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[[quoteright:349:[[VideoGame/Splatoon2 https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/octoexpansion_species.png]]]]
[[caption-width-right:349:Seen any of these guys before? We'll wait.[[note]]Left to right, top to bottom: A sea angel, a ping-pong tree sponge, three deep-sea jellyfish, three predatory tunicates, two gulper eels, two flashlight fish, two longsnout dogfish, a siphonophore, and a blobfish.[[/note]]]]
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Animal characters in fiction run the gamut. Just a look at the listing in AnimalStereotypes shows that there are plenty of common-enough animals that are used for their distinctive traits (presumed or real).
Then there's the [[TitleDrop Seldom-Seen Species]] -- that is, a species that, once you see it, makes you think, "Hey, you don't usually see that animal!"[[note]][[SmallTaxonomyPools assuming you're even familiar with it]].[[/note]] In some cases, this may be a forced attempt to avoid the countless existing AnimalStereotypes.
Some animals, such as monkeys, rats, mice, songbirds, octopi, snails, slugs, fish, or frogs, are usually represented by a generic or nondescript variant of the type of animal as opposed to an actual individual species of that type of animal (i.e. instead of being a Larger Pacific Striped Octopus or Blue-Ringed Octopus, a character might simply be an "octopus"). In that case, portraying an actual species of that type of animal would count if that actual species isn't commonly found in fiction.
This trope is a CyclicTrope because some species are more seldom seen in the media of some cultures, in certain forms of media, and in some time periods than others. For example, red pandas are common in UsefulNotes/FurryFandom artwork, but are seldom seen in other fictional works and media. Likewise, platypuses were once considered a strange and unfamiliar animal, and were used as an example of a "seldom-seen species", but now they are so famous that they no longer count as one.
Many of the older examples of this trope [[InformedSpecies look and act little (if not nothing) like their real-life equivalents]].
''' Examples of this trope should be species that are still seldom seen in media nowadays. Examples of older works that show species that were rare in media at the time of the work's release but not that obscure now are also allowed.'''
Contrast SmallTaxonomyPools. For obscure mythological beasts in fiction, see MinorlyMentionedMythsAndMonsters. See TheGreatestHistoryNeverTold for historical periods that are obscure or unknown to general audiences. May also count as AluminumChristmasTrees if the audience thinks the species are fictional.
----
!!Examples:
* SeldomSeenSpecies/AnimeAndManga
* SeldomSeenSpecies/AnimatedFilms
* {{SeldomSeenSpecies/Literature}}
* SeldomSeenSpecies/LiveActionTV
* SeldomSeenSpecies/VideoGames
* SeldomSeenSpecies/WesternAnimation
[[foldercontrol]]
[[folder:Advertising]]
* There are the two meerkats from ''Advertising/CompareTheMeerkat'', Alexandr and Sergei. Meerkats are related to mongooses, which have enjoyed moderate fame in Western culture over the past century and a half thanks to Creator/RudyardKipling's short story "Rikki-Tikki-Tavi"; ''WesternAnimation/TheLionKing1994'' and ''Series/MeerkatManor'' introduced meerkats to the public consciousness. Mongooses are, of course, famous for killing snakes, while meerkats lack this distinction.
* The Advertising/{{GEICO}} Gecko, though thanks to him, geckos are not as seldom-seen as they used to be.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Arts]]
* Creator/UrsulaVernon is especially fond of illustrating animals that are not usually given focus, especially in a fantasy context, i.e. as an anthropomorphic warrior or sage. And she tends to use a wombat for self-insert works. See also ''Webcomic/{{Digger}}'' under Webcomics.
* This is [[UncannyValley another reason]] why William Wegman's works leave a strong impression on their viewers: they may have not even seen or heard of the Weimaraner breed beforehand.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Asian Animation]]
* ''Animation/BabySharksBigShow'':
** William is a pilot fish (despite [[InformedSpecies having an entirely different color scheme]]), a kind of fish often seen around sharks as an aiding fish.
** "All I Want For Fishmas" features a sea angel, a kind of sea slug, subbing for a literal angel.
* ''Animation/BoonieBears'': With the light V-shaped patches on their chests, Briar and Bramble are clearly Asian black bears, albeit with [[AmazingTechnicolorWildlife non-standard fur colours]]. In the Mandarin original, Logger Vick explicitly identifies them as ''gǒuxióng'' (狗熊, "dog-bears"), a regional name for the species.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Comic Books]]
* ''Franchise/{{Batman}}'': The Joker and Harley Quinn are sometimes accompanied by [[Creator/AbbottAndCostello Bud and Lou]], who are spotted hyenas.
* ''[[http://scratchpad.wikia.com/wiki/The_Belch_Dimension_Comics#Year_One_.282005-06.29 The Belch Dimension Comics]]'' has Jason T. Gibbon (although slightly subverted in an "Untold Tales" segment when it's revealed he was once a boy turned into an ape by an evil spell). One story also featured a villain named The Cassowary, which [[WordOfGod series creator Jonathan M. Sweet]] was surprised wasn't used more, as this large flightless bird, with its bony skull-crest and large clawed foot,seemed "fairly made for supervillainy". Although naturally stylized to appear cartoonish, the series actually has fairly recognizable renderings of specific dog breeds, such as the beagle and the pit bull, unlike most comics and cartoons.
* ''ComicBook/CaptainCarrotAndHisAmazingZooCrew'' would occasionally reference or show a few less often seen animal species, as part of making its WorldOfFunnyAnimals animal-based puns work. Examples include Gnu York City and the "Wombat Communications" conglomerate there (the owners of Earth-C's version of DC Comics). Celebrities seen included [[Creator/BobHope Bob Hoopoe]], while a fictional cowboy named "Hopalong Cassowary" (Hopalong Cassidy) is referenced. A few countries/cities on Earth-C include [[UsefulNotes/{{Australia}} Aukstralia]] and [[UsefulNotes/{{London}} Loondon]].
* In ''ComicBook/CerebusTheAardvark'', aardvarks are not at all common, but have appeared enough times throughout Estarcion's history that it's not a cause for public wonder. [[spoiler:That ''three'' aardvarks are running around at one time, on the other hand, is exceedingly rare.]]
* The protagonist of the ''Kat-Venture'' comics is a meerkat treasure hunter. In "Kat-Venture and the Mountain of Death" he teams up with an Indian civet.
* The ''ComicBook/SonicTheHedgehogArchieComics'' universe is full of this. Not the least of which are echidnas (most famously Knuckles), lynx (Nicole, Lightning Lynx, et al.) and mongooses (Mina and Ash). And with the reboot we can add pikas (Relic), bettas (Coral), water buffaloes (Axel), pistol shrimp (Captain Striker), and tenrecs (Gold).
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Comic Strips]]
* ''Arctic Circle'' has an Arctic tern named Hector.
* ''ComicStrip/{{BC}}'' has the Apteryx, a "wingless bird with hairy feathers," as he invariably introduces himself. ''Apteryx'' is the generic name for kiwis.
* ''ComicStrip/CalvinAndHobbes'':
** Calvin has a fairly encyclopedic knowledge of animals, primarily dinosaurs and pterosaurs. Among the genera featured in the strips are ''Corythosaurus'', ''Troodon'', ''Centrosaurus'', ''Chasmosaurus'', "''Ultrasauros''" (now ''Supersaurus''), ''Dimorphodon'', and ''Pterodactylus''.
** He once asked if Hobbes could draw anything other than tigers, to which Hobbes replied, yes, he could also draw ocelots (slender, spotted wild cats from the jungles of Central and South America).
** In one of his tiger poems, he makes a reference to the sambar deer.
* ''ComicStrip/OffTheMark'':
** [[https://www.offthemark.com/image/cache/data/cartoons/2001-08-13B-240x331.gif These]] [[https://www.offthemark.com/image/cache/data/cartoons/2011-11-04B-240x331.gif strips]] feature spotted hyenas.
** [[https://www.offthemark.com/image/cache/data/cartoons/2004-11-21C-500x259.gif This strip]] features a woodchuck.
** [[https://www.offthemark.com/image/cache/data/cartoons/2007-08-28B-240x331.gif This strip]] features a ring-tailed lemur.
** There also [[https://www.offthemark.com/image/cache/data/cartoons/1999-05-31B-240x331.gif a]] [[https://www.offthemark.com/image/cache/data/cartoons/2000-09-24B-500x259.gif few]] [[https://www.offthemark.com/image/cache/data/cartoons/2016-04-01B-240x331.gif strips]] featuring mongooses.
** [[https://www.offthemark.com/image/cache/data/cartoons/2011-09-12B-240x331.gif This strip]] features water buffalo. And an "air buffalo".
* ''ComicStrip/PearlsBeforeSwine'':
** Pig has a sea anemone enemy.
** [[https://www.gocomics.com/pearlsbeforeswine/2006/09/06 One storyline]] focuses on meerkats at the local zoo... and the illegal activities that they participate in.
** In one strip, Pig hires an aardvark named Andy as an accountant...which backfires because aardvarks are nocturnal.
* One Sunday strip of ''ComicStrip/PhoebeAndHerUnicorn'' featured a goldfinch, a pair of black-necked stilts, a Townsend's warbler, a spotted towhee, a chestnut-backed chickadee, a pileated woodpecker, a Steller's jay, and a red-breasted nuthatch.
* ''ComicStrip/{{Pogo}}'' was the only ever possum leading man in an American comic.
* ''ComicStrip/ShermansLagoon'' has all sorts of obscure aquatic life.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Fan Works]]
* ''FanFic/TheBridge'':
** Anguirus in this incarnation is derived from ''Tarchia'', with ''Polacanthus'' and ''Diictodon'' mixed in.
** One "Tales of the Amalgamverse" stars the ''Spinosaurus'' from ''Film/JurassicParkIII'', who is stated to be part-''Suchomimus''.
* ''Fanfic/HildaAndTheHowlingWoods:'' An indirect example, but the werewolves in the fic are modeled after South American Maned Wolves rather than North American or Eurasian wolf breeds.
* ''FanFic/ItsNotTheRaptorDNA'': Beyond the StockDinosaurs present in Jurassic World, there's mention made of ''Therizinosaurus'', ''Metriacanthosaurus'', ''Microceratus'', ''Lambeosaurus'', ''Gorgosaurus'', ''Yutyrannus'', ''Sinocalliopteryx'', and ''Concavenator''. Two of the latter kill and eat Hart, in a ShoutOut to Ludlow's demise in Film/TheLostWorldJurassicPark. There's also Queen Anne and Bark, who are a ''Baryonyx'' and a ''Suchomimus'' respectively.
* ''Dunkleosteus'' of all animals was the sole representing species of Earth life in ''[[http://www.fimfiction.net/story/329176/the-origins-of-sentient-life-as-narrated-by-discord The Origins of Sentient Life as Narrated by Discord.]]''
* ''[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/10639175/1/Phineas-and-Ferb-s-Dinosaur-Adventure Phineas and Ferb's Dinosaur Adventure]]'' has ''Othnielosaurus'', ''Dryosaurus'', ''Ceratosaurus'', ''Fruitafossor'', ''Harpactognathus'', ''Camptosaurus'', ''Gargoyleosaurus'', and ''Ornitholestes''.
* ''Fanfic/RiseOfTheGaleforces'' featured ''Ornithocheirus'', ''Platecarpus'', and ''Mawsonia''.
* ''FanFic/RomanceAndTheFateOfEquestria'' features Queen Okapiopteryx, the [[PhysicalGod goddess]] worshipped by Zecora. The queen swings a twofer for this trope by being a [[MixAndMatchCritter mix-and-match critter]] combining ''two'' Seldom-Seen Species, an [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Okapi okapi]] and a ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microraptor Microraptor.]]''
** ''Legend'' also features a [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gemsbok gemsbok]] and a ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macrauchenia Macrauchenia]]'' as prominent characters.
* ''FanFic/TheScalyRaptor'': Besides the usual StockDinosaurs, there's also ''Beelzebufo'', ''Herrerasaurus'', ''Microraptor'', ''Titanoboa'', ''Koolasuchus'', ''Xenacanthus'', ''Saurophaganax'', ''Ceratodus'', ''Segisaurus'', ''Tanystropheus'', ''Drepanosaurus'', ''Minmi'', and ''Platyceramus''.
* Most of the Mesozoic fauna from {{Swing123}}'s ''[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/2433008/1/Triassic-Park-Into-the-Past Triassic Park: Into the Past]]'' are commonly-seen genera, but there's also ''Ornitholestes'', ''Massospondylus'', ''Liopleurodon'', ''Ceratosaurus'', ''Camarasaurus'', and ''Hypsilophodon''.
* In The Geeky Zoologist's [[Fanfic/JurassicWorld2020 reimagining of Jurassic World]], ''Achillobator'', ''Anzu'', ''Geosternbergia'', ''Harpactognathus'', ''Henodus'', ''Kunbarrasaurus'', ''Mantellisaurus'', ''Metriacanthosaurus'', ''Nothosaurus'', ''Pegomastax'', ''Platecarpus'', ''Proceratosaurus'', ''Ptychodus'', ''Shantungosaurus'', ''Tupandactylus'', ''Unenlagia'', and ''Yinlong'' are among the featured prehistoric species.
** In addition to them, obscure modern species native from Costa Rica also appears, including the American Crocodile, the American Ibis, the White-nosed Coati, the Military Macaw, the Chestnut-mandibled Toucan, the Variegated Squirrel, and the King Vulture.
