early-diverging mammal clades | 784 | — | 508 color photos |
 Mammals: Mini Encyclopedia | Flexi | Entry-by-entry overview of mammals from major families and every continent | 320 | — | 300 artworks |
Walker’s Mammals of the World (sixth edition)
For readers seeking an account of every mammal genus, Walker’s Mammals of the World (sixth edition) is recommended. The sixth edition is a two-volume hardcover set.
Walker’s Mammals of the World (sixth edition)
The Princeton Encyclopedia of Mammals
For readers seeking a reference covering every living mammal, The Princeton Encyclopedia of Mammals is recommended. Its species and group accounts describe form, distribution, behavior, status, and conservation; Factfile panels provide color distribution maps and scale drawings for at-a-glance reference. Full-color photos and illustrations appear on virtually every page, and the listed edition is paperback.
The Princeton Encyclopedia of Mammals
National Geographic Kids Ultimate Mammalpedia
For readers seeking a mammal reference for children ages 7–10, National Geographic Kids Ultimate Mammalpedia is recommended. It covers more than 200 mammals, with entries on scientific names, habitats, diets, and behavior, plus photographs, graphics about habitats and life cycles, and fact boxes.
National Geographic Kids Ultimate Mammalpedia
Walker’s Mammals of the World: Monotremes, Marsupials, Afrotherians, Xenarthrans, and Sundatherians
For readers seeking an account of every genus across five early-diverging mammal clades, Walker’s Mammals of the World: Monotremes, Marsupials, Afrotherians, Xenarthrans, and Sundatherians is recommended. It covers 19 orders and includes 508 color photos in a 784-page hardcover volume.
Walker’s Mammals of the World: Monotremes, Marsupials, Afrotherians, Xenarthrans, and Sundatherians
Mammals: Mini Encyclopedia
For readers seeking an entry-by-entry overview of mammals from major families and every continent, Mammals: Mini Encyclopedia is recommended. Its entries cover details including scientific name, habitat, diet, and breeding. The flexi-format book measures 163 x 123mm and includes 300 artworks.
Mammals: Mini Encyclopedia
Choose by the coverage you want
- For a reference covering every living mammal
- For genus-by-genus coverage
- For children ages 7–10
- For an entry-by-entry overview across major families and every continent
