A while ago, some people seemed to enjoy my post on state name life list bingo. This time, the concept is similar: How many country names are represented on your life list? Even if you don’t travel much, keep in mind that exotics can add a few to your list! My list includes 36 countries and 4 dependent territories:
Argentina:
Argentine Ant (Linepithema humile)
Argentinian Biddy Biddy (Acaena pinnatifida)
Armenia:
Armenian Blackberry (Rubus armeniacus)
Australia
Australian Sheep Blow Fly
Bahamas-
Bahama Mockingbird* (Mimus gundlachii)
Bahama Swallow* (Tachycineta cyaneoviridis)
Bahama Woodstar* (Nesophlox evelynae)
Bahama Yellowthroat* (Geothypis rostrata)
Anas bahamensis (White-cheeked Pintail)
Bermuda:
Bermuda Buttercup (Oxalis pes-caprae)
Bermuda Grass (Cynodon dactylon)
Bolivia-
Bolivian Red Howler Monkey (Alouatta sara)
Bolivian Tyrannulet* (Zimmerius bolivianus)
Fuchsia boliviana (Lady’s Eardrops)
Saimiri boliviensis (Black-capped Squirrel Monkey)
Brazil-
Brazilian Lady (Vanessa braziliensis)
Brazilian Vervain (Verbena brasiliensis)
Brazilian Waterweed (Egeria densa)
Phalacrocorax brasilianus (Neotropic Cormorant)
Canada:
Canada Clearweed (Pilea pumila)
Canada Goose (Branta canadensis)
Canada Jay (Perisoreus canadensis)
Canada Warbler* (Cardellina canadensis)
Canada Wild Lettuce (Lactuca canadensis)
Canada Wild Rye (Elymus canadensis)
Canadian Meadow Garlic (Allium canadense)
Canadian Wild Ginger (Asarum canadense)
Canadian Wood Betony (Pedicularis canadensis)
Antigone canadensis (Sandhill Crane)
Castor canadensis (American Beaver)
Cercis canadensis (Eastern Redbud)
Cervus canadensis (Wapiti)
Erigeron canadensis (Horseweed)
Glandularia canadensis (Rose Vervain)
Menispermum canadense (Moonseed)
Ovis canadensis (Bighorn Sheep)
Polymnia canadensis
Sambucus canadensis (American Black Elderberry)
Sanicula canadensis (Black Snakeroot)
Sitta canadensis (Red-breasted Nuthatch)
Teucrium canadense (American Germander)
Tsuga canadensis (Eastern Hemlock)
Chile:
Chilean Skua (Stercorarius chilensis)
Chilean Flamingo (Phoenicopterus chilensis)
Chilean Sea Fig (Carpobrotus chilensis)
Symphyotrichum chilense (Pacific Aster)
Tangara chilensis (Paradise Tanager)
Vanellus chilensis (Southern Lapwing)
China:
Chinese Bushclover (Lespedeza cuneata)
Chinese Hwamei* (Garrulax canorus)
Chinese-Lantern (Quincula lobata)
Chinese Pistache (Pistachia chinensis)
Chinese Privet (Ligustrum sinense)
Chinese Mantis* (Tenodera sinense)
Chinese Mystery Snail (Cipangopaludina chinensis)
Chinese Tallow (Triadica sebifera)
Chinese Wisteria (Wisteria sinense)
Simmondsia chinensis (Jojoba)
Streptopelia chinensis (Spotted Dove)
Christmas Island:
Christmas Island Frigatebird* (Fregata andrewsi)
Cuba:
Cuban Emerald* (Riccordia ricordii)
Dominican Republic:
Pluvialis dominica (American Golden-Plover)
Setophaga dominica (Yellow-throated Warbler)
Tachybaptus dominicus (Least Grebe)
Tyrannus dominicensis* (Gray Kingbird)
Ecuador:
Ecuadorian Hermit Crab (Coenobita compressus)
Egypt:
Egyptian Goose (Allopochen aegyptiaca)
Aedes aegypti (Yellow Fever Mosquito)
Germany
German Cockroach (Blattella germanica)
Grenada