** A part of the species that makes the Indominus’ genetic makeup falls under that category: ''Megaraptor'', the Southern rockhopper Penguin, the Red-bellied Woodpecker, the Eyelash Viper, the Giant girdled Lizard, the Blue-eyed anglehead Lizard,[[spoiler: Hyalinobatrachium fleischmanni, and Acomys percivali]].
* The ''[[https://archiveofourown.org/series/2280458 Kai's MXTX Fic Zoo]]'' series turns characters from ''Franchise/MoDaoZuShi'' into all sorts of specific lesser-known species, such as a quokka, nutria, and civet.
* In ''WesternAnimation/TheCasagrandes'' fanfiction ''Fanfic/ZooCoupRiot'', Sid brings a sugar glider named Candy to class for Show and Tell.
* Doubles as a Running Gag in Fanfic/FlamingFrost: A ''Chaunacops'' anglerfish appears as a RunningGag in the Dark Forest.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Films -- Live-Action]]
* ''Film/TwoThousandAndOneASpaceOdyssey'' features tapirs in the prehistoric sequence, despite it taking place in [[MisplacedWildlife Africa]].
* Sandy from ''Film/{{Annie 1982}}'' is played by an Otterhound named Bingo. It's such an unknown breed that they can easily be mistaken for mutts, which is what Sandy is supposed to be.
* ''Film/BedknobsAndBroomsticks'' prominently featured a secretarybird.
* ''Film/TheBigYear'' is a film (based on a nonfiction book of the same title, but fictionalised somewhat for the screen) about competitive birders trying to set a record for the most species seen in North America (north of Mexico, i.e. the continental United States and Canada) during one calendar year. Seldom-seen species are therefore the driving force of the whole plot: Nutting's Flycatcher, Xantus' Hummingbird, Pink-footed Goose, the list goes on and on...
* ''Film/BramStokersDracula'' features a ring-tailed lemur at the London Zoo when a wolf escapes.
* ''Film/DeepBlueSea'' features mutant ''mako'' sharks, rather than the usual Great Whites.
* Tino's "girlfriend" Roxy in ''Film/ADogsPurpose'' is a Landseer.
* ''Film/EightLeggedFreaks'': Besides the commonly seen tarantulas and orb-weavers, the movie features trapdoor spiders, spitting spiders and jumping spiders.
* ''Film/HarryPotterAndTheGobletOfFire'': Rather than a spider, [[AdaptationalSpeciesChange as portrayed in the book]], the arachnid Mad-Eye Moody demonstrates the Unforgivable Curses on is actually a tailless whipscorpion.
* ''Goodbye, My Lady'' is about a boy in rural Mississippi who finds a stray Basenji. Basenji are a rare breed in modern day media, nevermind in the 1950s.
* ''Film/TheJungleBook2016'' was full of (mostly Indian) species not often seen in cinema, such as nilgai, blackbuck, Indian rhinoceros, Indian pangolin, pygmy hog, Indian giant squirrel, jerboas, small Indian civet, red and white giant flying squirrel, Indian cobra, mugger crocodile, Indian cuckoo, hoopoe, Asian fairy-bluebird, and green bee-eater. King Louie's monkey underlings include some relatively obscure species, such as western hoolock gibbon, lion-tailed macaque, pig-tailed macaque, golden langur, and Nilgiri langur. King Louie himself is the extinct orangutan-like ape ''Gigantopithecus''.
* ''Franchise/JurassicPark''
** ''Film/TheLostWorldJurassicPark'' features ''Mamenchisaurus'' as the token sauropod.
** ''Film/JurassicParkIII'' features a ''Spinosaurus'' as the main antagonist. Much like ''Velociraptor'', ''Spinosaurus'' was obscure when the film was made and became one of the best-known dinosaurs after its release, although it is almost always based on the film's [[ScienceMarchesOn now outdated portrayal]].[[note]]It is now known that ''Spinosaurus'' had actually really short hind legs and was mostly an aquatic animal.[[/note]] ''Ceratosaurus'' and ''Corythosaurus'' are examples of stock dinosaurs that have become fairly obscure in non-educational media.
** ''Indominus rex'', the main antagonist of ''Film/JurassicWorld'', is stated to be made from the DNA of cuttlefish and tree frogs. AllThereInTheManual states it also contains the genes of ''Therizinosaurus'', ''Giganotosaurus'', ''Carnotaurus'', ''Rugops'', and ''Majungasaurus''. The flying reptile ''Dimorphodon'' is also featured in the film.
** ''Film/JurassicWorldFallenKingdom'' features ''Stygimoloch'' and ''Sinoceratops''. ''Concavenator'', ''Mononykus'', and ''Dracorex'' make cameos as models, the skeletons of ''Kosmoceratops'', ''Peloroplites'', and ''Teratophoneus'' also make appearances, and DNA vials for ''Dreadnoughtus'' is seen as a FreezeFrameBonus. Finally, the skull that the ''Indoraptor'' dies from being impaled on is that of an ''Agujaceratops'' according to the script, not a ''Triceratops'' as viewers often assume.
** ''Film/JurassicWorldBattleAtBigRock'' prominently features a family of ''Nasutoceratops''. The ''Allosaurus'' is based on ''A. jimmadensi'', rather than the iconic ''A. fragilis''.
** The prologue of ''Film/JurassicWorldDominion'' (first shown alongside IMAX screenings of ''Film/{{F9}}'') features ''Dreadnoughtus'', ''Nasutoceratops'', and ''Moros''. It also has ''Giganotosaurus'', a stock dinosaur but still obscure by the likes of ''Tyrannosaurus'' and ''Spinosaurus''. ''Atrociraptor'', ''Lystrosaurus'', ''Microceratus'', and ''Pyroraptor'' also appear in several scenes of the film.
* 1955's ''Film/KingDinosaur'' features a kinkajou in the part of a cute alien animal the "[[NominalHero heroes]]" find, which was then [[OverlyLongGag extensively]] [[ViewerSpeciesConfusion misidentified as a lemur]] in [[Recap/MysteryScienceTheater3000S02E10KingDinosaur the MST3K episode.]]
* The Syfy Channel's ''Malibu Shark Attack'' features goblin sharks, presumably because they look so bizarre.
* ''Film/TheMission'' features a tiny marmoset monkey instead of your typical South American monkey-like capuchin or squirrel monkeys and a collared peccary which could easily be mistaken as a wild pig. Also, it features a three-toed sloth, who wasn't as popular back in 1986, before the Internet days.
* ''Film/MyOctopusTeacher'': Octopus are a well-known aquatic species. Rather, the seldom-seen species, in this case, is the [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pyjama_shark Pyjama Shark]], a natural predator of the octopus.
* ''Film/TheParanormalDiariesClophill'': At one point, the crew find a [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slow_worm slow-worm]] on the floor of the church, its body in the shape of an "S".
* Besides the usual chimpanzees, gorillas, and orangutans, ''Film/RiseOfThePlanetOfTheApes'' featured a bonobo named Koba as the TokenEvilTeammate. He is promoted to BigBad in the sequel ''Film/DawnOfThePlanetOfTheApes''.
* ''Film/SnakesOnAPlane'': One of the more distinctive motherfuckin' snakes on this motherfuckin' plane is a Gaboon viper.
* In the most recent film of ''Literature/TheTimeMachine'', one of the Eloi men is seen carrying a live black-furred animal over his shoulder, which appears to be a binturong.
* ''Film/TransformersAgeOfExtinction'' showed a ''Psittacosaurus'' and a herd of heterodontosaurids in the opening scene.
* ''Film/TRexBackToTheCretaceous'' featured a pair of ''Dryptosaurus'' to associate with early 20th Century artist Charles R. Knight. For bonus points, they adopt the same pose as in his famous "Leaping ''Laelaps''" painting.[[note]]Although they depicted them as [[RaptorAttack featherless]] dromaeosaurs similar to ''Deinonychus'', while ''Dryptosaurus'' is considered as a tyrannosaur nowadays.[[/note]]
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Music]]
* In the music video for Music/NeonIndian's "Sleep Paralysist", an axolotl can be seen in a few shots. Given how [[SurrealMusicVideo bizarre]] the video is, the axolotl was probably chosen to be there (above other, more common animals) for its odd, UglyCute appearance, in order to add to the surreality.
* ''WesternAnimation/SchoolhouseRock'':
** The song "Four-Legged Zoo" prominently mentioned ibex (a type of goat with large, curved horns) and kudu (a large antelope with corkscrew-shaped horns). It also briefly brings up vicuña (the wild ancestor of the alpaca) near the start.
** The song "Rufus Xavier Sarsaparilla'' prominently features an aardvark as the animal companion to the titular character's sister Rafaella Gabriela Sarsaparilla.
* Music/FrankZappa's piece "The Adventures Of Greggery Peccary" from ''Music/StudioTan'' and ''Music/{{Lather}}'', correctly describes him as "the nocturnal gregarious wild swine".
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Radio]]
* Another okapi reference is dropped into ''Radio/TheHitchhikersGuideToTheGalaxy'', when the narrator mentions in passing that Arthur Dent's only brother was somehow [[NoodleIncident nibbled to death]] by one.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Theme Parks]]
* ''Ride/ItsASmallWorld'' at the Ride/DisneyThemeParks has lyrebirds, kiwis, flying fish and a rhea.
* ''Ride/JurassicParkRiverAdventure'' at Ride/UniversalStudios has ''Ultrasaurus'' and ''Psittacosaurus'' among the several dinosaur species featured in the ride.
* ''Ride/{{Dinosaur}}'' features ''Alioramus'', ''Coloborhychus'', and ''Saltasaurus''.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Toys]]
* Toys/BeanieBabies have included several rare species over the years, such as a kiwi, a hornbill, a lemur that is clearly not a ring-tailed, and a cockatoo that is clearly not a sulphur-crested.
* ''Toys/TheGrosseryGang'' has Slob Fish, who is a blobfish, a type of fish rarely seen in fiction.
* Some of the higher-end animal toy manufacturers such as Safari Ltd., Schleich, and [=CollectA=] will feature obscure animal species in addition to well-known ones. Examples are too numerous to list.
* Toys/{{Squishmallows}}: The members of the Deep Sea squad include a sea hare, a blobfish, and a tardigrade.
* ''Toys/TheTrashPack'' has featured rarely-mentioned bugs in their Bin-sects team, including tapeworms, earwigs, and silverfish.
* The Feisty Pets line features a snow leopard, two three-toed sloths, and a narwhal.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Webcomics]]
* In ''Webcomic/BronzeSkinInc'' Coatis and saguis appear in the first chapter.
* ''Webcomic/TheBugPond'' features a lot of obscure bug species, such as silverfish, earwigs, and assassin bugs.
* ''Webcomic/BurgessShale'' has characters and spaceships based on Paleozoic fish, such as Scaumenacia, Pteraspis, and Drepanaspis.
* ''Webcomic/CameronAndCorinna'' has a thylacine protagonist.
* ''Webcomic/CommanderKitty'' features Nin Wah, a red panda. The first version of the comic also had part of the plot set on a planet of pangolins.
* ''Webcomic/{{Concession}}'' features Roland, a pangolin, Franz/Zoe, a [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greater_bilby bilby]], Kate and Rick, ringtail lemurs, and Clive, an [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Okapi okapi]].
* ''Webcomic/DawnOfTime'' tends to feature lesser-known dinosaurs like ''Pachyrhinosaurus'' and ''Sauropelta''.
* The protagonist of ''Webcomic/{{Digger}}'' is a wombat, and several of the supporting cast come from a tribe of hyenas.
* Webcomic/DinosaurComics, in addition to the not-that-unusual ''T. rex'', includes a ''Utahraptor'' and a ''Dromiceiomimus'' among the main cast.
* ''Webcomic/DropOut'''s main couple are a marine hydroid (the frilly little worms which stick to shellfish) and a sugar glider/tarsier hybrid.
* ''Webcomic/{{Femmegasm}}'' has a tamarin monkey and axolotl as its lead characters.
* ''Webcomic/KevinAndKell'' have occasionally featured animals like this:
** Probably the most recurring seldom seen species character is Kevin's eventual brother in law, George Fennec, who's, well, a fennec fox.
** Lindesfarne the hedgehog may technically count as K&K started in 1995, when ''VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog'' was in the earliest days of its popularity. What's more, for the earliest months of the comic Lindesfarne believed herself to have converted to an American porcupine, itself uncommon in media.
** Aby's ex Manxwell is a manx, a tailless cat.
** Semi recurring character Mr. Chapman is a platypus. Many of the comics featuring him have some joke centered around his hybrid status, such as him trying to trace his family tree causing the computer to explode, or how he owns a hybrid car.
** While bats in general don't count for this trope, ''vampire'' bats are rare enough that [[OurVampiresAreDifferent Desdemona Fuscus]] makes the list.
** Harold is a stinkbird (hoatzin). Many jokes are made about his stench.
** A nameless bird of paradise appears once to comment that his mating ritual may look stupid, but at least he didn't pay 12 grand for it like Lindesfarne was doing for her wedding.
** [[https://www.kevinandkell.com/2017/kk0129.html This comic]] shows off four rare bug species...all part of Lindesfarne's WackyCravings when she was pregnant with Turvy.
* [[http://lizclimo.tumblr.com/ Liz Climo]] often features these in her comic series, such as tamanduas, honey badgers, and fennec foxes.
* Mocheril from ''Webcomic/TheMeek'', who is an olm (rarely seen outside of Slovenian heraldry).
* ''Webcomic/NatureOfNaturesArt'', full stop. Featuring jerboas, degus, tamanduas, kinkajous, several species of spiders and many more.
