Top 25 Most Dangerous Animals In The World

Sometimes distinguishing between furry cuteness and pure destruction is not an easy task. In fact, many of the animals kingdom’s cutest critters also happen to be its most prolific killers. You think that cute little puffer fish is adorable? Will you hold your breath as you reach to pet it? The answer is yes. Forever. So keep that in mind as you read through our list of the worlds most dangerous animals.



25. Deathstalker

This highly venomous scorpion residing primarily in North Africa and the Middle East is responsible for over 75% of scorpion related deaths every year. Although healthy adults usually only feel unbearable pain, children that are envenomated suffer fever, coma, convulsions, and paralysis before their lungs fill up and they drown in their own fluids.



24. Africanized Honey Bee

An experiment gone wrong, in 1957 a Brazilian bee keeper who was trying to interbreed European and African honey bees accidently let some of his “pets” get away. Much more aggressive than their European counterparts, these genetically mixed “killer bees” have since then spread through out the Americas. They have come to be feared in some regions because of their tendency to swarm relentlessly and aggressively chase their victims for miles.



23. Rhinoceros

Rhino related deaths are not an uncommon occurrence in many parts of the world. Having terrible eyesight, they are easy to startle and once they have you in their sights it can be hard to make an escape (unless you can run faster than 40 mph). See the horn? Enough said.



22. Cone Snail

One drop of venom from this little bugger is enough to end 20 human lives. Sometimes colloquially known as the “cigarette snail,” it has been said that when you are stung by this creature, you’ll have just about enough time to smoke a cigaret before you stop breathing. Its not like it matters anyway though…there is no antivenom.



21. Stonefish

Lying camouflaged on the ocean floor, this ugly little mass of destruction calmly waits for other fish to swim by before opening its jaws with lightning speed and consuming its prey…all in less than .015 seconds. Also known as the “worlds most venomous fish”, stepping on its spines will at best cost you your leg and at worst, your life.



20. Great White Shark

These legendary predators have a terrible time distinguishing between the edible and the non-edible. There chosen method? Sampling. They sample buoys, boats, surfboards, humans, anything that floats. Contrary to popular belief, however, they really aren’t man-eaters. Humans are too bony, and after the initial bite, they usually leave you to bleed out in the water.



19. Black Mamba

One of the most feared creatures in the world, some experts have even called it “death incarnate.” In Africa it is the source of numerous myths and legends and it is widely known for being highly aggressive, very fast, and attacking without provocation.



18. Cape Buffalo

Having never been successfully domesticated, this highly unpredictable creature does not play nice with humans. Throughout Africa it is known as the “widowmaker” or “black death” and is responsible for more fatalities every year than any other large animal on the continent.



17. Poison Dart Frog

Packed into 2 inches of colorful amphibian is enough poison to kill an army of 20,000 mice. This means that with roughly 2 micrograms, or the amount that would fit on a pinhead, you could successfully stop the heart of a large animal. And to make matters worse, the poison is actually located on the surface of the skin. You seriously can’t touch this.



16. Polar Bear

Unlike most other animals on this list, the world’s largest carnivore is not afraid of you. It has no natural predators and will eat anything that is even slightly meaty, including other polar bears. Although they generally don’t kill humans, its probably because there aren’t many of them around to kill.



15. Box Jellyfish

Killing more people every year than sharks, crocodiles, and stonefish combined, this box of death has been labeled “world’s most venomous animal.” It’s venom is so potent in fact, that in some cases treatment consists of little more than last minute CPR.



14. African Lion

While humans are generally not on their hit-list, some lions have been known to actively seek out human prey. One famous case was that of the Tsavo man-eaters in 1898 who mauled and killed 28 railway workers in Kenya over a 9 month period.



13. Boomslang

Although they are relatively shy and don’t generally attack humans, when they do, things can get messy. Boomslang venom is a hemotoxin that disables blood clotting. In others words, its victims slowly die as they bleed out from every pore in their body.



12. Puffer Fish

Considered one of the most poisonous vertebrates in the world, Puffer poison will, however, paralyze your diaphragm and stop your breathing if you fail to prepare it correctly.



11. Hyena

While these predators may be wary of human interaction during the day, after sunset the paradigm shifts. Although hyenas have been known to hunt humans throughout history, the behavior tends to increase during wartime and disease outbreaks due to their strong affinity for human corpses.



