The fauna of Burundi remains rich and varied because of the diversity of biotopes. It is composed of relatively well known vertebrates and very poorly studied invertebrates. Vertebrates include mammals, birds, reptiles, reptiles, amphibians, and fish with around 1202 species.

The mammals of Burundi have 163 species composed mainly of ungulates including Syncerus caffer, Tragelaphus scriptus, Kobus ellipsyprimnus defassa, etc... very abundant in the Ruvubu National Park in the east of the country and rodents, the best known of which are those of the Kibira National Park (Anomalurus derbianus, Graphiurus murinus, Hylomyscus alleni, etc.).

Endemicity is very pronounced at high altitudes in mountain forests. Endemic mammals are grouped into 17 species divided into 15 genera and 5 families. The families containing many endemic species are the Soricidae (9 species) and the Muridae (9 species).

Among mammals, 50 species (24 endangered species and 26 vulnerable species) divided into 30 genera and 16 families are threatened with extinction. The families most concerned are those of Bovidae, Cercopithecidae, Viverridae, Loricidae and Felidae. Currently, 10 species of extinct mammals (Gorilla gorilla, Panther Leo, Loxodonta africana, etc.) are known in Burundi, of which the Bovidae family alone has 4 species. This document gives a certainly non-exhaustive list of mammals in Burundi (Table 1).

This list is based on the inventory work carried out as part of the Biological Diversity Project (1992) of the Peace Corps (Field Museum of Natural History, FMNH) and the various studies carried out at INECN and the University of Burundi. We therefore present the major contributors as well as all the documentation containing data on mammals in natural environments in Burundi.