* In ''Webcomic/OffWhite'', the pack is [[http://off-white.eu/comic/page-142 shown hunting a chamois.]] This might be the one and only time you'll ever see one in any fiction whatsoever.
* In ''Webcomic/TheOrderOfTheStick'' story ''How the Paladin Got His Scar'', Saha [[SpeaksFluentAnimal speaks with]] what appears to be a binturong.
* Stephan in ''Webcomic/OzyAndMillie'' is an aardvark.
* ''Webcomic/QuestionDuck'' has a great potoo in [[http://questionduck.smackjeeves.com/comics/1895543/287/ this strip]]. [[http://questionduck.smackjeeves.com/comics/1033540/087/ An earlier one]] showed a toco toucan and leafcutter ants. [[http://questionduck.smackjeeves.com/comics/1264506/coelasquid/ This guest strip]] by Coelasquid (creator of ''Webcomic/ManlyGuysDoingManlyThings'') had a shoebill.
* ''Webcomic/{{Raptormaniacs}}'' has Zahavi the ''Jinfengopteryx'', Remex the ''Caudipteryx'', and Ebeff the ''Therizinosaurus''. Also Skull, who is a skull cast of ''Tsaagan''.
* ''Webcomic/RWBYDoodleverse'' {{Lampshade|Hanging}}s in "New Ride", where Mercury states in response to Emerald's suggestion that they ride into Atlas with an okapi Grimm that no one knows what an okapi is.
* The main characters in ''Webcomic/YuckHeads'' are mongooses, specifically Yellow Mongooses.
* ''Webcomic/StandStillStaySilent'': Adventure II moving the action to the Saimaa lake system in Finland, combined with the fact that RaisingTheSteaks is limited to mammals in the setting, results in the EncyclopediaExposita page about the AfterTheEnd version of the area including a few zombified Saimaa ringed seals among its illustrations.
* ''Webcomic/VapnthjofrSaga'': One of the main characters is a pine marten, and minor/background characters includes species such as mergansers, lammergeiers, water shrews, black grouses, ospreys, Siberian jays, etc. While an [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aurochs aurochs]] appears as a frost giant.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Web Original]]
* The middle portion of the song "In the Ocean Blue" from ''WebAnimation/CharlieTheUnicorn'', which sounds an awful lot like the [[Anime/{{Pokemon}} Pokerap]]:
---> Lungfish, Blackfish, Alligator, Icefish
---> Armorhead, Hammerhead, Anaconda, Flathead
---> Manta ray, Stingray, Fangtooth, Moray
---> Goblin shark, Grass carp, Round River Bat Ray
---> Noodlefish, Hagfish, Man o' War, Ladyfish
---> Black eel, baby seal, Sprat, Koi, Electric eel
---> Lamprey, Pejerey, Yellow-edged Moray
---> Salmon shark, Sleeper shark, Leatherback, and Eagle ray!
** The anaconda, koi, electric eel, alligator, lungfish, and grass carp are ''especially'' Seldom-Seen Species under the circumstances, as they're [[MisplacedWildlife freshwater creatures only]].
** And of course, the magical ''Liopleurodon''.
* ''[[http://www.cracked.com/article_20329_8-animals-that-are-just-lazy-combinations-other-animals.html Cracked]]'' ''[[http://www.cracked.com/article_20144_9-animals-that-are-just-lazy-combinations-other-animals.html loves]]'' [[http://www.cracked.com/article_19965_7-bizarre-prehistoric-versions-modern-day-animals.html this trope]].
* ''WebAnimation/{{Dreamscape}}'': The local hospital is run by a [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Megalania Megalania.]]
* ''WebAnimation/DSBTInsaniT'': Fire Guy has a pet [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pangolin pangolin.]]
* ''WebOriginal/HamstersParadise'' features the Chinese dwarf hamster as its seed animal of choice: as opposed to the Syrian hamster or the golden hamster which are more commonly kept as pets. Justified as the Chinese dawrf hamster is a common lab animal, and also has a longer tail, more befitting the long-tailed hamster descendants that later arise.
* The ''WebAnimation/HappyTreeFriends'' universe includes a marmot and an anteater (Cro-Marmot and Sniffles, respectively). While Sniffles has been known to hunt ants on occasion, the ice-encased Cro-Marmot never engages in any marmot-esque activity. Or any activity, period.
* ''WebOriginal/MultituberculateEarth'' is all about multituberculates as the dominant mammals; show of hands if you even know what a multituberculate is. The opening scene shows an ''[[https://www.mindat.org/taxon-8458666.html Ectypodus arctos]]'' (which doesn't even have a Wikipedia page!) eating a basal rodent, and it does bonkers from there.
* ''WebOriginal/TheNingyo'' features an [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Okapi okapi]] as part of Christopher Marlowe's backstory.
* ''Blog/TheTyrannosaurChronicles'' includes a handful of dinosaur species that are rarely used in media like the ''Einiosaurus'' or the ''Stegoceras''.
* ''WebVideo/TrueFacts'' started out as informational videos about relatively well-known animals, like ducks, octopuses, or chameleons. As the series goes on, it starts taking a look at more and more obscure species of animals, such as nudibranchs, mudskippers, ogre-faced spiders, bobbit worms, and carnivorous beach snails.
-->'''Narrator''': This is stock footage of a sea cucumber. It has been downloaded one time. By me.
* ''WebAnimation/CatsingCall'': One of the main characters is a caiman, which aren't too common compared to their relatives, crocodiles and alligators.
* ''WebAnimation/{{Dinosauria}}'': The second short "Our Frozen Past" features ''Nanuqsaurus'', a smaller relative of ''Tyrannosaurus'' native to Alaska.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Other]]
* The mascot for the [[UsefulNotes/NationalHockeyLeague NHL]]'s Vegas Golden Knights is Chance, a gila monster.
* The mascots for the Sydney 2000 UsefulNotes/{{Olympic|Games}}s were a kookaburra, echidna and platypus -- chosen in part to provide a LandSeaSky combination and in part because Australian organisers thought kangaroos and koalas were overused.
* The mascot of the (now postponed) 2021 Southeast Asian games is a saola, a type of primitive bovine that literally hasn't been seen since 2013.
* ''TabletopGame/WeirdNWildCreatures'', a series of children's fact & trading cards that originally ran from 2003-2006, loved this trope. ''Gigantophis'', ''Dapedium'', Budgett's frogs, genets, hooded pitohuis, hellbenders, predatory tunicates, stoplight loosejaws, toe-biters, red-backed shrikes, pichiciegos, Javan wart snakes… and that's not even scratching the surface. This even extended to the series' coverage of mythical creatures; while not species in the literal sense, it included several beasts (Baital, Gargantua, Mngwa, the Thetis Lake monster, etc.) that are rarely acknowledged in fiction.
[[/folder]]
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[[quoteright:349:[[VideoGame/Splatoon2 https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/octoexpansion_species.png]]]]
[[caption-width-right:349:Seen any of these guys before? We'll wait.[[note]]Left to right, top to bottom: A sea angel, a ping-pong tree sponge, three deep-sea jellyfish, three predatory tunicates, two gulper eels, two flashlight fish, two longsnout dogfish, a siphonophore, and a blobfish.[[/note]]]]
%%Caption selected via above crowner. Please do not change or remove without running it by the Caption Repair thread.
Animal characters in fiction run the gamut. Just a look at the listing in AnimalStereotypes shows that there are plenty of common-enough animals that are used for their distinctive traits (presumed or real).
Then there's the [[TitleDrop Seldom-Seen Species]] -- that is, a species that, once you see it, makes you think, "Hey, you don't usually see that animal!"[[note]][[SmallTaxonomyPools assuming you're even familiar with it]].[[/note]] In some cases, this may be a forced attempt to avoid the countless existing AnimalStereotypes.
Some animals, such as monkeys, rats, mice, songbirds, octopi, snails, slugs, fish, or frogs, are usually represented by a generic or nondescript variant of the type of animal as opposed to an actual individual species of that type of animal (i.e. instead of being a Larger Pacific Striped Octopus or Blue-Ringed Octopus, a character might simply be an "octopus"). In that case, portraying an actual species of that type of animal would count if that actual species isn't commonly found in fiction.
This trope is a CyclicTrope because some species are more seldom seen in the media of some cultures, in certain forms of media, and in some time periods than others. For example, red pandas are common in UsefulNotes/FurryFandom artwork, but are seldom seen in other fictional works and media. Likewise, platypuses were once considered a strange and unfamiliar animal, and were used as an example of a "seldom-seen species", but now they are so famous that they no longer count as one.
Many of the older examples of this trope [[InformedSpecies look and act little (if not nothing) like their real-life equivalents]].
''' Examples of this trope should be species that are still seldom seen in media nowadays. Examples of older works that show species that were rare in media at the time of the work's release but not that obscure now are also allowed.'''
Contrast SmallTaxonomyPools. For obscure mythological beasts in fiction, see MinorlyMentionedMythsAndMonsters. See TheGreatestHistoryNeverTold for historical periods that are obscure or unknown to general audiences. May also count as AluminumChristmasTrees if the audience thinks the species are fictional.
----
!!Examples:
* SeldomSeenSpecies/AnimeAndManga
* SeldomSeenSpecies/AnimatedFilms
* {{SeldomSeenSpecies/Literature}}
* SeldomSeenSpecies/LiveActionTV
* SeldomSeenSpecies/VideoGames
* SeldomSeenSpecies/WesternAnimation
[[foldercontrol]]
[[folder:Advertising]]
* There are the two meerkats from ''Advertising/CompareTheMeerkat'', Alexandr and Sergei. Meerkats are related to mongooses, which have enjoyed moderate fame in Western culture over the past century and a half thanks to Creator/RudyardKipling's short story "Rikki-Tikki-Tavi"; ''WesternAnimation/TheLionKing1994'' and ''Series/MeerkatManor'' introduced meerkats to the public consciousness. Mongooses are, of course, famous for killing snakes, while meerkats lack this distinction.
* The Advertising/{{GEICO}} Gecko, though thanks to him, geckos are not as seldom-seen as they used to be.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Arts]]
* Creator/UrsulaVernon is especially fond of illustrating animals that are not usually given focus, especially in a fantasy context, i.e. as an anthropomorphic warrior or sage. And she tends to use a wombat for self-insert works. See also ''Webcomic/{{Digger}}'' under Webcomics.
* This is [[UncannyValley another reason]] why William Wegman's works leave a strong impression on their viewers: they may have not even seen or heard of the Weimaraner breed beforehand.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Asian Animation]]
* ''Animation/BabySharksBigShow'':
** William is a pilot fish (despite [[InformedSpecies having an entirely different color scheme]]), a kind of fish often seen around sharks as an aiding fish.
** "All I Want For Fishmas" features a sea angel, a kind of sea slug, subbing for a literal angel.
* ''Animation/BoonieBears'': With the light V-shaped patches on their chests, Briar and Bramble are clearly Asian black bears, albeit with [[AmazingTechnicolorWildlife non-standard fur colours]]. In the Mandarin original, Logger Vick explicitly identifies them as ''gǒuxióng'' (狗熊, "dog-bears"), a regional name for the species.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Comic Books]]
* ''Franchise/{{Batman}}'': The Joker and Harley Quinn are sometimes accompanied by [[Creator/AbbottAndCostello Bud and Lou]], who are spotted hyenas.
* ''[[http://scratchpad.wikia.com/wiki/The_Belch_Dimension_Comics#Year_One_.282005-06.29 The Belch Dimension Comics]]'' has Jason T. Gibbon (although slightly subverted in an "Untold Tales" segment when it's revealed he was once a boy turned into an ape by an evil spell). One story also featured a villain named The Cassowary, which [[WordOfGod series creator Jonathan M. Sweet]] was surprised wasn't used more, as this large flightless bird, with its bony skull-crest and large clawed foot,seemed "fairly made for supervillainy". Although naturally stylized to appear cartoonish, the series actually has fairly recognizable renderings of specific dog breeds, such as the beagle and the pit bull, unlike most comics and cartoons.
* ''ComicBook/CaptainCarrotAndHisAmazingZooCrew'' would occasionally reference or show a few less often seen animal species, as part of making its WorldOfFunnyAnimals animal-based puns work. Examples include Gnu York City and the "Wombat Communications" conglomerate there (the owners of Earth-C's version of DC Comics). Celebrities seen included [[Creator/BobHope Bob Hoopoe]], while a fictional cowboy named "Hopalong Cassowary" (Hopalong Cassidy) is referenced. A few countries/cities on Earth-C include [[UsefulNotes/{{Australia}} Aukstralia]] and [[UsefulNotes/{{London}} Loondon]].
* In ''ComicBook/CerebusTheAardvark'', aardvarks are not at all common, but have appeared enough times throughout Estarcion's history that it's not a cause for public wonder. [[spoiler:That ''three'' aardvarks are running around at one time, on the other hand, is exceedingly rare.]]
* The protagonist of the ''Kat-Venture'' comics is a meerkat treasure hunter. In "Kat-Venture and the Mountain of Death" he teams up with an Indian civet.
* The ''ComicBook/SonicTheHedgehogArchieComics'' universe is full of this. Not the least of which are echidnas (most famously Knuckles), lynx (Nicole, Lightning Lynx, et al.) and mongooses (Mina and Ash). And with the reboot we can add pikas (Relic), bettas (Coral), water buffaloes (Axel), pistol shrimp (Captain Striker), and tenrecs (Gold).