Red-tailed Squirrel (Sciurus granatensis)
Guinea:
Guinea Paper Wasp (Polistes exclamitans)
Iceland:
Iceland Gull (Larus glaucoides)
Bucephala islandica (Barrow’s Goldeneye)
India (sensu stricto)
Melilotus indicus (Small Melilot)
Ireland:
Brown Irish Lord (Hemilepidotus spinosus)
Italy:
Italian Arum (Arum italicum)
Italian Sparrow* (Passer italiae)
Jamaica
Buteo jamaicensis (Red-tailed Hawk)
Oxyura jamaicensis (Ruddy Duck)
Japan:
Japanese Barberry (Berberis thunbergii)
Japanese Beetle (Popillia japonica)
Japanese Brome (Bromus japonicus)
Japanese Bubble Snail (Haloa japonica)
Japanese Bush Warbler* (Horornis diphone)
Japanese Five-lined Skink (Plestiodon finitimus)
Japanese Honeysuckle (Lonicera japonica)
Japanese Macaque* (Macaca fuscata)
Japanese Littleneck (Ruditapes philippinarum)
Japanese Mazus (Mazus pumilus)
Japanese Paradise-Flycatcher* (Terpsiphone atrocaudata)
Japanese Robin* (Larvivora akahige)
Japanese Sparrowhawk* (Accipiter gularis)
Japanese Spindle Tree (Euonymus japonicus)
Japanese Tit (Parus minor)
Japanese Thrush* (Turdus cardis)
Japanese Tree Frog (Hyla japonica)
Japanese Wagtail (Motacilla grandis)
Japanese Woodpecker* (Picus awokera)
Buteo japonicus (Eastern Buzzard)
Cipangopaludina chinensis (Chinese Mystery Snail)
Ninox japonicus (Northern Boobook)
Lathyrus japonicus (Seaside Pea)
Youngia japonica (Oriental False Hawkbeard)
Zosterops japonicus (Warbling White-eye)
Jersey:
Jersey Cudweed (Helichrysum luteoalbum)
Malaysia:
Malaysian Pied-Fantail* (Rhipidura javanica)
Mexico:
Mexican Spadefoot (Spea multiplicata)
Mexican Jay (Aphelocoma wollweberi)
Mexican Fan Palm (Washingtonia robusta)
Mexican Yellow* (Abaeis mexicana)
Mexican Palmetto* (Sabal mexicana)
Mexican Tea (Dysphania ambrosioides)
Mexican Hogfish* (Bodianus diplotaenia)
Mexican Fox Squirrel* (Sciurus nayaritensis)
Mexican Duck* (Anas diazi)
Mexican Whip-poor-will* (Antrostomus arizonae)
Mexican False Bombardier (Galerita mexicana)
Mexican Chickadee (Poecile sclateri)
Catherpes mexicanus (Canyon Wren)
Cinclus mexicana (American Dipper)
Falco mexicanus (Prairie Falcon)
Haemorhous mexicanus (House Finch)
Himantopus mexicanus (Black-necked Stilt)
Quiscalus mexicanus (Great-tailed Grackle)
Sialia mexicana (Western Bluebird)
Tangara mexicana (Turquoise Tanager)
Nepal
Apus nipalensis (House Swift)
New Zealand
New Zealand Mudsnail (Potamopyrgus antipodarum)
New Zealand Spinach (Tetragonia tetragonioides)
Norway:
Rattus norvegicus (Brown Rat)
Papua New Guinea:
New Guinea Impatiens (Impatiens hawkeri)
Peru:
Marvel of Peru (Mirabilis jalapa)
Peruvian Booby (Sula variegata)
Peruvian Diving-Petrel (Pelecanoides garnotii)
Peruvian Feather Grass (Stipa ichu)
Peruvian Martin* (Progne murphyi)
Peruvian Pelican (Pelecanus thagus)
Peruvian Recurvebill* (Syndactyla ucayalae)
Peruvian Sheartail* (Thaumastura cora)
Peruvian Sierra Finch* (Phrygilus punensis)
Peruvian Thick-knee (Burhinus superciliaris)
West Peruvian Dove (Zenaida meloda)
Rupicola peruvianus (Andean Cock-of-the-rock)
Philippines
Agropsar philippensis (Chestnut-cheeked Starling)
Ruditapes philippinarum (Japanese Littleneck)
Portugal:
Portuguese Man O’ War (Physalia physalis)
Russia:
Fleshy Russian Thistle (Salsola soda)
Russian Olive (Elaeagnus angustifolia)
Russian Sage (Salvia yangii)
Prickly Russian Thistle (Salsola tragus)
South Georgia and South Sandwich Islands
Anas georgiana (Yellow-billed Pintail)
Spain:
Spanish Bluebell (Hyacinthoides hispanica)
Spanish Broom (Spartium junceum)
Spanish Clover (Acmispon americanus)
Spanish Dagger (Yucca treculeana)
Spanish Hogfish* (Bodianus rufus)
Spanish Moss* (Tillandsia usneoides)
Sweden
Luscinia svecica (Bluethroat)
Syria:
Asclepias syriaca (Common Milkweed)
Turkey
Bushy Turkish Washcloth Mastocarpus jardinii
Turk’s Cap Malvaviscus arboreus
Turkish Towel Chondracanthus exasperatus
Wild Turkey Meleagris gallopavo
United States of America:
American Alligator (Alligator mississippiensis)
American Alpine Speedwell (Veronica wormskjoldii)
American Amber Jelly Fungus (Exidia crenata)
American Avocet (Recurvirostra americana)
American Basketflower (Plectocephalus americanus)
American Beaver (Castor canadensis)
American Beautyberry (Callicarpa americana)
American Beech (Fagus grandifolia)
American Bird Grasshopper (Schistocerca americana)
American Bison (Bison bison)
American Bistort (Bistorta bistortoides)
American Bittern (Botaurus lentiginosus)
American Bittersweet (Celastrus scandens)
American Black Bear* (Ursus americanus)
American Black Duck (Anas rubripes)
American Black Elderberry (Sambucus canadense)
American Black Nightshade (Solanum americanum)
American Brooklime (Veronica americana)
American Buckwheat (Brunnichia ovata)
American Bullfrog (Lithobates catesbeianus)
American Bumblebee (Bombus pensylvanicus)
American Carpenter Ant (Camponotus americanus)
American Carrion Beetle (Necrophila americana)
American Cockroach* (Periplaneta americana)
American Coot (Fulica americana)
American Crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos)
American Dipper (Cinclus mexicanus)
American Dune Grass (Leymus mollis)
American Elm* (Ulmus americana)
American Field Pansy (Viola bicolor)
American Flamingo (Phoenicopterus ruber)
American Germander (Teucrium canadense)
American Gizzard Shad (Dorosoma cepedianum)
American Golden-Plover (Pluvialis dominica)
American Goldfinch (Spinus tristis)
American Green Crab Spider (Misumessus oblongus)
American Holly (Ilex opaca)
American Hophornbeam (Ostrya virginiana)
American Hornbeam (Carpinus caroliniana)
American Idia Moth (Idia americalis)
American Jumpseed (Persicaria virginiana)
American Kestrel (Falco sparverius)
American Lady (Vanessa virginiensis)
American Lobster* (Homarus americanus)
American Lotus (Nelumbo lutea)
American Mink (Neogale vison)
American Mistletoe (Phoradendron leucarpum)
American Nursery Web Spider (Pisaurina mira)
American Oystercatcher (Haematopus palliatus)
American Paddlefish* (Polyodon spathula)
American Pickerel (Esox americanus)
American Pika (Ochotona princeps)
American Pipit (Anthus rubescens)
American Plantain (Plantago rugelii)
American Plum (Prunus americana)
American Pokeweed (Phytolacca americana)
American Redstart (Setophaga ruticilla)
American Robin (Turdus migratorius)
American Royal Fern (Osmunda spectabilis)
