Rockstar's open worlds tend to take wildlife seriously. RDR2 set a high bar; GTA V was lighter on wildlife but still had a working system. The wildlife visible in GTA 6 footage so far is sparse - which is normal for pre-launch material - but each visible animal is worth noting because Rockstar generally doesn't include creatures in trailers that aren't in the game.

This is a working list. We update it as new footage lands. For the broader region context, see the Everglades region guide and the Florida Keys page.

Confirmed by trailer footage

Alligators. Visible in Trailer 1 (briefly, on a road) and Trailer 2 (in the wetland sequence). The animal model is detailed enough to suggest active AI rather than set dressing. Covered in the alligators piece.

Flamingos. Visible in Trailer 2 wetland frames. Pink, in flight in at least one shot. Whether they're interactive or strictly ambient is unconfirmed. Covered in the flamingos piece.

Dogs. Visible at street level in city frames - on leashes with owners and as strays. Standard for any urban GTA setting.

Pelicans and other waterfowl. Visible in Keys-coded and wetland frames, in flight and at rest.

Strongly suggested but not yet confirmed

Florida panthers. The real wetlands have them, the visual coding suggests them, no specific footage confirms one. Plausible but not seen.

Manatees. The water around the Keys analogue and the wetlands could plausibly have them. No footage confirms.

White-tailed deer. Standard inland Florida wildlife. Visible in Rockstar's previous rural environments. Plausible here. No footage confirms.

Sharks. Implied by the open-water shots around the Keys. RDR2 had wildlife in water; GTA V had sharks. Almost certain but not directly visible.

Sea turtles, dolphins. Plausible coastal wildlife. No footage confirms.

What this tells us about the system

The wildlife visible so far covers two of the four regions strongly - wetlands (alligators, flamingos, waterfowl) and coastal (pelicans). Inland and urban wildlife are sparser in the footage, but that may be a function of trailer framing rather than the absence of animals in the game.

Animal AI quality is hard to read from trailer frames, but the alligator behaviour visible in the wetland sequence is alert rather than passive. RDR2's animal AI is the obvious benchmark; GTA 6's appears to be at least in the same conversation. We discuss this comparison specifically in the wildlife vs RDR2 piece.

What we don't know

Total species count. Whether wildlife reacts to weather. Whether wildlife is huntable in any meaningful sense (we cover the hunting question separately - it is speculative). Whether species distribution varies meaningfully by region or whether the same animals appear everywhere they could plausibly live.

Most of these will be answered at launch. We update the list as confirmed material drops.