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Comic Strips]]
* ''Arctic Circle'' has an Arctic tern named Hector.
* ''ComicStrip/{{BC}}'' has the Apteryx, a "wingless bird with hairy feathers," as he invariably introduces himself. ''Apteryx'' is the generic name for kiwis.
* ''ComicStrip/CalvinAndHobbes'':
** Calvin has a fairly encyclopedic knowledge of animals, primarily dinosaurs and pterosaurs. Among the genera featured in the strips are ''Corythosaurus'', ''Troodon'', ''Centrosaurus'', ''Chasmosaurus'', "''Ultrasauros''" (now ''Supersaurus''), ''Dimorphodon'', and ''Pterodactylus''.
** He once asked if Hobbes could draw anything other than tigers, to which Hobbes replied, yes, he could also draw ocelots (slender, spotted wild cats from the jungles of Central and South America).
** In one of his tiger poems, he makes a reference to the sambar deer.
* ''ComicStrip/OffTheMark'':
** [[https://www.offthemark.com/image/cache/data/cartoons/2001-08-13B-240x331.gif These]] [[https://www.offthemark.com/image/cache/data/cartoons/2011-11-04B-240x331.gif strips]] feature spotted hyenas.
** [[https://www.offthemark.com/image/cache/data/cartoons/2004-11-21C-500x259.gif This strip]] features a woodchuck.
** [[https://www.offthemark.com/image/cache/data/cartoons/2007-08-28B-240x331.gif This strip]] features a ring-tailed lemur.
** There also [[https://www.offthemark.com/image/cache/data/cartoons/1999-05-31B-240x331.gif a]] [[https://www.offthemark.com/image/cache/data/cartoons/2000-09-24B-500x259.gif few]] [[https://www.offthemark.com/image/cache/data/cartoons/2016-04-01B-240x331.gif strips]] featuring mongooses.
** [[https://www.offthemark.com/image/cache/data/cartoons/2011-09-12B-240x331.gif This strip]] features water buffalo. And an "air buffalo".
* ''ComicStrip/PearlsBeforeSwine'':
** Pig has a sea anemone enemy.
** [[https://www.gocomics.com/pearlsbeforeswine/2006/09/06 One storyline]] focuses on meerkats at the local zoo... and the illegal activities that they participate in.
** In one strip, Pig hires an aardvark named Andy as an accountant...which backfires because aardvarks are nocturnal.
* One Sunday strip of ''ComicStrip/PhoebeAndHerUnicorn'' featured a goldfinch, a pair of black-necked stilts, a Townsend's warbler, a spotted towhee, a chestnut-backed chickadee, a pileated woodpecker, a Steller's jay, and a red-breasted nuthatch.
* ''ComicStrip/{{Pogo}}'' was the only ever possum leading man in an American comic.
* ''ComicStrip/ShermansLagoon'' has all sorts of obscure aquatic life.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Fan Works]]
* ''FanFic/TheBridge'':
** Anguirus in this incarnation is derived from ''Tarchia'', with ''Polacanthus'' and ''Diictodon'' mixed in.
** One "Tales of the Amalgamverse" stars the ''Spinosaurus'' from ''Film/JurassicParkIII'', who is stated to be part-''Suchomimus''.
* ''Fanfic/HildaAndTheHowlingWoods:'' An indirect example, but the werewolves in the fic are modeled after South American Maned Wolves rather than North American or Eurasian wolf breeds.
* ''FanFic/ItsNotTheRaptorDNA'': Beyond the StockDinosaurs present in Jurassic World, there's mention made of ''Therizinosaurus'', ''Metriacanthosaurus'', ''Microceratus'', ''Lambeosaurus'', ''Gorgosaurus'', ''Yutyrannus'', ''Sinocalliopteryx'', and ''Concavenator''. Two of the latter kill and eat Hart, in a ShoutOut to Ludlow's demise in Film/TheLostWorldJurassicPark. There's also Queen Anne and Bark, who are a ''Baryonyx'' and a ''Suchomimus'' respectively.
* ''Dunkleosteus'' of all animals was the sole representing species of Earth life in ''[[http://www.fimfiction.net/story/329176/the-origins-of-sentient-life-as-narrated-by-discord The Origins of Sentient Life as Narrated by Discord.]]''
* ''[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/10639175/1/Phineas-and-Ferb-s-Dinosaur-Adventure Phineas and Ferb's Dinosaur Adventure]]'' has ''Othnielosaurus'', ''Dryosaurus'', ''Ceratosaurus'', ''Fruitafossor'', ''Harpactognathus'', ''Camptosaurus'', ''Gargoyleosaurus'', and ''Ornitholestes''.
* ''Fanfic/RiseOfTheGaleforces'' featured ''Ornithocheirus'', ''Platecarpus'', and ''Mawsonia''.
* ''FanFic/RomanceAndTheFateOfEquestria'' features Queen Okapiopteryx, the [[PhysicalGod goddess]] worshipped by Zecora. The queen swings a twofer for this trope by being a [[MixAndMatchCritter mix-and-match critter]] combining ''two'' Seldom-Seen Species, an [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Okapi okapi]] and a ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microraptor Microraptor.]]''
** ''Legend'' also features a [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gemsbok gemsbok]] and a ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macrauchenia Macrauchenia]]'' as prominent characters.
* ''FanFic/TheScalyRaptor'': Besides the usual StockDinosaurs, there's also ''Beelzebufo'', ''Herrerasaurus'', ''Microraptor'', ''Titanoboa'', ''Koolasuchus'', ''Xenacanthus'', ''Saurophaganax'', ''Ceratodus'', ''Segisaurus'', ''Tanystropheus'', ''Drepanosaurus'', ''Minmi'', and ''Platyceramus''.
* Most of the Mesozoic fauna from {{Swing123}}'s ''[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/2433008/1/Triassic-Park-Into-the-Past Triassic Park: Into the Past]]'' are commonly-seen genera, but there's also ''Ornitholestes'', ''Massospondylus'', ''Liopleurodon'', ''Ceratosaurus'', ''Camarasaurus'', and ''Hypsilophodon''.
* In The Geeky Zoologist's [[Fanfic/JurassicWorld2020 reimagining of Jurassic World]], ''Achillobator'', ''Anzu'', ''Geosternbergia'', ''Harpactognathus'', ''Henodus'', ''Kunbarrasaurus'', ''Mantellisaurus'', ''Metriacanthosaurus'', ''Nothosaurus'', ''Pegomastax'', ''Platecarpus'', ''Proceratosaurus'', ''Ptychodus'', ''Shantungosaurus'', ''Tupandactylus'', ''Unenlagia'', and ''Yinlong'' are among the featured prehistoric species.
** In addition to them, obscure modern species native from Costa Rica also appears, including the American Crocodile, the American Ibis, the White-nosed Coati, the Military Macaw, the Chestnut-mandibled Toucan, the Variegated Squirrel, and the King Vulture.
** A part of the species that makes the Indominus’ genetic makeup falls under that category: ''Megaraptor'', the Southern rockhopper Penguin, the Red-bellied Woodpecker, the Eyelash Viper, the Giant girdled Lizard, the Blue-eyed anglehead Lizard,[[spoiler: Hyalinobatrachium fleischmanni, and Acomys percivali]].
* The ''[[https://archiveofourown.org/series/2280458 Kai's MXTX Fic Zoo]]'' series turns characters from ''Franchise/MoDaoZuShi'' into all sorts of specific lesser-known species, such as a quokka, nutria, and civet.
* In ''WesternAnimation/TheCasagrandes'' fanfiction ''Fanfic/ZooCoupRiot'', Sid brings a sugar glider named Candy to class for Show and Tell.
* Doubles as a Running Gag in Fanfic/FlamingFrost: A ''Chaunacops'' anglerfish appears as a RunningGag in the Dark Forest.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Films -- Live-Action]]
* ''Film/TwoThousandAndOneASpaceOdyssey'' features tapirs in the prehistoric sequence, despite it taking place in [[MisplacedWildlife Africa]].
* Sandy from ''Film/{{Annie 1982}}'' is played by an Otterhound named Bingo. It's such an unknown breed that they can easily be mistaken for mutts, which is what Sandy is supposed to be.
* ''Film/BedknobsAndBroomsticks'' prominently featured a secretarybird.
* ''Film/TheBigYear'' is a film (based on a nonfiction book of the same title, but fictionalised somewhat for the screen) about competitive birders trying to set a record for the most species seen in North America (north of Mexico, i.e. the continental United States and Canada) during one calendar year. Seldom-seen species are therefore the driving force of the whole plot: Nutting's Flycatcher, Xantus' Hummingbird, Pink-footed Goose, the list goes on and on...
* ''Film/BramStokersDracula'' features a ring-tailed lemur at the London Zoo when a wolf escapes.
* ''Film/DeepBlueSea'' features mutant ''mako'' sharks, rather than the usual Great Whites.
* Tino's "girlfriend" Roxy in ''Film/ADogsPurpose'' is a Landseer.
* ''Film/EightLeggedFreaks'': Besides the commonly seen tarantulas and orb-weavers, the movie features trapdoor spiders, spitting spiders and jumping spiders.
* ''Film/HarryPotterAndTheGobletOfFire'': Rather than a spider, [[AdaptationalSpeciesChange as portrayed in the book]], the arachnid Mad-Eye Moody demonstrates the Unforgivable Curses on is actually a tailless whipscorpion.
* ''Goodbye, My Lady'' is about a boy in rural Mississippi who finds a stray Basenji. Basenji are a rare breed in modern day media, nevermind in the 1950s.
* ''Film/TheJungleBook2016'' was full of (mostly Indian) species not often seen in cinema, such as nilgai, blackbuck, Indian rhinoceros, Indian pangolin, pygmy hog, Indian giant squirrel, jerboas, small Indian civet, red and white giant flying squirrel, Indian cobra, mugger crocodile, Indian cuckoo, hoopoe, Asian fairy-bluebird, and green bee-eater. King Louie's monkey underlings include some relatively obscure species, such as western hoolock gibbon, lion-tailed macaque, pig-tailed macaque, golden langur, and Nilgiri langur. King Louie himself is the extinct orangutan-like ape ''Gigantopithecus''.
* ''Franchise/JurassicPark''
** ''Film/TheLostWorldJurassicPark'' features ''Mamenchisaurus'' as the token sauropod.
** ''Film/JurassicParkIII'' features a ''Spinosaurus'' as the main antagonist. Much like ''Velociraptor'', ''Spinosaurus'' was obscure when the film was made and became one of the best-known dinosaurs after its release, although it is almost always based on the film's [[ScienceMarchesOn now outdated portrayal]].[[note]]It is now known that ''Spinosaurus'' had actually really short hind legs and was mostly an aquatic animal.[[/note]] ''Ceratosaurus'' and ''Corythosaurus'' are examples of stock dinosaurs that have become fairly obscure in non-educational media.
** ''Indominus rex'', the main antagonist of ''Film/JurassicWorld'', is stated to be made from the DNA of cuttlefish and tree frogs. AllThereInTheManual states it also contains the genes of ''Therizinosaurus'', ''Giganotosaurus'', ''Carnotaurus'', ''Rugops'', and ''Majungasaurus''. The flying reptile ''Dimorphodon'' is also featured in the film.
** ''Film/JurassicWorldFallenKingdom'' features ''Stygimoloch'' and ''Sinoceratops''. ''Concavenator'', ''Mononykus'', and ''Dracorex'' make cameos as models, the skeletons of ''Kosmoceratops'', ''Peloroplites'', and ''Teratophoneus'' also make appearances, and DNA vials for ''Dreadnoughtus'' is seen as a FreezeFrameBonus. Finally, the skull that the ''Indoraptor'' dies from being impaled on is that of an ''Agujaceratops'' according to the script, not a ''Triceratops'' as viewers often assume.
** ''Film/JurassicWorldBattleAtBigRock'' prominently features a family of ''Nasutoceratops''. The ''Allosaurus'' is based on ''A. jimmadensi'', rather than the iconic ''A. fragilis''.
** The prologue of ''Film/JurassicWorldDominion'' (first shown alongside IMAX screenings of ''Film/{{F9}}'') features ''Dreadnoughtus'', ''Nasutoceratops'', and ''Moros''. It also has ''Giganotosaurus'', a stock dinosaur but still obscure by the likes of ''Tyrannosaurus'' and ''Spinosaurus''. ''Atrociraptor'', ''Lystrosaurus'', ''Microceratus'', and ''Pyroraptor'' also appear in several scenes of the film.
* 1955's ''Film/KingDinosaur'' features a kinkajou in the part of a cute alien animal the "[[NominalHero heroes]]" find, which was then [[OverlyLongGag extensively]] [[ViewerSpeciesConfusion misidentified as a lemur]] in [[Recap/MysteryScienceTheater3000S02E10KingDinosaur the MST3K episode.]]
* The Syfy Channel's ''Malibu Shark Attack'' features goblin sharks, presumably because they look so bizarre.
* ''Film/TheMission'' features a tiny marmoset monkey instead of your typical South American monkey-like capuchin or squirrel monkeys and a collared peccary which could easily be mistaken as a wild pig. Also, it features a three-toed sloth, who wasn't as popular back in 1986, before the Internet days.
* ''Film/MyOctopusTeacher'': Octopus are a well-known aquatic species. Rather, the seldom-seen species, in this case, is the [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pyjama_shark Pyjama Shark]], a natural predator of the octopus.
* ''Film/TheParanormalDiariesClophill'': At one point, the crew find a [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slow_worm slow-worm]] on the floor of the church, its body in the shape of an "S".
