A fear of animal fur or skin can affect everyday situations involving furry animal, animal skin, leather and hide. It may lead to scanning surroundings, avoiding places where the animal might appear, asking other people to check or deal with it, or leaving suddenly when one is seen.

Possible triggers

Being near a furry animal, touching a fur-trimmed item or encountering an animal-skin display.

Name origin

From Greek dora (skin) and -phobia.

A fear of animals can affect everyday situations involving being bitten, wild animals, animal attack and zoo animals. It may lead to scanning surroundings, avoiding places where the animal might appear, asking other people to check or deal with it, or leaving suddenly when one is seen.

Possible triggers

Examples include visiting someone who keeps pets, entering a zoo or watching animals in a nature documentary. The particular animals involved vary from person to person.

Name origin

From Greek zōon (animal) and -phobia.

A fear of ants can affect everyday situations involving ants in house, ant nest, ant colony and ant trail. It may lead to scanning surroundings, avoiding places where the animal might appear, asking other people to check or deal with it, or leaving suddenly when one is seen.

Possible triggers

Seeing ants along a kitchen surface, noticing an ant trail outdoors or sitting near an ant nest.

Name origin

From Latin formica (ant) and -phobia.

Also known as

Myrmecophobia

A fear of bats can affect everyday situations involving night flying animal, bat in house, bat flying and bat noise. It may lead to scanning surroundings, avoiding places where the animal might appear, asking other people to check or deal with it, or leaving suddenly when one is seen.

Possible triggers

Seeing bats at dusk, visiting a bat display or noticing a bat near a building.

Name origin

From Greek cheir (hand) and pteron (wing) referring to bats, with -phobia.

Fear of bees can make encounters with bees, buzzing sounds or hives distressing. Concern about being stung may be part of the fear. A known sting allergy also involves a genuine medical risk, which should not be dismissed as a phobia.

Possible triggers

Hearing buzzing nearby, seeing bees around flowers or sitting where bees are visiting plants.

Name origin

From Greek melissa (bee) and -phobia.

Also known as

Apiphobia

A fear of birds can affect parks, town centres, beaches and outdoor eating areas. It may lead to scanning for pigeons or seagulls, avoiding places where birds gather, moving away from flapping wings or leaving when a bird comes unexpectedly close.

Possible triggers

Examples include hearing wings flutter nearby, encountering birds in a park, finding a feather or seeing birds in a film or museum display.

Name origin

From Greek ornis (bird) and -phobia.

A fear of bright daylight can affect everyday situations involving open daylight, sun glare, bright sky and bright daylight.

Possible triggers

Opening curtains onto bright daylight, stepping outdoors at midday or entering a brightly sunlit room.

Name origin

From Greek phengos (light) and -phobia.

This descriptive name concerns bulls rather than all cattle. Keeping a safe distance from a bull remains a sensible precaution, whether or not someone experiences a phobia.

Possible triggers

Seeing a bull near a field entrance, hearing one nearby, or anticipating a route beside a field containing a bull.

Possible name origin

Tauro corresponds to the Greek tauros and Latin taurus, both referring to a bull. Phobia comes from Greek phobos, fear.

A fear of butterflies or moths can affect everyday situations involving moth in room, fluttering wings, insect wings and butterflies. It may lead to scanning surroundings, avoiding places where the animal might appear, asking other people to check or deal with it, or leaving suddenly when one is seen.

Possible triggers

A moth entering a lit room, a butterfly flying close by or visiting a butterfly house.

Name origin

From Greek lepidoptera (scale-winged insects) and -phobia.

A fear of cats can affect everyday situations involving stray cat, cat bite, hissing and scratching. It may lead to scanning surroundings, avoiding places where the animal might appear, asking other people to check or deal with it, or leaving suddenly when one is seen.

Possible triggers

Examples include visiting a home with a cat, encountering a cat in the street, hearing hissing or meowing, or watching a cat on screen.

Name origin

From Greek ailouros (cat) and -phobia.

Also known as

Gatophobia, Felinophobia, Elurophobia