Tchia animals list: Where to find every animal in the game
What's the most useful fauna in Tchia?
Looking for all the animals in Tchia? Awaceb's delightful New Caledonia-inspired open-world adventure game places you in the role of the titular Tchia - a 12-year-old girl with the ability to "Soul Jump" into any object or animal she desires and inherit their abilities and traits for a short time.
The devs have filled their gorgeous world with 38 different species of animal, many of which have their own unique abilities that you can use to your advantage. Some live on land, others in the sea, still more in the sky. And let me tell you, it can be a real pain to try and find every last one of them if you don't know what you're looking for. That's where we come in!
Below you'll find our full Tchia animals list, noting the name, abilities, and habitats of all 38 species of fauna in the game. Further below we'll give you a few pointers on the best animals to keep an eye out for in Tchia, as their abilities will help you greatly as you continue your journey across the archipelago.
Tchia animals list
Below is the full list of all animals in Tchia, in the order they're presented in the "Fauna" section of Tchia's journal. We'll also explain the habitat of each animal so you can find it more easily.
| Animal | Abilities | Habitat |
|---|---|---|
| Cat | Night Vision | Near human civilization |
| Dog | Dig Hole | Near human civilization |
| Pig | Dig Hole | Near villages |
| Boar | Dig Hole | Found everywhere |
| Cow | Explosive Dung | Near villages |
| Deer | Sprint | Found in forests |
| Giant Gecko | Climb Anything | Wet forest areas |
| Centipede | None | Grassy areas |
| Giant Coconut Locust | Flight | Beaches |
| Coconut Crab | Powerful Pinch, Climb Trees | Beaches and reefs |
| Common Crab | Powerful Pinch | Beaches and reefs |
| Red Crab | Powerful Pinch | Native to Kwëo |
| Flying Fox | Flight, Night Vision | Caves and dense forests |
| Green Parakeet | Flight | Found everywhere |
| Chicken | Explosive Egg | Near human civilization |
| Crow | Flight | Found everywhere |
| Kagou | Scary Bark | Found everywhere |
| Notou | Flight | Far from civilization |
| Common Dove | Flight | Found in urban areas |
| Silver Gull | Flight | Beaches and coasts |
| Banded Sea Krait | Fast Swimmer | Near reefs |
| Sea Turtle | Swimmer | Coasts and ocean |
| Dolphin | Sprint, Fast Swimmer, High Jump | Ocean |
| Blacktip Reef Shark | Fast Swimmer, Powerful Bite | Shallows and reefs |
| Dugong | Swimmer | Bays |
| Parrot Fish | Sprint, Fast Swimmer | Reefs |
| Angel Fish | Sprint, Fast Swimmer | Reefs |
| Butterfly Fish | Sprint, Fast Swimmer | Reefs |
| Clown Trigger Fish | Sprint, Fast Swimmer | Reefs |
| Idol Fish | Sprint, Fast Swimmer | Reefs |
| Surgeon Fish | Sprint, Fast Swimmer | Reefs |
| Dawa | Sprint, Fast Swimmer | Reefs and ocean |
| Lionfish | Sprint, Fast Swimmer | Reefs and ocean |
| Grouper | Sprint, Fast Swimmer | Reefs |
| Napoleon Fish | Sprint, Fast Swimmer | Ocean |
| Mackerel | Sprint, Fast Swimmer | Ocean |
| Trevally | Sprint, Fast Swimmer | Ocean |
| Xetiwa | Flight | Main story |
Best animals in Tchia
Many of the different animals in Tchia have unique traits and abilities which make them useful (or essential) in different circumstances. Here are a few of the most important animals to keep an eye out for. If they're small, you can even put them in your backpack ready to possess later (don't worry, they're fine in there!):
Deer
The Deer is the fastest animal that can run on land in Tchia, thanks to its Sprint ability. Sprinting drains your Soul Meter quickly, but it's a great way of quickly getting across terrain that Tchia can't slide down. They're also fairly commonly seen inland on both islands, particularly Ija Nöj, which makes them easy to find when you need them, even if they're a little too big to live inside Tchia's backpack.
Dolphins
If you need to travel at great speed underwater, there's no animal better than the Dolphin. It's a fast swimmer even without its Sprint ability, but with Sprint it can cover great distances very quickly - surpassing even the top speed of your boat! Though of course you won't be able to keep that speed up for nearly as long.
Birds
Birds are by far the best animals to possess in Tchia if you want to travel uphill, because even fast land animals like Deer will slow down considerably on steep slopes. Bird flight drains your Soul Meter very quickly, but it's incredibly useful, and I often keep a couple of birds in my backpack to help with quick traversal. All bird species fly at the same speed, except Chickens and Kagou, which are flightless birds and can only float temporarily in the air.
Crabs
There are three species of crab to discover in Tchia, and they all have a very important purpose - they can use their strong claws to break the chains on Tchia Treasure Chests. Otherwise they're not particularly useful, although their ability to breathe underwater can prevent you from drowning if one is near enough to be possessed.
Xetiwa
Finally, the legendary mythological Xetiwa is quite a special case in Tchia. You can't find the Xetiwa in the wild, so the only way you can possess it is by finishing the story, after which you gain the ability to summon it with your ukulele; or by attempting the Shrine Challenge on Ieji Sinöe. It is a flying creature that can fly as fast as any bird, which means it inherits the birds' superiority when it comes to bypassing uphill terrain. And once Tchia has proven herself in the story, she'll be able to call upon it at any time.
That's every single species of fauna in Tchia listed, along with information on where to go to find them. Hopefully this will help out those who want to meet and greet every animal in the game. For more on Awaceb's lovely open-world adventure, check out Rachel's Tchia review!