* Besides the usual chimpanzees, gorillas, and orangutans, ''Film/RiseOfThePlanetOfTheApes'' featured a bonobo named Koba as the TokenEvilTeammate. He is promoted to BigBad in the sequel ''Film/DawnOfThePlanetOfTheApes''.
* ''Film/SnakesOnAPlane'': One of the more distinctive motherfuckin' snakes on this motherfuckin' plane is a Gaboon viper.
* In the most recent film of ''Literature/TheTimeMachine'', one of the Eloi men is seen carrying a live black-furred animal over his shoulder, which appears to be a binturong.
* ''Film/TransformersAgeOfExtinction'' showed a ''Psittacosaurus'' and a herd of heterodontosaurids in the opening scene.
* ''Film/TRexBackToTheCretaceous'' featured a pair of ''Dryptosaurus'' to associate with early 20th Century artist Charles R. Knight. For bonus points, they adopt the same pose as in his famous "Leaping ''Laelaps''" painting.[[note]]Although they depicted them as [[RaptorAttack featherless]] dromaeosaurs similar to ''Deinonychus'', while ''Dryptosaurus'' is considered as a tyrannosaur nowadays.[[/note]]
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Music]]
* In the music video for Music/NeonIndian's "Sleep Paralysist", an axolotl can be seen in a few shots. Given how [[SurrealMusicVideo bizarre]] the video is, the axolotl was probably chosen to be there (above other, more common animals) for its odd, UglyCute appearance, in order to add to the surreality.
* ''WesternAnimation/SchoolhouseRock'':
** The song "Four-Legged Zoo" prominently mentioned ibex (a type of goat with large, curved horns) and kudu (a large antelope with corkscrew-shaped horns). It also briefly brings up vicuña (the wild ancestor of the alpaca) near the start.
** The song "Rufus Xavier Sarsaparilla'' prominently features an aardvark as the animal companion to the titular character's sister Rafaella Gabriela Sarsaparilla.
* Music/FrankZappa's piece "The Adventures Of Greggery Peccary" from ''Music/StudioTan'' and ''Music/{{Lather}}'', correctly describes him as "the nocturnal gregarious wild swine".
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Radio]]
* Another okapi reference is dropped into ''Radio/TheHitchhikersGuideToTheGalaxy'', when the narrator mentions in passing that Arthur Dent's only brother was somehow [[NoodleIncident nibbled to death]] by one.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Theme Parks]]
* ''Ride/ItsASmallWorld'' at the Ride/DisneyThemeParks has lyrebirds, kiwis, flying fish and a rhea.
* ''Ride/JurassicParkRiverAdventure'' at Ride/UniversalStudios has ''Ultrasaurus'' and ''Psittacosaurus'' among the several dinosaur species featured in the ride.
* ''Ride/{{Dinosaur}}'' features ''Alioramus'', ''Coloborhychus'', and ''Saltasaurus''.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Toys]]
* Toys/BeanieBabies have included several rare species over the years, such as a kiwi, a hornbill, a lemur that is clearly not a ring-tailed, and a cockatoo that is clearly not a sulphur-crested.
* ''Toys/TheGrosseryGang'' has Slob Fish, who is a blobfish, a type of fish rarely seen in fiction.
* Some of the higher-end animal toy manufacturers such as Safari Ltd., Schleich, and [=CollectA=] will feature obscure animal species in addition to well-known ones. Examples are too numerous to list.
* Toys/{{Squishmallows}}: The members of the Deep Sea squad include a sea hare, a blobfish, and a tardigrade.
* ''Toys/TheTrashPack'' has featured rarely-mentioned bugs in their Bin-sects team, including tapeworms, earwigs, and silverfish.
* The Feisty Pets line features a snow leopard, two three-toed sloths, and a narwhal.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Webcomics]]
* In ''Webcomic/BronzeSkinInc'' Coatis and saguis appear in the first chapter.
* ''Webcomic/TheBugPond'' features a lot of obscure bug species, such as silverfish, earwigs, and assassin bugs.
* ''Webcomic/BurgessShale'' has characters and spaceships based on Paleozoic fish, such as Scaumenacia, Pteraspis, and Drepanaspis.
* ''Webcomic/CameronAndCorinna'' has a thylacine protagonist.
* ''Webcomic/CommanderKitty'' features Nin Wah, a red panda. The first version of the comic also had part of the plot set on a planet of pangolins.
* ''Webcomic/{{Concession}}'' features Roland, a pangolin, Franz/Zoe, a [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greater_bilby bilby]], Kate and Rick, ringtail lemurs, and Clive, an [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Okapi okapi]].
* ''Webcomic/DawnOfTime'' tends to feature lesser-known dinosaurs like ''Pachyrhinosaurus'' and ''Sauropelta''.
* The protagonist of ''Webcomic/{{Digger}}'' is a wombat, and several of the supporting cast come from a tribe of hyenas.
* Webcomic/DinosaurComics, in addition to the not-that-unusual ''T. rex'', includes a ''Utahraptor'' and a ''Dromiceiomimus'' among the main cast.
* ''Webcomic/DropOut'''s main couple are a marine hydroid (the frilly little worms which stick to shellfish) and a sugar glider/tarsier hybrid.
* ''Webcomic/{{Femmegasm}}'' has a tamarin monkey and axolotl as its lead characters.
* ''Webcomic/KevinAndKell'' have occasionally featured animals like this:
** Probably the most recurring seldom seen species character is Kevin's eventual brother in law, George Fennec, who's, well, a fennec fox.
** Lindesfarne the hedgehog may technically count as K&K started in 1995, when ''VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog'' was in the earliest days of its popularity. What's more, for the earliest months of the comic Lindesfarne believed herself to have converted to an American porcupine, itself uncommon in media.
** Aby's ex Manxwell is a manx, a tailless cat.
** Semi recurring character Mr. Chapman is a platypus. Many of the comics featuring him have some joke centered around his hybrid status, such as him trying to trace his family tree causing the computer to explode, or how he owns a hybrid car.
** While bats in general don't count for this trope, ''vampire'' bats are rare enough that [[OurVampiresAreDifferent Desdemona Fuscus]] makes the list.
** Harold is a stinkbird (hoatzin). Many jokes are made about his stench.
** A nameless bird of paradise appears once to comment that his mating ritual may look stupid, but at least he didn't pay 12 grand for it like Lindesfarne was doing for her wedding.
** [[https://www.kevinandkell.com/2017/kk0129.html This comic]] shows off four rare bug species...all part of Lindesfarne's WackyCravings when she was pregnant with Turvy.
* [[http://lizclimo.tumblr.com/ Liz Climo]] often features these in her comic series, such as tamanduas, honey badgers, and fennec foxes.
* Mocheril from ''Webcomic/TheMeek'', who is an olm (rarely seen outside of Slovenian heraldry).
* ''Webcomic/NatureOfNaturesArt'', full stop. Featuring jerboas, degus, tamanduas, kinkajous, several species of spiders and many more.
* In ''Webcomic/OffWhite'', the pack is [[http://off-white.eu/comic/page-142 shown hunting a chamois.]] This might be the one and only time you'll ever see one in any fiction whatsoever.
* In ''Webcomic/TheOrderOfTheStick'' story ''How the Paladin Got His Scar'', Saha [[SpeaksFluentAnimal speaks with]] what appears to be a binturong.
* Stephan in ''Webcomic/OzyAndMillie'' is an aardvark.
* ''Webcomic/QuestionDuck'' has a great potoo in [[http://questionduck.smackjeeves.com/comics/1895543/287/ this strip]]. [[http://questionduck.smackjeeves.com/comics/1033540/087/ An earlier one]] showed a toco toucan and leafcutter ants. [[http://questionduck.smackjeeves.com/comics/1264506/coelasquid/ This guest strip]] by Coelasquid (creator of ''Webcomic/ManlyGuysDoingManlyThings'') had a shoebill.
* ''Webcomic/{{Raptormaniacs}}'' has Zahavi the ''Jinfengopteryx'', Remex the ''Caudipteryx'', and Ebeff the ''Therizinosaurus''. Also Skull, who is a skull cast of ''Tsaagan''.
* ''Webcomic/RWBYDoodleverse'' {{Lampshade|Hanging}}s in "New Ride", where Mercury states in response to Emerald's suggestion that they ride into Atlas with an okapi Grimm that no one knows what an okapi is.
* The main characters in ''Webcomic/YuckHeads'' are mongooses, specifically Yellow Mongooses.
* ''Webcomic/StandStillStaySilent'': Adventure II moving the action to the Saimaa lake system in Finland, combined with the fact that RaisingTheSteaks is limited to mammals in the setting, results in the EncyclopediaExposita page about the AfterTheEnd version of the area including a few zombified Saimaa ringed seals among its illustrations.
* ''Webcomic/VapnthjofrSaga'': One of the main characters is a pine marten, and minor/background characters includes species such as mergansers, lammergeiers, water shrews, black grouses, ospreys, Siberian jays, etc. While an [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aurochs aurochs]] appears as a frost giant.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Web Original]]
* The middle portion of the song "In the Ocean Blue" from ''WebAnimation/CharlieTheUnicorn'', which sounds an awful lot like the [[Anime/{{Pokemon}} Pokerap]]:
---> Lungfish, Blackfish, Alligator, Icefish
---> Armorhead, Hammerhead, Anaconda, Flathead
---> Manta ray, Stingray, Fangtooth, Moray
---> Goblin shark, Grass carp, Round River Bat Ray
---> Noodlefish, Hagfish, Man o' War, Ladyfish
---> Black eel, baby seal, Sprat, Koi, Electric eel
---> Lamprey, Pejerey, Yellow-edged Moray
---> Salmon shark, Sleeper shark, Leatherback, and Eagle ray!
** The anaconda, koi, electric eel, alligator, lungfish, and grass carp are ''especially'' Seldom-Seen Species under the circumstances, as they're [[MisplacedWildlife freshwater creatures only]].
** And of course, the magical ''Liopleurodon''.
* ''[[http://www.cracked.com/article_20329_8-animals-that-are-just-lazy-combinations-other-animals.html Cracked]]'' ''[[http://www.cracked.com/article_20144_9-animals-that-are-just-lazy-combinations-other-animals.html loves]]'' [[http://www.cracked.com/article_19965_7-bizarre-prehistoric-versions-modern-day-animals.html this trope]].
* ''WebAnimation/{{Dreamscape}}'': The local hospital is run by a [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Megalania Megalania.]]
* ''WebAnimation/DSBTInsaniT'': Fire Guy has a pet [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pangolin pangolin.]]
* ''WebOriginal/HamstersParadise'' features the Chinese dwarf hamster as its seed animal of choice: as opposed to the Syrian hamster or the golden hamster which are more commonly kept as pets. Justified as the Chinese dawrf hamster is a common lab animal, and also has a longer tail, more befitting the long-tailed hamster descendants that later arise.
* The ''WebAnimation/HappyTreeFriends'' universe includes a marmot and an anteater (Cro-Marmot and Sniffles, respectively). While Sniffles has been known to hunt ants on occasion, the ice-encased Cro-Marmot never engages in any marmot-esque activity. Or any activity, period.
* ''WebOriginal/MultituberculateEarth'' is all about multituberculates as the dominant mammals; show of hands if you even know what a multituberculate is. The opening scene shows an ''[[https://www.mindat.org/taxon-8458666.html Ectypodus arctos]]'' (which doesn't even have a Wikipedia page!) eating a basal rodent, and it does bonkers from there.
* ''WebOriginal/TheNingyo'' features an [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Okapi okapi]] as part of Christopher Marlowe's backstory.
* ''Blog/TheTyrannosaurChronicles'' includes a handful of dinosaur species that are rarely used in media like the ''Einiosaurus'' or the ''Stegoceras''.
* ''WebVideo/TrueFacts'' started out as informational videos about relatively well-known animals, like ducks, octopuses, or chameleons. As the series goes on, it starts taking a look at more and more obscure species of animals, such as nudibranchs, mudskippers, ogre-faced spiders, bobbit worms, and carnivorous beach snails.
-->'''Narrator''': This is stock footage of a sea cucumber. It has been downloaded one time. By me.
* ''WebAnimation/CatsingCall'': One of the main characters is a caiman, which aren't too common compared to their relatives, crocodiles and alligators.
* ''WebAnimation/{{Dinosauria}}'': The second short "Our Frozen Past" features ''Nanuqsaurus'', a smaller relative of ''Tyrannosaurus'' native to Alaska.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Other]]
* The mascot for the [[UsefulNotes/NationalHockeyLeague NHL]]'s Vegas Golden Knights is Chance, a gila monster.
* The mascots for the Sydney 2000 UsefulNotes/{{Olympic|Games}}s were a kookaburra, echidna and platypus -- chosen in part to provide a LandSeaSky combination and in part because Australian organisers thought kangaroos and koalas were overused.
* The mascot of the (now postponed) 2021 Southeast Asian games is a saola, a type of primitive bovine that literally hasn't been seen since 2013.
* ''TabletopGame/WeirdNWildCreatures'', a series of children's fact & trading cards that originally ran from 2003-2006, loved this trope. ''Gigantophis'', ''Dapedium'', Budgett's frogs, genets, hooded pitohuis, hellbenders, predatory tunicates, stoplight loosejaws, toe-biters, red-backed shrikes, pichiciegos, Javan wart snakes… and that's not even scratching the surface. This even extended to the series' coverage of mythical creatures; while not species in the literal sense, it included several beasts (Baital, Gargantua, Mngwa, the Thetis Lake monster, etc.) that are rarely acknowledged in fiction.
