Metazooa Practice
One mystery animal. Twenty guesses. Follow the branches.
Start with a familiar animal. Each guess reveals a shared branch of the tree.
Your first guess opens the tree. The deepest shared ancestor tells you which branch to explore next.
130 curated animals · ENA taxonomy snapshot, 24 October 2026. Shared nodes measure classification, not evolutionary time.
Your practice record
0 solved / 0 completedLast 50 completed puzzles, saved only in this browser. Hints are included in each record.
Finish your first puzzle to start your record.
How to play Metazooa
Metazooa is an animal taxonomy guessing game. Search for an animal and find the deepest classification node it shares with the hidden target. With each guess, read the tree to narrow the search from broad animal groups toward a single species. This practice edition includes 130 curated animals and a fixed ENA taxonomy snapshot.
- Guess an animal by name. Type a common name, scientific name or supported alias, then choose a result.
- Read the shared ancestor. The feedback shows the deepest common node in the two classification paths.
- Follow the displayed classification path. The tree displays the guessed animal, not the secret target.
- Use the site’s stated dataset. This edition uses ENA taxonomic metadata retrieved on 24 October 2026.
Read the full rules and controls · Metazooa Taxonomy Guide – Animal Names and Shared Ancestors
Metazooa questions
How many guesses do I get?
You can submit up to 20 distinct valid animals. An exact animal match wins immediately; after 20 guesses the answer is revealed.
Can I play Metazooa unlimited?
Yes. Select Next animal after a solved or revealed puzzle. Practice difficulty changes the target pool; all 130 animals remain searchable.
Does a closer branch mean the animals look alike?
No. The feedback follows classification relationships in the fixed dataset, not visual resemblance or habitat.
Where does the taxonomy come from?
This version uses scientific classification metadata from the public ENA taxonomy interface, retrieved on 24 October 2026. It can differ from another game’s taxonomy.
Your daily puzzle and local progress
Daily puzzles use this site’s independent version-one seed and update at 00:00 UTC. They do not synchronize with another website’s answers. Practice progress and the last 50 completed results stay in this browser only. Storage can be cleared in the practice record. If browser storage is unavailable, you can still play in the current session.