10. Komodo Dragon

Very much like Polar Bears, Komodo Dragons are not picky eaters. They will eat anything from birds to water buffalos to humans and they have even been known to dig up bodies from shallow graves. They are prodigious hunters and will wait stealthily until they’re prey approaches after which they will charge forward, rip out its throat, and retreat while it bleeds out. Once again, like Polar Bears, the only reason their human kill count is so low is probably due to limited interaction as well as the fact that they only really need to eat once a month.



9. Tse Tse Fly

This large blood sucking fly is the primary carrier of African Sleeping Sickness and is therefore indirectly responsible for killing up to a quarter of a million people every year.



8. Leopard

When most animals are wounded they run away and hide. Not leopards. When these dangerous creatures are wounded they become even more dangerous. Not only that, but they’re strong. Anyone who has watched the Discovery Channel knows that they like to hide their prey out of reach. Translation: they drag dead antelopes up trees.



7. Carpet Viper

Responsible for the majority of snake related deaths in the world, this viper uses a hemotoxin similar to that of the boomslang. Unfortunately most of the bites occur in areas that lack modern medical facilities so the victims slowly bleed to death over the course of several weeks.



6. Brazilian Wandering Spider

Meet the most venomous spider in the world, according to the Guinness Book of World Records. What makes this critter so dangerous though is also how it got its name – a tendency to wander. They are often found hiding in houses and cars of densely populated areas, especially during daytime. Not a good combination.



5. Blue Ringed Octopus

About the size of a golf ball, don’t let its small stature fool you, it holds enough venom to kill 26 full grown adults and as you may have guessed, there is no antidote. Assuming that your friend ever gets bitten you had better know CPR because you can be sure that within minutes they will be completely paralyzed and unable to breathe. Mother nature, however, shows no mercy and they will maintain their consciousness for the next few hours until the venom is neutralized by their body. This is of course assuming that you, or someone at the hospital, continues artificial respiration.



4. Hippopotamus

Although they are mostly herbivorous, they are also highly aggressive and are widely regarded as one of the most dangerous animals in Africa. They have been known to attack humans without provocation even to the point of destroying entire vehicles.



3. Saltwater Crocodile

Sitting at the top of its food chain the Saltwater Crocodile has been known to eat everything from water buffalo to sharks. In order to kill its food it make use of a technique called the “death roll” where it relentlessly flips its prey over and over in the water until it drowns and then comes apart.



2. African Elephant

The world’s largest land animal, elephants can be fiercely aggressive and have been known to trample even a rhinoceros or two to death. They seemingly have the capacity to display bouts of rage and have even engaged in activities that have been interpreted as vindictive, razing entire villages in the process.



1. Mosquito

Moving from one of the largest animals in the world we now come to one of the smallest. As small as it is though, it is also the deadliest. It has been estimated that mosquitos transmit diseases to almost 700 million people annually resulting in 2 to 3 million deaths every year.



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Top 10 Most Impressive Ancient Inca Ruins

The Inca civilization arose from the highlands of Peru in the early 13th century. Starting from 1438, they began conquering lands surrounding the Inca heartland of Cuzco, creating the largest empire in pre-Columbian America. The coming of the Spanish conquistadors in 1532 marked an end to the short-lived Inca Empire. What remains of their civilization is limited as the conquistadors plundered what they could. But visitors can still gain an appreciation of how advanced the Inca were from the amazing ancient Inca ruins found in the highlands of South America.



10. Moray

Moray is an Incan agricultural laboratory that was likely used to cultivate resistant and hearty varieties of plants high in the Andes. The site contains several circular terraces, that could be used to study the effects of different climatic conditions on crops as the lower terraces have lower temperatures. The deepest crater is about 150 meters (492 feet) deep with a temperature difference of up to 15° C between the top and the bottom level.



9. Winay Wayna

The Inca site of Winay Wayna is built into a hillside overlooking the Urubamba River. It is located on on the Inca Trail and, like today, may have served as a rest stop for weary travelers on their way to the famous Machu Picchu. The Inca ruins of Winay Wayna consists of upper and lower house complexes connected by a staircase and fountain structures. Beside the houses lies an area of agricultural terraces.



8. Coricancha

The Coricancha in Cuzco, originally named Inti Kancha (‘Temple of the Sun’) was the most important temple in the Inca Empire. The walls and floors were once covered in sheets of solid gold, and the courtyard was filled with golden statues. Like so many other Inca monuments it was severely devastated by the conquistadors, who built a Christian church, Santo Domingo, on top of the ruins. Major earthquakes have severely damaged the church, but the Inca stone walls, built out of huge, tightly-interlocking blocks of stone, still stand thanks to the sophisticated stone masonry of the Incas.



