1. Lion
It comes as no surprise that these muscular big cats are some of the most dangerous animals in the world. In Tanzania alone, African lions attacked 1,000 people between the years 1994 and 2014. A study in East Africa found that the probability of wild lion attacks increases with proximity to villages and in areas with large proportions of open woodland, bushland, and crops. As humans continue to develop regions closer to protected areas and lion habitats, attacks are bound to increase and for that they are called dangerous animals.
2. Wolf
While wolves in the wild aren’t usually a fatal danger to humans, these large canines have been exhibiting more fearless behavior around humans over the last century. Many of these attacks are linked to rabies, but other emerging patterns of attacks may have more to do with food scarcity or habitat loss. Although not every case occurs in protected areas, national parks in North America typically have guidelines to protect visitors from wolf attacks.
3. Great White Shark
Sharks' reputation as deadly attackers may be exaggerated—you're more likely to die from a fireworks accident than a shark attack—but it isn't completely unwarranted. In 2020, there were 57 unprovoked shark attacks (and 39 provoked attacks) resulting in 13 deaths. Great whites are responsible for the majority of the fatalities, accounting for over 200 more deaths than the second most deadly, tiger sharks, since 1850. White, tiger and bull sharks are more likely to do damage since they are commonly found in areas where humans enter the water and have more deadly, serrated teeth.
4. Deathstalker Scorpion
The world’s most venomous scorpion only grows to about 11 centimeters in length, but its lethal stinger packs a powerful punch—a study published in Functional Ecology measured the deathstalker’s stinger snapping over its head as fast as 127.9 centimeters per second. Between 2005 and 2015, the U.S. Poison Control Center sent 16,275 people to healthcare facilities due to scorpion stings, more than half of which occurred in the state of Arizona.
5. Golden Poison Frog
The largest of the poison frog species doesn't grow more than 2.3 inches in length, but its skin secretes a poison called batrachotoxin that can cause paralysis and death—even in small amounts. Scientists believe that these endangered frogs, endemic to the Pacific coast of Colombia, sequester lethal amounts of batrachotoxin through their diet of poisonous ants. They are able to avoid poisoning themselves thanks to a naturally occurring substitution at the batrachotoxin receptor within their muscles.
6. Brown Bear
Brown or grizzly bears are believed to be more aggressive than other types of bears, such as black bear, but they also happen to be the most widespread bear species globally. Research on bear attacks in Alaska between 2000 and 2016 found that a total of 96% of attacks involved brown bears, and the number of conflicts is rising. Scientists consider factors like growing human populations, development into bear habitats, and expanded brown bear ranges due to global warming as possible contributing factors and for that they are called dangerous animals.
7. Tiger
While wild tigers are found in different parts of Asia, the country of India holds about 70% of them. Tiger attacks on humans are relatively rare, with between 40 and 50 fatalities each year, and are predominantly attributed to conflicts involving livestock as agricultural lands continue to overlap with wild animal habitats. Occasionally, but certainly not always, the number of humans killed is connected to a single predatory tiger and for that they are called dangerous animals.
8. African Buffalo
The only species of wild cow found in Africa, the African buffalo is characterized by its heavy ridged horns used to fight against predators or for dominance against other males. These horns, combined with their natural aggressive nature and massive size, make them exceptionally dangerous. In East Africa, they are known for breaking down fences in order to raid cultivated crops, which sometimes results in human conflict and deadly accidents and for that they are called dangerous animals.
9. Asian Elephant
Even though African elephant are much larger and generally considered more aggressive than Asian elephants, we often see more attacks attributed to the latter due to proximity. African elephants live in larger ranges and vast protected areas (where local communities can steer clear of them), while the smaller Asian elephants are forest dwellers who are more likely to share habitats with people.
Asian elephants are also easier to tame, so they are often used in closer proximity to humans in the tourism industry or the illegal logging industry. In 2019, a newspaper in India reported that the previous year saw 494 people killed by elephants in India and for that they are called dangerous animals.
10. The Common Hippopotamus
