Pallas’s Cat
Pallas’s cat has the densest, longest fur of any cat, which helps it survive winters of −50 °C on the Asian steppe.
Mammal
Plains Zebra
Zebra stripes appear to deter biting flies: experiments show horse flies are far less likely to land on striped coats.
Platypus
The platypus hunts with its eyes, ears and nostrils shut, finding prey by sensing the tiny electric fields made by their muscles.
Polar Bear
A polar bear’s fur is not white; each hair is transparent and hollow, and its skin underneath is black.
Proboscis Monkey
The adult male proboscis monkey’s nose can be more than 10 cm long, and bigger noses seem to help males attract females and make louder calls.
Pronghorn
The pronghorn is the fastest land animal in the Americas and can run at high speed for longer than a cheetah.
Przewalski’s Horse
Przewalski’s horse was declared extinct in the wild after 1969; every living one descends from just 12–15 horses caught around 1900.
Puma
The puma holds the record for the animal with the most names: more than 40 in English alone, including cougar, mountain lion, panther and catamount.
Pygmy Hippopotamus
The pygmy hippo weighs about a tenth as much as a common hippo and lives alone in dense rainforest rather than in groups in rivers.