7. Llactapata

Located at 2,840 meters (9,318 feet) above sea level along the Inca trail, Llactapata means “High Town” in Quechua. It was probably used for crop production and storage. Llactapata was burned by Manco Inca Yupanqui, during his retreat to discourage Spanish pursuit. In part due to these efforts, the Spanish never discovered the Inca trail or any of its Inca settlements.



6. Isla del Sol

Isla del Sol (Island of the Sun) is a rocky, hilly island located in the southern part of Lake Titicaca. According to the Inca religion, it was the first land that appeared after the waters of a great flood began to recede and the Sun emerged from the island to illuminate the sky once again. As the birthplace of the Sun God, the Incas built several sacred sites on the island. Among these Inca ruins are the Sacred Rock and a labyrinth-like building called Chicana.



5. Sacsayhuamán

Sacsayhuamán is an Inca walled complex high above the city of Cusco. The imperial city Cusco, was laid out in the form of a puma, the animal that symbolized the Inca dynasty. The belly of the puma was the main plaza, the river Tullumayo formed its spine, and the hill of Sacsayhuamán its head. There are three parallel walls built in different levels with lime stones of enormous sizes. It is suggested that the zigzagging walls represent the teeth of the puma’s head. The Inca wall is built in such a way that a single piece of paper will not fit between many of the stones.



4. Pisac

Pisac, a word of Quechua origins, means “partridge”. Inca tradition dictated building cities in the shape of birds and animals, and as such, Pisac is partridge shaped. The Inca ruins included a military citadel, religious temples, and individual dwellings, and overlooks the Sacred Valley, between the Salkantay Mountains. It is thought that Písac defended the southern entrance to the Sacred Valley and controlled a route which connected the Inca Empire with the border of the rain forest.



3. Choquequirao

Seated on the border of Cuzco and Apurimac, Choquequirao (meaning Cradle of Gold), is located 3085 meter (10,120 feet) above sea level. The Inca ruins contains a staircase configuration, made up of 180 terraces. Built in a completely different style than Machu Picchu, Choquequirao is much larger in area. One can only travel to Choquequirao by foot or horseback, and as such, is visited much less often than Machu Picchu. Without benefit of wheels, the trek to Choquequirao from Cachora can take up to four days!



2. Ollantaytambo

During the Inca Empire, Ollantaytambo was the royal estate of Emperor Pachacuti who conquered the region, built the town and a ceremonial center. At the time of the Spanish conquest of Peru it served as a stronghold for the Inca resistance. Nowadays the Inca ruins of Ollantaytambo is an important tourist attraction and one of the most common starting points for hike known as the Inca Trail.



1. Machu Picchu

The most beautiful and impressive ancient Inca ruins in the world, Machu Pichu was rediscovered in 1911 by Hawaiian historian Hiram after it lay hidden for centuries above the Urubamba Valley. The “Lost City of the Incas” is invisible from below and completely self-contained, surrounded by agricultural terraces and watered by natural springs. Although known locally, it was largely unknown to the outside world before being rediscovered in 1911. Since then, Machu Picchu has become the most important tourist attraction in Peru.


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Top 10 Most Beautiful Butterflies

Butterflies are some of the most gentle creatures known to us. They have been part of many cultures, both past and present. Much like the ancient cultures of Mexico and Egypt, we still see the butterfly used in art, as symbolism, and as inspiration for the creation of technology or architecture. We see them in modern entertainment being turned into fairies, who have wings with a striking resemblance to many of the butterflies that we can see all over the world. In other cultures, they are the personification of a person’s soul, regardless of whether or not they were alive, dead, or somewhere in between. The butterfly’s complexities inspire thought.



10. Apollo (Parnassius apollo)

The Apollo, or Mountain Apollo, is primarily found in the mountains of Europe, where it prefers to flit about in flowery meadows and pastures, showing off its gorgeous wings with red and black-edged “eye” shapes. Unfortunately, it is on the threatened animals list and protected in places such as Liechtenstein, Poland, and the Czech Republic. It was one of the first animals in Finland to be declared an endangered species. As its population decreased dramatically there and in Sweden, many people believed they were inflicted with a disease; however, some people are starting to wonder if it is due to things related to acid rain.



9. Black Swallowtail (Papilio polyxenes)

Also known as the American Swallowtail or the Parsnip Swallowtail, this butterfly is known for being the state butterfly of Oklahoma. There are differences between the two sexes: the female having a row of yellow dots and an iridescent blue band along her wings, while the male having a yellow band on the edge of his. Because they are mostly black with hints of colour, they have a rather understated eloquence.



