Why Are There No Animals with Three Legs? (IMAGE) University of California - Davis Caption Many animals use a 'tripod stance' at rest, because it is stable and requires little energy. Examples shown here are a meerkat, a tripod fish and a woodpecker. But fewer animals move with three limbs, and a truly three-limbed animal does not exist on Earth. Credit Tracy J. Thomson in <i>BioEssays</i> Usage Restrictions May be used with acknowledgement. License Licensed content Disclaimer: AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert system.