American Rubyspot (Hetaerina americana)
American Shad (Alosa sapidissima)
American Snout (Libytheana carinenta)
American Sweetgum (Liquidambar styraciflua)
American Sycamore (Platanus occidentalis)
American Three-squared Bulrush (Schoenoplectus americanus)
American Three-toed Woodpecker* (Picoides dorsalis)
American Toad (Anaxyrus americanus)
American Tree Moss (Climacium americanum)
American Tree Sparrow (Spizelloides arborea)
American Trumpet Vine (Campsis radicans)
American Water-Willow (Justicia americana)
American White Pelican (Pelecanus erythrorhynchos)
American White Waterlily (Nymphaea odorata)
American Wigeon (Mareca americana)
American Woodcock (Scolopax minor)
Amblyomma americanum (Lone Star Tick)
Aythya americana (Redhead)
Certhia americana (Brown Creeper)
Chloroceryle americana (Green Kingfisher)
Coccyzus americanus (Yellow-billed Cuckoo)
Erythronium americanum (Yellow Trout Lily)
Fraxinus americanus (White Ash)
Grus americana (Whooping Crane)
Hypanus americanus (Southern Stingray)
Lepus americanus (Snowshoe Hare)
Leucoagaricus americanus (Reddening Lepiota)
Malacosoma americana (Eastern Tent Caterpillar Moth)
Melanitta americana (Black Scoter)
Meloe americanus (Buttercup Oil Beetle)
Mycteria americana (Wood Stork)
Neofavolus americanus
Numenius americanus (Long-billed Curlew)
Oreamnos americanus (Mountain Goat)
Schoenoplectus americanus
Setophaga americana (Northern Parula)
Spiza americana (Dickcissel)
Vella americana
Zanthoxylum americanum* (Prickly Ash)
*Not on iNaturalist
For anyone interested, from what I found, out of 196 countries (UN Member States, Observers, and Taiwan), 171 are represented by default English names in the iNaturalist database. 18 more are represented only by scientific names (Azerbaijan; Bahrain; Bangladesh; Brunei; Burkina Faso; Burundi; Estonia; Guinea-Bissau; Kuwait; Latvia; Lithuania; Luxembourg; Poland; Qatar; Slovenia; Tajikistan; Tunisia; United Arab Emirates), which leaves, to my knowledge (prove me wrong!) 7 countries not represented by English species names (Belarus; Czechia; Holy See; Kyrgyzstan; Liechtenstein (arguable); San Marino; Tuvalu)
In addition, the following dependent territories and similar entities as defined by this Wikipedia page are also represented:
Akrotiri and Dhekelia (scientific only); American Samoa; Anguilla; Aruba; Ashmore and Cartier (scientific only); Bouvet Island (scientific only); British Virgin Islands; Christmas Island; Clipperton Island; Cocos Islands; Cook Islands; Coral Sea Islands? (none include ‘island’); Curaçao; Falkland Islands; Faroe Islands; French Polynesia; Gibraltar; Greenland; Guam; Guernsey; Heard Island (none living); Hong Kong; Isle of Man; Jersey; Macau; Midway Island; Montserrat; Navassa Island; New Caledonia; Niue; Norfolk Island; Northern Mariana Islands; Pitcairn Islands; Puerto Rico; Saint Barthélemy (Saint Barts); Saint Helena, Ascension, and Tristan da Cunha; Saint Martin; Serranilla Bank; South Georgia and South Sandwich Islands; Svalbard; Turks and Caicos Islands; U.S. Virgin Islands; Wake Island (scientific only among extant species); Wallis and Futuna