8. Giant Swallowtail (Papilio cresphontes)

The Giant Swallowtail is a common butterfly throughout North America. Its caterpillars are known by the names Orange Dog or Orange Puppy, which is due to the devastation they can cause to a farmer’s crop. It is the largest butterfly in both the United States and Canada, having a wingspan that can get to be almost six inches. The wings of these butterflies are a dark, almost chocolate colour brown with yellow striping and an “eye” on the tail of each wing. The caterpillar is quite interesting as well, especially as it is capable of taking on the appearance of a small snake and having a fake head and set of eyes.



7. Queen Victoria’s Birdwing (Ornithoptera victoriae)

The Queen Victoria’s Birdwing is a variety of butterfly found on the Solomon Islands and on the Bougainville Island of Papua New Guinea. As a birdwing variety, it is a protected species though it is not incredibly rare. Its fore wings are black, while the hind wings are green with a black edging. The female is significantly larger than the male and of a slightly different colouring, such as being mostly black or brown with white and yellow spots. The male is mostly noted for being having large green parts of its wings with golden spots.



6. Scarce Swallowtail (Iphiclides podalirius)

Also known as the Sail Swallowtail or Pear-tree Swallowtail, it is commonly found in the open woodlands, fields, and gardens. With the exception of the northern region, it is found all over Europe and as far as western China. When they are found in the floodplains in Slovakia, they are thought to be indicators showing that the grassland habitats are well-preserved. However, the species is becoming more rare as clearing continues. It is protected in Germany, Russia, Poland, Luxembourg, Hungary, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, and parts of Austria under the title of “rare-endangered” or “vulnerable.”



5. Spicebush Swallowtail (Papilio troilus)

Found in the eastern United States, the Spicebush Swallowtail is recognised as the state butterfly of Mississippi. They are primarily black and have spoon-shaped tails, with differences between the two sexes. Males are mostly noted for their bright green hind-wings, while females tend to be an iridescent blue. Both may have ivory or orange spots. Their primary habitat tends to be deciduous forests or woody swamps with lots of shade.



4. Zebra Swallowtail (Eurytides marcellus)

The Zebra Swallowtail is found primarily in the eastern part of North America and is the state bird of Tennessee. Named for its coloring, it has triangular wings, long tails, and two red and blue markings on their backs. There are two forms, depending on the seasons. During spring, their wings proudly show more white with small black tails. In the summer, they are mostly black with long and white tails. They prefer to glide around savannah, grassy fields and open woodlands.



3. Morocco Orange Tip (Anthocharis belia)

This butterfly is found in Northwestern Africa, primarily in places such as Tunisia, Morocco, and Algeria. However, due to geographic proximity, it can also be seen in southern France, Spain, and Portugal. The tips of its fore wings are a bright orange while the rest of it remains a creamy shade of white. They don’t like to settle down very frequently, however; it seems that they quite enjoy moving, reminiscent of young children.



2. Lesser Fiery Copper (Lycaena thersamon)

This orange-red butterfly is found primarily somewhere between Eastern Europe to north-western China and in places such as Italy and Mongolia. They prefer to live in flowering meadows and open fields. Though they are mostly a red-orange, they all have different markings. Some can be found with bits of purple on their tails, and the dark spots can be in almost any pattern.



1. Green Underside (Glaucopsyche alexis)

It is also known as the Green-Underside Blue. It is commonly found throughout Europe in warm, flowery meadows. They often live as close as possible to their hostplants, rather than flying far away from them. It is a greyish colour with, appropriately, a green-blue underside. They often have dark spots on their fore wings. Though beautiful, it does not get very large; the adults often stay small.


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Top 9 Deadly Snakes

Mark Laita is an advertising and fine art photographer based in Los Angeles. This work is from his project, Serpentine, of which he writes:

‘The sensual attractiveness of snakes, which coexists with their threatening, unpredictable and mysterious nature is truly unique. This dichotomy, in which their beauty seems to be heightened by their danger, and vice-versa, is what I find so fascinating. Add to these contradictions the rich symbolism of serpents and you have a wonderfully compelling subject’.


Malayan Coral Snake


In the Americas there is a saying when it concerns coral snakes; red to yellow, kill a fellow; red to black, venom lack. This is used to distinguish the venomous coral snakes found there with their harmless mimics like milk snakes. However, that saying is not applicable for the coral snakes of the Malaysian forest as they look very different. This is the spectacular but deadly Blue Malayan Coral Snake (Calliophis bivirgatus). It's warning coloration consist of its brilliant red head, tail and belly and the electric blue bands running down it's body. When threatened, it will curl up it's tail to flash the brilliant scarlet undersides.