[[/folder]]
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[[quoteright:349:[[VideoGame/Splatoon2 https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/octoexpansion_species.png]]]]
[[caption-width-right:349:Seen any of these guys before? We'll wait.[[note]]Left to right, top to bottom: A sea angel, a ping-pong tree sponge, three deep-sea jellyfish, three predatory tunicates, two gulper eels, two flashlight fish, two longsnout dogfish, a siphonophore, and a blobfish.[[/note]]]]
%%Caption selected via above crowner. Please do not change or remove without running it by the Caption Repair thread.
Animal characters in fiction run the gamut. Just a look at the listing in AnimalStereotypes shows that there are plenty of common-enough animals that are used for their distinctive traits (presumed or real).
Then there's the [[TitleDrop Seldom-Seen Species]] -- that is, a species that, once you see it, makes you think, "Hey, you don't usually see that animal!"[[note]][[SmallTaxonomyPools assuming you're even familiar with it]].[[/note]] In some cases, this may be a forced attempt to avoid the countless existing AnimalStereotypes.
Some animals, such as monkeys, rats, mice, songbirds, octopi, snails, slugs, fish, or frogs, are usually represented by a generic or nondescript variant of the type of animal as opposed to an actual individual species of that type of animal (i.e. instead of being a Larger Pacific Striped Octopus or Blue-Ringed Octopus, a character might simply be an "octopus"). In that case, portraying an actual species of that type of animal would count if that actual species isn't commonly found in fiction.
This trope is a CyclicTrope because some species are more seldom seen in the media of some cultures, in certain forms of media, and in some time periods than others. For example, red pandas are common in UsefulNotes/FurryFandom artwork, but are seldom seen in other fictional works and media. Likewise, platypuses were once considered a strange and unfamiliar animal, and were used as an example of a "seldom-seen species", but now they are so famous that they no longer count as one.
Many of the older examples of this trope [[InformedSpecies look and act little (if not nothing) like their real-life equivalents]].
''' Examples of this trope should be species that are still seldom seen in media nowadays. Examples of older works that show species that were rare in media at the time of the work's release but not that obscure now are also allowed.'''
Contrast SmallTaxonomyPools. For obscure mythological beasts in fiction, see MinorlyMentionedMythsAndMonsters. See TheGreatestHistoryNeverTold for historical periods that are obscure or unknown to general audiences. May also count as AluminumChristmasTrees if the audience thinks the species are fictional.
----
!!Examples:
* SeldomSeenSpecies/AnimeAndManga
* SeldomSeenSpecies/AnimatedFilms
* {{SeldomSeenSpecies/Literature}}
* SeldomSeenSpecies/LiveActionTV
* SeldomSeenSpecies/VideoGames
* SeldomSeenSpecies/WesternAnimation
[[foldercontrol]]
[[folder:Advertising]]
* There are the two meerkats from ''Advertising/CompareTheMeerkat'', Alexandr and Sergei. Meerkats are related to mongooses, which have enjoyed moderate fame in Western culture over the past century and a half thanks to Creator/RudyardKipling's short story "Rikki-Tikki-Tavi"; ''WesternAnimation/TheLionKing1994'' and ''Series/MeerkatManor'' introduced meerkats to the public consciousness. Mongooses are, of course, famous for killing snakes, while meerkats lack this distinction.
* The Advertising/{{GEICO}} Gecko, though thanks to him, geckos are not as seldom-seen as they used to be.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Arts]]
* Creator/UrsulaVernon is especially fond of illustrating animals that are not usually given focus, especially in a fantasy context, i.e. as an anthropomorphic warrior or sage. And she tends to use a wombat for self-insert works. See also ''Webcomic/{{Digger}}'' under Webcomics.
* This is [[UncannyValley another reason]] why William Wegman's works leave a strong impression on their viewers: they may have not even seen or heard of the Weimaraner breed beforehand.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Asian Animation]]
* ''Animation/BabySharksBigShow'':
** William is a pilot fish (despite [[InformedSpecies having an entirely different color scheme]]), a kind of fish often seen around sharks as an aiding fish.
** "All I Want For Fishmas" features a sea angel, a kind of sea slug, subbing for a literal angel.
* ''Animation/BoonieBears'': With the light V-shaped patches on their chests, Briar and Bramble are clearly Asian black bears, albeit with [[AmazingTechnicolorWildlife non-standard fur colours]]. In the Mandarin original, Logger Vick explicitly identifies them as ''gǒuxióng'' (狗熊, "dog-bears"), a regional name for the species.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Comic Books]]
* ''Franchise/{{Batman}}'': The Joker and Harley Quinn are sometimes accompanied by [[Creator/AbbottAndCostello Bud and Lou]], who are spotted hyenas.
* ''[[http://scratchpad.wikia.com/wiki/The_Belch_Dimension_Comics#Year_One_.282005-06.29 The Belch Dimension Comics]]'' has Jason T. Gibbon (although slightly subverted in an "Untold Tales" segment when it's revealed he was once a boy turned into an ape by an evil spell). One story also featured a villain named The Cassowary, which [[WordOfGod series creator Jonathan M. Sweet]] was surprised wasn't used more, as this large flightless bird, with its bony skull-crest and large clawed foot,seemed "fairly made for supervillainy". Although naturally stylized to appear cartoonish, the series actually has fairly recognizable renderings of specific dog breeds, such as the beagle and the pit bull, unlike most comics and cartoons.
* ''ComicBook/CaptainCarrotAndHisAmazingZooCrew'' would occasionally reference or show a few less often seen animal species, as part of making its WorldOfFunnyAnimals animal-based puns work. Examples include Gnu York City and the "Wombat Communications" conglomerate there (the owners of Earth-C's version of DC Comics). Celebrities seen included [[Creator/BobHope Bob Hoopoe]], while a fictional cowboy named "Hopalong Cassowary" (Hopalong Cassidy) is referenced. A few countries/cities on Earth-C include [[UsefulNotes/{{Australia}} Aukstralia]] and [[UsefulNotes/{{London}} Loondon]].
* In ''ComicBook/CerebusTheAardvark'', aardvarks are not at all common, but have appeared enough times throughout Estarcion's history that it's not a cause for public wonder. [[spoiler:That ''three'' aardvarks are running around at one time, on the other hand, is exceedingly rare.]]
* The protagonist of the ''Kat-Venture'' comics is a meerkat treasure hunter. In "Kat-Venture and the Mountain of Death" he teams up with an Indian civet.
* The ''ComicBook/SonicTheHedgehogArchieComics'' universe is full of this. Not the least of which are echidnas (most famously Knuckles), lynx (Nicole, Lightning Lynx, et al.) and mongooses (Mina and Ash). And with the reboot we can add pikas (Relic), bettas (Coral), water buffaloes (Axel), pistol shrimp (Captain Striker), and tenrecs (Gold).
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Comic Strips]]
* ''Arctic Circle'' has an Arctic tern named Hector.
* ''ComicStrip/{{BC}}'' has the Apteryx, a "wingless bird with hairy feathers," as he invariably introduces himself. ''Apteryx'' is the generic name for kiwis.
* ''ComicStrip/CalvinAndHobbes'':
** Calvin has a fairly encyclopedic knowledge of animals, primarily dinosaurs and pterosaurs. Among the genera featured in the strips are ''Corythosaurus'', ''Troodon'', ''Centrosaurus'', ''Chasmosaurus'', "''Ultrasauros''" (now ''Supersaurus''), ''Dimorphodon'', and ''Pterodactylus''.
** He once asked if Hobbes could draw anything other than tigers, to which Hobbes replied, yes, he could also draw ocelots (slender, spotted wild cats from the jungles of Central and South America).
** In one of his tiger poems, he makes a reference to the sambar deer.
* ''ComicStrip/OffTheMark'':
** [[https://www.offthemark.com/image/cache/data/cartoons/2001-08-13B-240x331.gif These]] [[https://www.offthemark.com/image/cache/data/cartoons/2011-11-04B-240x331.gif strips]] feature spotted hyenas.
** [[https://www.offthemark.com/image/cache/data/cartoons/2004-11-21C-500x259.gif This strip]] features a woodchuck.
** [[https://www.offthemark.com/image/cache/data/cartoons/2007-08-28B-240x331.gif This strip]] features a ring-tailed lemur.
** There also [[https://www.offthemark.com/image/cache/data/cartoons/1999-05-31B-240x331.gif a]] [[https://www.offthemark.com/image/cache/data/cartoons/2000-09-24B-500x259.gif few]] [[https://www.offthemark.com/image/cache/data/cartoons/2016-04-01B-240x331.gif strips]] featuring mongooses.
** [[https://www.offthemark.com/image/cache/data/cartoons/2011-09-12B-240x331.gif This strip]] features water buffalo. And an "air buffalo".
* ''ComicStrip/PearlsBeforeSwine'':
** Pig has a sea anemone enemy.
** [[https://www.gocomics.com/pearlsbeforeswine/2006/09/06 One storyline]] focuses on meerkats at the local zoo... and the illegal activities that they participate in.
** In one strip, Pig hires an aardvark named Andy as an accountant...which backfires because aardvarks are nocturnal.
* One Sunday strip of ''ComicStrip/PhoebeAndHerUnicorn'' featured a goldfinch, a pair of black-necked stilts, a Townsend's warbler, a spotted towhee, a chestnut-backed chickadee, a pileated woodpecker, a Steller's jay, and a red-breasted nuthatch.
* ''ComicStrip/{{Pogo}}'' was the only ever possum leading man in an American comic.
* ''ComicStrip/ShermansLagoon'' has all sorts of obscure aquatic life.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Fan Works]]
* ''FanFic/TheBridge'':
** Anguirus in this incarnation is derived from ''Tarchia'', with ''Polacanthus'' and ''Diictodon'' mixed in.
** One "Tales of the Amalgamverse" stars the ''Spinosaurus'' from ''Film/JurassicParkIII'', who is stated to be part-''Suchomimus''.
* ''Fanfic/HildaAndTheHowlingWoods:'' An indirect example, but the werewolves in the fic are modeled after South American Maned Wolves rather than North American or Eurasian wolf breeds.
* ''FanFic/ItsNotTheRaptorDNA'': Beyond the StockDinosaurs present in Jurassic World, there's mention made of ''Therizinosaurus'', ''Metriacanthosaurus'', ''Microceratus'', ''Lambeosaurus'', ''Gorgosaurus'', ''Yutyrannus'', ''Sinocalliopteryx'', and ''Concavenator''. Two of the latter kill and eat Hart, in a ShoutOut to Ludlow's demise in Film/TheLostWorldJurassicPark. There's also Queen Anne and Bark, who are a ''Baryonyx'' and a ''Suchomimus'' respectively.
* ''Dunkleosteus'' of all animals was the sole representing species of Earth life in ''[[http://www.fimfiction.net/story/329176/the-origins-of-sentient-life-as-narrated-by-discord The Origins of Sentient Life as Narrated by Discord.]]''
* ''[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/10639175/1/Phineas-and-Ferb-s-Dinosaur-Adventure Phineas and Ferb's Dinosaur Adventure]]'' has ''Othnielosaurus'', ''Dryosaurus'', ''Ceratosaurus'', ''Fruitafossor'', ''Harpactognathus'', ''Camptosaurus'', ''Gargoyleosaurus'', and ''Ornitholestes''.
* ''Fanfic/RiseOfTheGaleforces'' featured ''Ornithocheirus'', ''Platecarpus'', and ''Mawsonia''.
* ''FanFic/RomanceAndTheFateOfEquestria'' features Queen Okapiopteryx, the [[PhysicalGod goddess]] worshipped by Zecora. The queen swings a twofer for this trope by being a [[MixAndMatchCritter mix-and-match critter]] combining ''two'' Seldom-Seen Species, an [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Okapi okapi]] and a ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microraptor Microraptor.]]''
** ''Legend'' also features a [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gemsbok gemsbok]] and a ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macrauchenia Macrauchenia]]'' as prominent characters.
* ''FanFic/TheScalyRaptor'': Besides the usual StockDinosaurs, there's also ''Beelzebufo'', ''Herrerasaurus'', ''Microraptor'', ''Titanoboa'', ''Koolasuchus'', ''Xenacanthus'', ''Saurophaganax'', ''Ceratodus'', ''Segisaurus'', ''Tanystropheus'', ''Drepanosaurus'', ''Minmi'', and ''Platyceramus''.
* Most of the Mesozoic fauna from {{Swing123}}'s ''[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/2433008/1/Triassic-Park-Into-the-Past Triassic Park: Into the Past]]'' are commonly-seen genera, but there's also ''Ornitholestes'', ''Massospondylus'', ''Liopleurodon'', ''Ceratosaurus'', ''Camarasaurus'', and ''Hypsilophodon''.
* In The Geeky Zoologist's [[Fanfic/JurassicWorld2020 reimagining of Jurassic World]], ''Achillobator'', ''Anzu'', ''Geosternbergia'', ''Harpactognathus'', ''Henodus'', ''Kunbarrasaurus'', ''Mantellisaurus'', ''Metriacanthosaurus'', ''Nothosaurus'', ''Pegomastax'', ''Platecarpus'', ''Proceratosaurus'', ''Ptychodus'', ''Shantungosaurus'', ''Tupandactylus'', ''Unenlagia'', and ''Yinlong'' are among the featured prehistoric species.
** In addition to them, obscure modern species native from Costa Rica also appears, including the American Crocodile, the American Ibis, the White-nosed Coati, the Military Macaw, the Chestnut-mandibled Toucan, the Variegated Squirrel, and the King Vulture.
