---
title: "Animal Checklist for agents"
description: "Public, keyless read API for animal species. Search in eight languages, then read names, habitats, countries, a Wikipedia summary and the photo licence."
canonical: https://animalchecklist.com/developers
last_updated: 2026-11-07
---

# Animal Checklist for agents

> Public, keyless read API for animal species. Search in eight languages, then read names, habitats, countries, a Wikipedia summary and the photo licence.

Base URL `https://animalchecklist.com/api/v1`. No account, no key, no OAuth. CORS is open for GET.

## Endpoints

- `GET /api/v1/animals?q=&category=&habitat=&country=&page=&per=&lang=`
- `GET /api/v1/animals?ids=a,b,c&lang=` (batch, at most 500)
- `GET /api/v1/animals/{id}?lang=`
- `GET /api/v1/categories?lang=`
- `GET /api/v1/countries`

Private, one person's checklist, Bearer sync code: `POST /api/v1/accounts`, `GET /api/v1/sightings`, `PUT /api/v1/sightings`.

## MCP server

`https://animalchecklist.com/mcp` uses Streamable HTTP without a key. Card: https://animalchecklist.com/.well-known/mcp/server-card.json

Public tools:

- `list_categories`.
- `search_animals`.
- `get_animal`.
- `list_countries`.

`https://animalchecklist.com/mcp/account` uses Streamable HTTP with a bearer key from Account settings. Card: https://animalchecklist.com/.well-known/mcp/account-card.json

Account tools:

- `get_my_account`.
- `list_my_sightings`.
- `mark_seen` for read-write keys.

Both endpoints support MCP 2026-07-28 and legacy clients. Modern requests need namespaced metadata and matching HTTP headers.
Check authenticated server/discover for Events readiness. Account Events require the safe relay. The public catalog has no Events capability.

## Questions

### What does the Animal Checklist API do?

It answers read requests about wild and domestic animal species: full-text search in eight languages, one species record with names, habitats, countries and a Wikipedia summary, the category list and the country list.

### Do I need an account or a key?

No for public reads. Private sightings need a sync code, signed-in browser session or an account-scoped MCP key.

### How do I search for a species?

Call GET /api/v1/animals?q=red%20fox&lang=en. The query matches names in all eight languages, scientific names and category words. Results rank by iNaturalist observation count.

### What are the licences?

Content licences vary. Check each photo's author, source and licence link. Wikipedia excerpts carry CC BY-SA 4.0 credits and change notices. The taxonomy archive supplies no explicit licence. See /licences.

### What are the rate limits?

Read endpoints are not metered per key; they are cached at the edge for 5 minutes to 1 hour. POST /api/v1/accounts allows 20 requests per IP per hour, POST /api/v1/client-error 30. Excess returns HTTP 429 with the JSON code RATE_LIMITED.

### Is there an MCP server?

Yes. The public server at /mcp needs no key. The private server at /mcp/account uses a revocable key from Account settings. Both speak Streamable HTTP.

### Can an agent write data?

Only to the private sighting list of one person with a sync code that person supplied. There is no public write endpoint or payment surface.

## Files

- [openapi.json](https://animalchecklist.com/openapi.json)
- [agents.md](https://animalchecklist.com/agents.md)
- [llms.txt](https://animalchecklist.com/llms.txt) and [llms-full.txt](https://animalchecklist.com/llms-full.txt)
- [sitemap.xml](https://animalchecklist.com/sitemap.xml)