Beautiful Pit Viper

The Crotalinae, commonly known as "pit vipers" or crotaline snakes, are a subfamily of venomous vipers found in Asia and the Americas. They are distinguished by the presence of a heat-sensing pit organ located between the eye and the nostril on either side of the head. Currently, 18 genera and 151 species are recognized: 7 genera and 54 species in the Old World, against a greater diversity of 11 genera and 97 species in the New World. These are also the only viperids found in the Americas. The groups of snakes represented here include rattlesnakes, lanceheads and Asian pitvipers. The type genus for this subfamily is Crotalus, of which the type species is the timber rattlesnake, C. horridus


Coral Snake

The coral snakes are a large group of elapid snakes that can be subdivided into two distinct groups, Old World coral snakes and New World coral snakes. There are 11 species of Old World coral snake in one genus (Calliophis), and over 65 recognized species of New World coral snakes in three genera (Leptomicrurus, Micruroides, and Micrurus).


Emerald Tree Boa with babies

Adults grow to about 6 feet (1.8 m) in length. They have highly developed front teeth that are likely proportionately larger than those of any other non-venomous snake. The color pattern typically consists of an emerald green ground color with a white irregular interrupted zigzag stripe or so-called 'lightning bolts' down the back and a yellow belly. The bright coloration and markings are very distinctive among South American snakes. Juveniles vary in color between various shades of light and dark orange or brick-red before ontogenetic coloration sets in and the animals turn emerald green (after 9–12 months of age). This also occurs in Morelia viridis, a species in which hatchlings and juveniles may also be canary yellow or brick-red. As opposed to popular belief, yellow juveniles (as in the green tree python) do not occur in the emerald tree boa.



Philippine Pit Viper

Trimeresurus flavomaculatus is a venomous pitviper species found in the Philippines. Three subspecies are currently recognized,


King Cobra

The king cobra (Ophiophagus hannah) is the world's longest venomous snake, with a length up to 5.6 m (18.5 ft). This species, which preys chiefly on other snakes, is found predominantly in forests from India through Southeast Asia to the Philippines and Indonesia. Despite the word "cobra" in its name, this snake is not a member of Naja ("true cobras") but belongs to its own genus.


Rhinocerus Viper

coloured venomous snake of the family Viperidae that inhabits rainforests and swamps of West and Central Africa. It prefers wet or damp environments and can even be found on plantations. The body is massive with rough and strongly keeled scales. It possesses a green or blue triangular head with a large black arrowhead mark on the top and two or three pairs of hornlike scales on the tip of the snout. It averages 70–90 cm (28–35 inches) in length, but specimens as long as 1.3 metres (4.3 feet) are known. The body is made up of a spectacular velvetlike pattern of triangles, rectangles, and diamond-shaped areas that are coloured red, yellow, blue, green, and black. The pattern is reminiscent of that of the Gaboon viper; however, the pattern of the rhinoceros viper is more colourful.


Mussarana (juvenile)

The mussurana or musurana (Portuguese muçurana) are six species of oviparous colubrid snakes belonging to the genus Clelia. They are distributed from Guatemala to Brazil. They specialize in ophiophagy, i.e., they attack and eat other snakes. They have other popular names in various countries, such as zopilota in Central America and cribo on some Caribbean islands

The mussurana has a length of 1.5 to 1.6 m, but it can grow up to 2.4 m. When young, its dorsal color is light pink, which becomes lead-blue when it is adult. The ventral color is whitish yellow. It has 10 to 15 strong teeth at the back of the mouth (opisthoglyphous teeth) which it uses to grasp the head of the attacked snake and push it into its gullet. Then it coils its body around the victim, killing it by constriction (this is the reason this species is called a pseudoboa). Ingestion of the whole body follows. The long body of the ingested snake is compressed as a wave in order to fit into the mussurana's gastrointestinal system.



Red Tail Boa

All subspecies are referred to as "Boa constrictors", while the nominate subspecies, B. c. constrictor, is often referred to specifically as the "red-tailed boa". Within the exotic pet trade it is also known as a "BCC", an abbreviation of its scientific name, to distinguish it from other Boa constrictor subspecies such as the Boa constrictor imperator which is also regularly, and erroneously, referred to as a "red-tailed boa".


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