** A part of the species that makes the Indominus’ genetic makeup falls under that category: ''Megaraptor'', the Southern rockhopper Penguin, the Red-bellied Woodpecker, the Eyelash Viper, the Giant girdled Lizard, the Blue-eyed anglehead Lizard,[[spoiler: Hyalinobatrachium fleischmanni, and Acomys percivali]].
* The ''[[https://archiveofourown.org/series/2280458 Kai's MXTX Fic Zoo]]'' series turns characters from ''Franchise/MoDaoZuShi'' into all sorts of specific lesser-known species, such as a quokka, nutria, and civet.
* In ''WesternAnimation/TheCasagrandes'' fanfiction ''Fanfic/ZooCoupRiot'', Sid brings a sugar glider named Candy to class for Show and Tell.
* Doubles as a Running Gag in Fanfic/FlamingFrost: A ''Chaunacops'' anglerfish appears as a RunningGag in the Dark Forest.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Films -- Live-Action]]
* ''Film/TwoThousandAndOneASpaceOdyssey'' features tapirs in the prehistoric sequence, despite it taking place in [[MisplacedWildlife Africa]].
* Sandy from ''Film/{{Annie 1982}}'' is played by an Otterhound named Bingo. It's such an unknown breed that they can easily be mistaken for mutts, which is what Sandy is supposed to be.
* ''Film/BedknobsAndBroomsticks'' prominently featured a secretarybird.
* ''Film/TheBigYear'' is a film (based on a nonfiction book of the same title, but fictionalised somewhat for the screen) about competitive birders trying to set a record for the most species seen in North America (north of Mexico, i.e. the continental United States and Canada) during one calendar year. Seldom-seen species are therefore the driving force of the whole plot: Nutting's Flycatcher, Xantus' Hummingbird, Pink-footed Goose, the list goes on and on...
* ''Film/BramStokersDracula'' features a ring-tailed lemur at the London Zoo when a wolf escapes.
* ''Film/DeepBlueSea'' features mutant ''mako'' sharks, rather than the usual Great Whites.
* Tino's "girlfriend" Roxy in ''Film/ADogsPurpose'' is a Landseer.
* ''Film/EightLeggedFreaks'': Besides the commonly seen tarantulas and orb-weavers, the movie features trapdoor spiders, spitting spiders and jumping spiders.
* ''Film/HarryPotterAndTheGobletOfFire'': Rather than a spider, [[AdaptationalSpeciesChange as portrayed in the book]], the arachnid Mad-Eye Moody demonstrates the Unforgivable Curses on is actually a tailless whipscorpion.
* ''Goodbye, My Lady'' is about a boy in rural Mississippi who finds a stray Basenji. Basenji are a rare breed in modern day media, nevermind in the 1950s.
* ''Film/TheJungleBook2016'' was full of (mostly Indian) species not often seen in cinema, such as nilgai, blackbuck, Indian rhinoceros, Indian pangolin, pygmy hog, Indian giant squirrel, jerboas, small Indian civet, red and white giant flying squirrel, Indian cobra, mugger crocodile, Indian cuckoo, hoopoe, Asian fairy-bluebird, and green bee-eater. King Louie's monkey underlings include some relatively obscure species, such as western hoolock gibbon, lion-tailed macaque, pig-tailed macaque, golden langur, and Nilgiri langur. King Louie himself is the extinct orangutan-like ape ''Gigantopithecus''.
* ''Franchise/JurassicPark''
** ''Film/TheLostWorldJurassicPark'' features ''Mamenchisaurus'' as the token sauropod.
** ''Film/JurassicParkIII'' features a ''Spinosaurus'' as the main antagonist. Much like ''Velociraptor'', ''Spinosaurus'' was obscure when the film was made and became one of the best-known dinosaurs after its release, although it is almost always based on the film's [[ScienceMarchesOn now outdated portrayal]].[[note]]It is now known that ''Spinosaurus'' had actually really short hind legs and was mostly an aquatic animal.[[/note]] ''Ceratosaurus'' and ''Corythosaurus'' are examples of stock dinosaurs that have become fairly obscure in non-educational media.
** ''Indominus rex'', the main antagonist of ''Film/JurassicWorld'', is stated to be made from the DNA of cuttlefish and tree frogs. AllThereInTheManual states it also contains the genes of ''Therizinosaurus'', ''Giganotosaurus'', ''Carnotaurus'', ''Rugops'', and ''Majungasaurus''. The flying reptile ''Dimorphodon'' is also featured in the film.
** ''Film/JurassicWorldFallenKingdom'' features ''Stygimoloch'' and ''Sinoceratops''. ''Concavenator'', ''Mononykus'', and ''Dracorex'' make cameos as models, the skeletons of ''Kosmoceratops'', ''Peloroplites'', and ''Teratophoneus'' also make appearances, and DNA vials for ''Dreadnoughtus'' is seen as a FreezeFrameBonus. Finally, the skull that the ''Indoraptor'' dies from being impaled on is that of an ''Agujaceratops'' according to the script, not a ''Triceratops'' as viewers often assume.
** ''Film/JurassicWorldBattleAtBigRock'' prominently features a family of ''Nasutoceratops''. The ''Allosaurus'' is based on ''A. jimmadensi'', rather than the iconic ''A. fragilis''.
** The prologue of ''Film/JurassicWorldDominion'' (first shown alongside IMAX screenings of ''Film/{{F9}}'') features ''Dreadnoughtus'', ''Nasutoceratops'', and ''Moros''. It also has ''Giganotosaurus'', a stock dinosaur but still obscure by the likes of ''Tyrannosaurus'' and ''Spinosaurus''. ''Atrociraptor'', ''Lystrosaurus'', ''Microceratus'', and ''Pyroraptor'' also appear in several scenes of the film.
* 1955's ''Film/KingDinosaur'' features a kinkajou in the part of a cute alien animal the "[[NominalHero heroes]]" find, which was then [[OverlyLongGag extensively]] [[ViewerSpeciesConfusion misidentified as a lemur]] in [[Recap/MysteryScienceTheater3000S02E10KingDinosaur the MST3K episode.]]
* The Syfy Channel's ''Malibu Shark Attack'' features goblin sharks, presumably because they look so bizarre.
* ''Film/TheMission'' features a tiny marmoset monkey instead of your typical South American monkey-like capuchin or squirrel monkeys and a collared peccary which could easily be mistaken as a wild pig. Also, it features a three-toed sloth, who wasn't as popular back in 1986, before the Internet days.
* ''Film/MyOctopusTeacher'': Octopus are a well-known aquatic species. Rather, the seldom-seen species, in this case, is the [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pyjama_shark Pyjama Shark]], a natural predator of the octopus.
* ''Film/TheParanormalDiariesClophill'': At one point, the crew find a [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slow_worm slow-worm]] on the floor of the church, its body in the shape of an "S".
* Besides the usual chimpanzees, gorillas, and orangutans, ''Film/RiseOfThePlanetOfTheApes'' featured a bonobo named Koba as the TokenEvilTeammate. He is promoted to BigBad in the sequel ''Film/DawnOfThePlanetOfTheApes''.
* ''Film/SnakesOnAPlane'': One of the more distinctive motherfuckin' snakes on this motherfuckin' plane is a Gaboon viper.
* In the most recent film of ''Literature/TheTimeMachine'', one of the Eloi men is seen carrying a live black-furred animal over his shoulder, which appears to be a binturong.
* ''Film/TransformersAgeOfExtinction'' showed a ''Psittacosaurus'' and a herd of heterodontosaurids in the opening scene.
* ''Film/TRexBackToTheCretaceous'' featured a pair of ''Dryptosaurus'' to associate with early 20th Century artist Charles R. Knight. For bonus points, they adopt the same pose as in his famous "Leaping ''Laelaps''" painting.[[note]]Although they depicted them as [[RaptorAttack featherless]] dromaeosaurs similar to ''Deinonychus'', while ''Dryptosaurus'' is considered as a tyrannosaur nowadays.[[/note]]
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Music]]
* In the music video for Music/NeonIndian's "Sleep Paralysist", an axolotl can be seen in a few shots. Given how [[SurrealMusicVideo bizarre]] the video is, the axolotl was probably chosen to be there (above other, more common animals) for its odd, UglyCute appearance, in order to add to the surreality.
* ''WesternAnimation/SchoolhouseRock'':
** The song "Four-Legged Zoo" prominently mentioned ibex (a type of goat with large, curved horns) and kudu (a large antelope with corkscrew-shaped horns). It also briefly brings up vicuña (the wild ancestor of the alpaca) near the start.
** The song "Rufus Xavier Sarsaparilla'' prominently features an aardvark as the animal companion to the titular character's sister Rafaella Gabriela Sarsaparilla.
* Music/FrankZappa's piece "The Adventures Of Greggery Peccary" from ''Music/StudioTan'' and ''Music/{{Lather}}'', correctly describes him as "the nocturnal gregarious wild swine".
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Radio]]
* Another okapi reference is dropped into ''Radio/TheHitchhikersGuideToTheGalaxy'', when the narrator mentions in passing that Arthur Dent's only brother was somehow [[NoodleIncident nibbled to death]] by one.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Theme Parks]]
* ''Ride/ItsASmallWorld'' at the Ride/DisneyThemeParks has lyrebirds, kiwis, flying fish and a rhea.
* ''Ride/JurassicParkRiverAdventure'' at Ride/UniversalStudios has ''Ultrasaurus'' and ''Psittacosaurus'' among the several dinosaur species featured in the ride.
* ''Ride/{{Dinosaur}}'' features ''Alioramus'', ''Coloborhychus'', and ''Saltasaurus''.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Toys]]
* Toys/BeanieBabies have included several rare species over the years, such as a kiwi, a hornbill, a lemur that is clearly not a ring-tailed, and a cockatoo that is clearly not a sulphur-crested.
* ''Toys/TheGrosseryGang'' has Slob Fish, who is a blobfish, a type of fish rarely seen in fiction.
* Some of the higher-end animal toy manufacturers such as Safari Ltd., Schleich, and [=CollectA=] will feature obscure animal species in addition to well-known ones. Examples are too numerous to list.
* Toys/{{Squishmallows}}: The members of the Deep Sea squad include a sea hare, a blobfish, and a tardigrade.
* ''Toys/TheTrashPack'' has featured rarely-mentioned bugs in their Bin-sects team, including tapeworms, earwigs, and silverfish.
* The Feisty Pets line features a snow leopard, two three-toed sloths, and a narwhal.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Webcomics]]
* In ''Webcomic/BronzeSkinInc'' Coatis and saguis appear in the first chapter.
* ''Webcomic/TheBugPond'' features a lot of obscure bug species, such as silverfish, earwigs, and assassin bugs.
* ''Webcomic/BurgessShale'' has characters and spaceships based on Paleozoic fish, such as Scaumenacia, Pteraspis, and Drepanaspis.
* ''Webcomic/CameronAndCorinna'' has a thylacine protagonist.
* ''Webcomic/CommanderKitty'' features Nin Wah, a red panda. The first version of the comic also had part of the plot set on a planet of pangolins.
* ''Webcomic/{{Concession}}'' features Roland, a pangolin, Franz/Zoe, a [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greater_bilby bilby]], Kate and Rick, ringtail lemurs, and Clive, an [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Okapi okapi]].
* ''Webcomic/DawnOfTime'' tends to feature lesser-known dinosaurs like ''Pachyrhinosaurus'' and ''Sauropelta''.
* The protagonist of ''Webcomic/{{Digger}}'' is a wombat, and several of the supporting cast come from a tribe of hyenas.
* Webcomic/DinosaurComics, in addition to the not-that-unusual ''T. rex'', includes a ''Utahraptor'' and a ''Dromiceiomimus'' among the main cast.
* ''Webcomic/DropOut'''s main couple are a marine hydroid (the frilly little worms which stick to shellfish) and a sugar glider/tarsier hybrid.
* ''Webcomic/{{Femmegasm}}'' has a tamarin monkey and axolotl as its lead characters.
* ''Webcomic/KevinAndKell'' have occasionally featured animals like this:
** Probably the most recurring seldom seen species character is Kevin's eventual brother in law, George Fennec, who's, well, a fennec fox.
** Lindesfarne the hedgehog may technically count as K&K started in 1995, when ''VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog'' was in the earliest days of its popularity. What's more, for the earliest months of the comic Lindesfarne believed herself to have converted to an American porcupine, itself uncommon in media.
** Aby's ex Manxwell is a manx, a tailless cat.
** Semi recurring character Mr. Chapman is a platypus. Many of the comics featuring him have some joke centered around his hybrid status, such as him trying to trace his family tree causing the computer to explode, or how he owns a hybrid car.
** While bats in general don't count for this trope, ''vampire'' bats are rare enough that [[OurVampiresAreDifferent Desdemona Fuscus]] makes the list.
** Harold is a stinkbird (hoatzin). Many jokes are made about his stench.
** A nameless bird of paradise appears once to comment that his mating ritual may look stupid, but at least he didn't pay 12 grand for it like Lindesfarne was doing for her wedding.
** [[https://www.kevinandkell.com/2017/kk0129.html This comic]] shows off four rare bug species...all part of Lindesfarne's WackyCravings when she was pregnant with Turvy.
* [[http://lizclimo.tumblr.com/ Liz Climo]] often features these in her comic series, such as tamanduas, honey badgers, and fennec foxes.
