Your Guide to Icelandic Wildlife

Every day in Iceland is filled with unique ways to experience nature. When you’re here, land, fire, and water collide in breathtaking ways, from erupting geysers to crackling lava fissures. For the nature lover, the curious traveler, and anyone who has ever dreamed of seeing nature like nowhere else on Earth, Iceland is filled with animals to check off your list.

1. Whales 🐋

Humpback whales can grow up to 16 metres long and weigh as much as 30,000 kilograms, but they are remarkable acrobats! They launch their entire bodies clean out of the water in a display called breaching. These giant mammals are filter feeders who consume tiny krill and small fish by the tonne, which is why they call Iceland’s nutrient-rich waters their home.

On your whale-watching tour, keep your eyes trained on the surface for a spout of mist before the whale appears. Humpbacks exhale forcefully when they surface, and that blow can shoot up to three metres into the air, giving you just enough time to ready your camera. As the whale dives, watch for the tail fluke lifting above the water. Each fluke is uniquely patterned, like a fingerprint, and is one of the most iconic sights in all of wildlife watching!

2. Icelandic Horses 🐴

For over a thousand years, the Icelandic horse has been an indispensable companion. They carried farmers across seemingly impassable lava fields, transported goods between isolated settlements, and served as the only reliable way to navigate Iceland’s roadless interior long before modern infrastructure existed. What truly sets them apart is their unique fifth gait — called the tölt — a smooth, four-beat gait found in almost no other breed on Earth, capable of carrying a rider at up to 32 kilometres per hour with barely a bounce.

Brought to the island by Norse settlers in the 9ᵗʰ century, these horses have been bred in complete isolation for over 1,000 years — making them one of the purest horse breeds in the world. Iceland’s strict biosecurity laws mean that no horse, once exported, is ever permitted to return, protecting the breed from foreign disease and outside influence. Because of this, each horse you meet at Lýtingsstadir is a direct descendant of the ones Vikings rode centuries ago! It’s like stepping into history.

3. Grey Seals 🦭

Keep your eyes on the icebergs as you walk the banks of Jökulsárlón Glacier Lagoon, because you are not the only one drawn to this otherworldly place. Grey seals are a common and beloved resident of Iceland’s coastline, and the lagoon is one of the best places in the country to spot them up close. Grey seals can grow up to 2.5 metres long and weigh as much as 300 kilograms, making them one of the largest seal species in the world.

They are expert divers, capable of reaching depths of 70 metres and holding their breath for up to 30 minutes in pursuit of fish. At Jökulsárlón, they are frequently seen hauled out on floating ice chunks, completely unbothered by passing boats and onlookers — giving you an extraordinarily close and unhurried encounter with one of Iceland’s most charismatic marine mammals.

4. Reindeer 🦌

Most visitors don’t realize that wild reindeer roam freely in Iceland, but the stretch of the Ring Road near Jökulsárlón puts you right in their territory. Reindeer were introduced to Iceland by Danish settlers in the late 18ᵗʰ century and have since established a wild population of around 3,000 animals in the east of the country.

In winter and shoulder season, herds descend from the highlands toward the lowlands in search of food, making roadside sightings surprisingly common along this part of your journey. Spotting a herd against Iceland’s volcanic landscape is one of those unexpected moments that stays with you long after the trip is over!

5. Puffins 🐧

Iceland is home to around 60% of the world’s entire Atlantic puffin population, making it the single best place on Earth to see these extraordinary birds. Puffins arrive in Iceland each spring after spending the entire winter at sea, returning to the same clifftop burrows year after year to breed. They are surprisingly small — standing just 25 centimetres tall — but their vivid orange beaks and feet make them unmistakable.

What most people don’t expect is how fast they are! Puffins can flap their wings up to 400 times per minute and reach speeds of 88 kilometres per hour in flight. They are also remarkable divers, using their wings to essentially fly underwater in pursuit of fish. The best time to spot them is between May and August, when the cliffs come alive with hundreds of thousands of nesting birds — one of the most astonishing wildlife spectacles Iceland has to offer.