One may classify the 10 deadliest creatures in the world by the number deaths esp. human ones that they may cause. But with the amazing creatures on our planet deadly may mean a lot more. Here are 10 of the most dangerous creatures on earth with explanation of what makes them so fearsome.
#10 Fearless Strength – Polar Bear
| Also Known As: | White Bear, Ice Bear |
| Distribution: | Arctic circle, Newfoundland, North of Europe and Canada |
| Approx Population: | 25000 |
Apart from a subspecies of their cousins the grizzly bears, polar bears are are the largest carnivores on Earth. They can weigh more than 775 kilograms or 1700 pounds and grow up to a length of 3 meters in length and 6 feet in height. They have zero natural predators and are fearless of the humans, making them an extremely dangerous animal. You may estimate their strength by the fact that they can swim over 100 miles or 160 kilometers at one stretch.
#9 The Daredevil – Golden Dart Frog
| Also Known As: | Golden Frog, Golden Poison Arrow Frog |
| Distribution: | South America esp. Columbia |
The poison dart family gets its name from the fact that the natives used their toxic secretions to poison their blow-darts The deadliest among the dart frogs; the “Golden Poison frog” may be as tiny as 2.5 centimeters and weighing less than a pound. It is however considered one of the most toxic animals on the planet. An average wild frog may carry 1 milligram of poison which is enough to kill up to 20 healthy humans. You may say that a gram of the poison can kill around 20,000 people. The frog stores the poison in skin glands and it kills almost all the predators that eat it. No wonder it moves around freely in its bright colored skin. This daredevil attitude is explained through aposematism. An anti-predator adaptation where a warning signal is associated with the unprofitability of a prey item to potential predators. Or in this case the bright coloration in the frog advertises its unpalatability to its predators.
#8 Moods of Fury – The Cape Buffalo
| Also Known As: | Affalo, African Buffalo, Mbogo, Nyati, Widow Maker, Black Death |
| Distribution: | Mid and South of Africa |
| Approx Population: | 900,000 |
The very robust and sturdy Cape Buffalo can weigh up to 900 kilograms or 2000 pounds. Its characteristic horns have bases which fuse together and form a continuous shield called the ‘boss’, which is very dense and deadly on impact. The animal is infamous for its unpredictable nature causing around 200 deaths every year. It is commonly known to overturn vehicles and is listed among the ‘big five game family’; a term used to define the most dangerous animals to hunt in Africa.
#7 Emperors of their Territory – African Bush Elephant / White Shark
African Bush Elephant
| Also Known As: | African Savana Elephant |
| Distribution: | Mid and South of Africa |
The African Bush elephant are the largest animals living on land and the grandest of the ‘big five’ in Africa. They can measure more than to 3.5 meters in height and weigh around 8 tonnes. Owing to their size they have zero natural predators. In the wild they may ignore you to a point or may charge at you at incredible speeds. The African bush elephant can be very irritable and angry especially during Musth; a period when their reproductive hormones, mostly testosterone rise 60 times higher than normal.
The Great White Shark
| Also Known As: | White Pointer, White Shark, White Death |
| Distribution: | US Atlantic coast, South Africa, Chile, Mediterranean, Japan |
The Great White is arguably the largest macro predatory fish. It is also responsible for almost half of the 100 odd yearly shark attacks on humans. Thankfully humans are not their preferred meal and researchers claim their bites to be cases of sample biting of these naturally curious creatures. The white shark can weigh up to 3 tons and grow as long as 7 meters. They can smell blood from 5 miles and swim at speeds of 25 miles an hour. They have no natural predators.
#6 Stealth be thy name – Deathstalker Scorpion
| Also Known As: | Palestine Yellow Scorpion, Omdurman Scorpion, Israeli Desert Scorpion |
| Distribution: | North Africa and Middle East |
Death-stalker as its name suggests is known for stealth. It may hide under stones, in shoes, burrows and the most unexpected of places. It is counted among species with the most deadly poison, a mixture of various toxic neurotoxin, enzymes, histamine and the potent chlorotoxin. A bite can cause unbearable pain, fever, coma, convulsions, paralysis and death. Though the bite may not kill a healthy adult; children, the elderly and people with heart conditions should take immediate action. Though there are other deadly scorpions the death stalkers aggressive intent and the stealth in their nature make them very dangerous.
#5 The Savage Army – Saifu Ants
| Also Known As: | Dorylus, Army ants, Driver Ants, Safari Ants |
| Distribution: | Africa, Some parts of Asia |
The Army ants colonies can number up to 25 million making them the largest colonies of any social insect. When their colony relocates they may form marching columns of 5 million and with their character to fiercely defend against anything they encounter this becomes a menace for all. At this time almost all animals within many square miles vacate and not return for weeks. Their bites can be extremely painful and they can cut through a rhino’s skin without much effort. They will kill and finish off anything that cannot run away from them, they will strip an injured elephant to bone in less than a month. The ants enter the mouth of a larger animals and invade the lungs. Once they are on to you it is difficult to get them off. They may hold their breath and bite you within water for a few minutes.
#4 The Kiss of Death – King Cobra
| Also Known As: | Naagraj, Ophiophagus Hannah |
| Distribution: | India, South East Asia |
The King Cobra is the largest venomous snake in the world and can measure up to 18 feet. It is placed in a different genus than the cobra, called Ophiophagus Hannah which literally translates to Snake eater. The primary meal of the King Cobra is not rodents but other snakes. Thankfully the king is shy of humans but it may get aggressive if cornered. The King Cobra can raise up to 1/3 of their total body length, making them close to 6 feet tall, i.e. the crawler can stare you in the eye. In a third world country with a huge population like India, snake bites kill over 50,000 people every year; a majority of them may be attributed to the King Cobra. Its venom may be not as toxic as other venomous snakes, but King Cobra is capable of injecting about 5 times more venom in a single bite. It is known to kill Asian elephants in three hours and humans in a lot less.
#3 Giant Killers – The Mosquito
| Distribution: | All around the world |
Consider a mosquito with a max life span of 6 months, a weight of 2 milligrams, a size of a staple pin and as common as the air around us. This true giant killer is responsible for the maximum human deaths in history. Even today the mosquitoes are responsible for over 2 million deaths every year. Diseases like malaria, dengue, yellow fever are known to all. It surely is the deadliest animal with respect to humans.
#2 Organised Crime – Humans
| Also Known As: | Homo-sapiens |
| Distribution: | All around the world |
Humans would easily qualify as the deadliest animals in the world. We kill almost all the species in the world either directly or indirectly. Killing for food is a natural process but we just kill for any petty reason like our vanity and even for sport. We are greedy, careless and inconsiderate towards everything, even other fellow humans. Even if we consider deadly with respect to humans, we may still top the list considering the mass murder and wars we have fought amongst ourselves.
#1 Deadlier than the Nuclear Bomb – Clostridium Botulinum
| Distribution: | Soil all around the world |
This deadly bacteria is found all around the globe from the hottest to the coldest regions. However it requires absolutely perfect conditions in order to become dangerous. Once active it is very difficult to kill. None of the species have developed any resistance to its poison which is mainly a neurotoxin and stops the communication of the brain. Less than 5 kilos of Botulinum is more than enough to kill the entire human race with a few hours. A mere presence of 0.000000000001 (or 1 x 10^-12) kilogram of the bacteria per kilogram will kill any living being.