* Mocheril from ''Webcomic/TheMeek'', who is an olm (rarely seen outside of Slovenian heraldry).
* ''Webcomic/NatureOfNaturesArt'', full stop. Featuring jerboas, degus, tamanduas, kinkajous, several species of spiders and many more.
* In ''Webcomic/OffWhite'', the pack is [[http://off-white.eu/comic/page-142 shown hunting a chamois.]] This might be the one and only time you'll ever see one in any fiction whatsoever.
* In ''Webcomic/TheOrderOfTheStick'' story ''How the Paladin Got His Scar'', Saha [[SpeaksFluentAnimal speaks with]] what appears to be a binturong.
* Stephan in ''Webcomic/OzyAndMillie'' is an aardvark.
* ''Webcomic/QuestionDuck'' has a great potoo in [[http://questionduck.smackjeeves.com/comics/1895543/287/ this strip]]. [[http://questionduck.smackjeeves.com/comics/1033540/087/ An earlier one]] showed a toco toucan and leafcutter ants. [[http://questionduck.smackjeeves.com/comics/1264506/coelasquid/ This guest strip]] by Coelasquid (creator of ''Webcomic/ManlyGuysDoingManlyThings'') had a shoebill.
* ''Webcomic/{{Raptormaniacs}}'' has Zahavi the ''Jinfengopteryx'', Remex the ''Caudipteryx'', and Ebeff the ''Therizinosaurus''. Also Skull, who is a skull cast of ''Tsaagan''.
* ''Webcomic/RWBYDoodleverse'' {{Lampshade|Hanging}}s in "New Ride", where Mercury states in response to Emerald's suggestion that they ride into Atlas with an okapi Grimm that no one knows what an okapi is.
* The main characters in ''Webcomic/YuckHeads'' are mongooses, specifically Yellow Mongooses.
* ''Webcomic/StandStillStaySilent'': Adventure II moving the action to the Saimaa lake system in Finland, combined with the fact that RaisingTheSteaks is limited to mammals in the setting, results in the EncyclopediaExposita page about the AfterTheEnd version of the area including a few zombified Saimaa ringed seals among its illustrations.
* ''Webcomic/VapnthjofrSaga'': One of the main characters is a pine marten, and minor/background characters includes species such as mergansers, lammergeiers, water shrews, black grouses, ospreys, Siberian jays, etc. While an [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aurochs aurochs]] appears as a frost giant.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Web Original]]
* The middle portion of the song "In the Ocean Blue" from ''WebAnimation/CharlieTheUnicorn'', which sounds an awful lot like the [[Anime/{{Pokemon}} Pokerap]]:
---> Lungfish, Blackfish, Alligator, Icefish
---> Armorhead, Hammerhead, Anaconda, Flathead
---> Manta ray, Stingray, Fangtooth, Moray
---> Goblin shark, Grass carp, Round River Bat Ray
---> Noodlefish, Hagfish, Man o' War, Ladyfish
---> Black eel, baby seal, Sprat, Koi, Electric eel
---> Lamprey, Pejerey, Yellow-edged Moray
---> Salmon shark, Sleeper shark, Leatherback, and Eagle ray!
** The anaconda, koi, electric eel, alligator, lungfish, and grass carp are ''especially'' Seldom-Seen Species under the circumstances, as they're [[MisplacedWildlife freshwater creatures only]].
** And of course, the magical ''Liopleurodon''.
* ''[[http://www.cracked.com/article_20329_8-animals-that-are-just-lazy-combinations-other-animals.html Cracked]]'' ''[[http://www.cracked.com/article_20144_9-animals-that-are-just-lazy-combinations-other-animals.html loves]]'' [[http://www.cracked.com/article_19965_7-bizarre-prehistoric-versions-modern-day-animals.html this trope]].
* ''WebAnimation/{{Dreamscape}}'': The local hospital is run by a [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Megalania Megalania.]]
* ''WebAnimation/DSBTInsaniT'': Fire Guy has a pet [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pangolin pangolin.]]
* ''WebOriginal/HamstersParadise'' features the Chinese dwarf hamster as its seed animal of choice: as opposed to the Syrian hamster or the golden hamster which are more commonly kept as pets. Justified as the Chinese dawrf hamster is a common lab animal, and also has a longer tail, more befitting the long-tailed hamster descendants that later arise.
* The ''WebAnimation/HappyTreeFriends'' universe includes a marmot and an anteater (Cro-Marmot and Sniffles, respectively). While Sniffles has been known to hunt ants on occasion, the ice-encased Cro-Marmot never engages in any marmot-esque activity. Or any activity, period.
* ''WebOriginal/MultituberculateEarth'' is all about multituberculates as the dominant mammals; show of hands if you even know what a multituberculate is. The opening scene shows an ''[[https://www.mindat.org/taxon-8458666.html Ectypodus arctos]]'' (which doesn't even have a Wikipedia page!) eating a basal rodent, and it does bonkers from there.
* ''WebOriginal/TheNingyo'' features an [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Okapi okapi]] as part of Christopher Marlowe's backstory.
* ''Blog/TheTyrannosaurChronicles'' includes a handful of dinosaur species that are rarely used in media like the ''Einiosaurus'' or the ''Stegoceras''.
* ''WebVideo/TrueFacts'' started out as informational videos about relatively well-known animals, like ducks, octopuses, or chameleons. As the series goes on, it starts taking a look at more and more obscure species of animals, such as nudibranchs, mudskippers, ogre-faced spiders, bobbit worms, and carnivorous beach snails.
-->'''Narrator''': This is stock footage of a sea cucumber. It has been downloaded one time. By me.
* ''WebAnimation/CatsingCall'': One of the main characters is a caiman, which aren't too common compared to their relatives, crocodiles and alligators.
* ''WebAnimation/{{Dinosauria}}'': The second short "Our Frozen Past" features ''Nanuqsaurus'', a smaller relative of ''Tyrannosaurus'' native to Alaska.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Other]]
* The mascot for the [[UsefulNotes/NationalHockeyLeague NHL]]'s Vegas Golden Knights is Chance, a gila monster.
* The mascots for the Sydney 2000 UsefulNotes/{{Olympic|Games}}s were a kookaburra, echidna and platypus -- chosen in part to provide a LandSeaSky combination and in part because Australian organisers thought kangaroos and koalas were overused.
* The mascot of the (now postponed) 2021 Southeast Asian games is a saola, a type of primitive bovine that literally hasn't been seen since 2013.
* ''TabletopGame/WeirdNWildCreatures'', a series of children's fact & trading cards that originally ran from 2003-2006, loved this trope. ''Gigantophis'', ''Dapedium'', Budgett's frogs, genets, hooded pitohuis, hellbenders, predatory tunicates, stoplight loosejaws, toe-biters, red-backed shrikes, pichiciegos, Javan wart snakes… and that's not even scratching the surface. This even extended to the series' coverage of mythical creatures; while not species in the literal sense, it included several beasts (Baital, Gargantua, Mngwa, the Thetis Lake monster, etc.) that are rarely acknowledged in fiction.
[[/folder]]
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The ten-work maximum for what counts as seldom-seen was added unilaterally. Do not change trope definitions without prior discussion.
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''' Examples of this trope should be species that are still seldom seen in media nowadays. Examples of older works that show species that were rare in media at the time of the work's release but not that obscure now are also allowed. As a general rule, if the species in question has appeared more than ten times in fiction in the past ten years, it isn't "seldom seen." '''
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''' Examples of this trope should be species that are still seldom seen in media nowadays. Examples of older works that show species that were rare in media at the time of the work's release but not that obscure now are also allowed. As a general rule, if the species in question has appeared more than ten times in fiction in the past ten years, it isn't "seldom seen." '''
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It's antelope-like.
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* The mascot of the (now postponed) 2021 Southeast Asian games is a saola, a type of primitive antelope that literally hasn't been seen since 2013.
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* The mascot of the (now postponed) 2021 Southeast Asian games is a saola, a type of primitive antelope bovine that literally hasn't been seen since 2013.
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[[WMG:[[center:[[AC:This trope is [[https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/posts.php?discussion=16632342920.90922700 under discussion]] in the Administrivia/TropeRepairShop.]]]]]]
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* ''Webcomic/RWBYDoodleverse'' {{Lampshade|Hanging}}s in "New Ride", where Mercury states in response to Emerald's suggestion that they ride into Atlas with an okapi Grimm that no one knows what an okapi is.
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* ''Fanfic/HildaAndTheHowlingWoods:'' An indirect example, but the werewolves in the fic are modeled after South American Maned Wolves rather than North American or Eurasian wolf breeds.
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** ''Film/JurassicWorldFallenKingdom'' features ''Stygimoloch'' and ''Sinoceratops''. ''Concavenator'', ''Mononykus'', and ''Dracorex'' make cameos as models, the skeletons of ''Kosmoceratops'', ''Peloroplites'', and ''Teratophoneus'' also make appearances, and DNA vials for ''Dreadnoughtus'' is seen as a FreezeFrameBonus. Finally, the skull that the Indoraptor dies from being impaled on is that of an ''Agujaceratops'' according to the script, not a ''Triceratops'' as viewers often assume.
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** ''Film/JurassicWorldFallenKingdom'' features ''Stygimoloch'' and ''Sinoceratops''. ''Concavenator'', ''Mononykus'', and ''Dracorex'' make cameos as models, the skeletons of ''Kosmoceratops'', ''Peloroplites'', and ''Teratophoneus'' also make appearances, and DNA vials for ''Dreadnoughtus'' is seen as a FreezeFrameBonus. Finally, the skull that the Indoraptor ''Indoraptor'' dies from being impaled on is that of an ''Agujaceratops'' according to the script, not a ''Triceratops'' as viewers often assume.
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** The prologue of ''Film/JurassicWorldDominion'' (first shown alongside IMAX screenings of ''Film/{{F9}}'') features ''Dreadnoughtus'' and ''Moros''. It also has ''Giganotosaurus'', a stock dinosaur but still obscure by the likes of ''Tyrannosaurus'' and ''Spinosaurus''. ''Atrociraptor'', ''Lystrosaurus'', ''Microceratus'', ''Nasutoceratops'', and ''Pyroraptor'' will also appear in some capacity.
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** The prologue of ''Film/JurassicWorldDominion'' (first shown alongside IMAX screenings of ''Film/{{F9}}'') features ''Dreadnoughtus'' ''Dreadnoughtus'', ''Nasutoceratops'', and ''Moros''. It also has ''Giganotosaurus'', a stock dinosaur but still obscure by the likes of ''Tyrannosaurus'' and ''Spinosaurus''. ''Atrociraptor'', ''Lystrosaurus'', ''Microceratus'', ''Nasutoceratops'', and ''Pyroraptor'' will also appear in some capacity. several scenes of the film.
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* ''Animation/BoonieBears'': With the light V-shaped patches on their chests, Briar and Bramble are clearly Asian black bears, albeit with [[AmazingTechnicolorWildlife non-standard fur colours]]. In the Mandarin original, Logger Vick explicitly identifies them as ''gǒuxióng'' (狗熊, "dog-bears"), a regional name for the species.
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First of all, both are already mentioned, and secondly, Lystrosaurus was more related to mammals than reptiles.
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** The prologue of ''Film/JurassicWorldDominion'' (first shown alongside IMAX screenings of ''Film/{{F9}}'') features ''Dreadnoughtus'' and ''Moros''. It also has ''Giganotosaurus'', a stock dinosaur but still obscure by the likes of ''Tyrannosaurus'' and ''Spinosaurus''. ''Atrociraptor'', ''Lystrosaurus'', ''Microceratus'', ''Nasutoceratops'', and ''Pyroraptor'' will also appear in some capacity. ''Microceratus'' and ''Lystrosaurus'', a prehistoric reptile, also make appearances.
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** The prologue of ''Film/JurassicWorldDominion'' (first shown alongside IMAX screenings of ''Film/{{F9}}'') features ''Dreadnoughtus'' and ''Moros''. It also has ''Giganotosaurus'', a stock dinosaur but still obscure by the likes of ''Tyrannosaurus'' and ''Spinosaurus''. ''Atrociraptor'', ''Lystrosaurus'', ''Microceratus'', ''Nasutoceratops'', and ''Pyroraptor'' will also appear in some capacity. ''Microceratus'' and ''Lystrosaurus'', a prehistoric reptile, also make appearances.
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** The prologue of ''Film/JurassicWorldDominion'' (first shown alongside IMAX screenings of ''Film/{{F9}}'') features ''Dreadnoughtus'' and ''Moros''. It also has ''Giganotosaurus'', a stock dinosaur but still obscure by the likes of ''Tyrannosaurus'' and ''Spinosaurus''. ''Atrociraptor'', ''Lystrosaurus'', ''Microceratus'', ''Nasutoceratops'', and ''Pyroraptor'' will also appear in some capacity.
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** The prologue of ''Film/JurassicWorldDominion'' (first shown alongside IMAX screenings of ''Film/{{F9}}'') features ''Dreadnoughtus'' and ''Moros''. It also has ''Giganotosaurus'', a stock dinosaur but still obscure by the likes of ''Tyrannosaurus'' and ''Spinosaurus''. ''Atrociraptor'', ''Lystrosaurus'', ''Microceratus'', ''Nasutoceratops'', and ''Pyroraptor'' will also appear in some capacity. ''Microceratus'' and ''Lystrosaurus'', a prehistoric reptile, also make appearances.
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* * Doubles as a Running Gag in Fanfic/FlamingFrost: A ''Chaunacops'' anglerfish appears as a RunningGag in the Dark Forest.
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