Some animal can be hazardous at various points so it’s hard to decide the only one characteristic that would help us to define which animals are the most hazardous. Today I have discussed in brief about the most dangerous animals in the world. Have a look…
Piranha
A piranha is a member of family Characidae in order Characiformes, an omnivorous freshwater fish that inhabits South American rivers. Piranhas are normally about 14 to 26 cm long (5.5 to 10.25 inches), although some specimens have been reported to be up to 43 cm (17.0 inches) in length.
Serrasalmus, Pristobrycon, Pygocentrus and Pygopristis are most easily recognized by their unique dentition. All piranhas have a single row of sharp teeth in both jaws; the teeth are tightly packed and interlocking (via small cusps) and used for rapid puncture and shearing. Individual teeth are typically broadly triangular, pointed and blade-like (flat in profile).
There is minor variation in the number of cusps; in most species, the teeth are tricuspid with a larger middle cusp which makes the individual teeth appear markedly triangular.
The exception is Pygopristis, which has pentacuspid teeth and a middle cusp usually only slightly larger than the other cusps. In the scale-eating Catoprion, the shape of their teeth is markedly different and the premaxillary teeth are in two rows, as in most other serrasalmines.
In Venezuela, they are called caribes. They are known for their sharp teeth and a voracious appetite for meat.
Hippo
The hippopotamus (Hippopotamus amphibius), or hippo, from the ancient Greek for “river horse” (ἱπποπόταμος), is a large, mostly herbivorous mammal in sub-Saharan Africa, and one of only two extant species in the family Hippopotamidae (the other is the Pygmy Hippopotamus.) After the elephant and rhinoceros, the hippopotamus is the third largest land mammal and the heaviest extant artiodactyl.
The hippopotamus is semi-aquatic, inhabiting rivers, lakes and mangrove swamps, where territorial bulls preside over a stretch of river and groups of 5 to 30 females and young. During the day they remain cool by staying in the water or mud; reproduction and childbirth both occur in water. They emerge at dusk to graze on grass. While hippopotamuses rest near each other in the water, grazing is a solitary activity and hippos are not territorial on land.
Despite their physical resemblance to pigs and other terrestrial even-toed ungulates, their closest living relatives are cetaceans (whales, porpoises, etc.) from which they diverged about 55 million years ago.
The common ancestor of whales and hippos split from other even-toed ungulates around 60 million years ago. The earliest known hippopotamus fossils, belonging to the genus Kenyapotamus in Africa, date to around 16 million years ago.
The hippopotamus is recognizable by its barrel-shaped torso, enormous mouth and teeth, nearly hairless body, stubby legs and tremendous size. It is the third largest land mammal by weight (between 1½ and 3 tonnes), behind the white rhinoceros (1½ to 3½ tonnes) and the three species of elephant (3 to 9 tonnes). The hippopotamus is one of the largest quadrupeds (four legged mammals) and despite its stocky shape and short legs, it can easily outrun a human.
Hippos have been clocked at 30 km/h (19 mph) over short distances. The hippopotamus is one of the most aggressive creatures in the world and is often regarded as one of the most dangerous animals in Africa.
There are an estimated 125,000 to 150,000 hippos throughout Sub-Saharan Africa; Zambia (40,000) and Tanzania (20,000–30,000) possess the largest populations.They are still threatened by habitat loss and poaching for their meat and ivory canine teeth. There is also a colony of non-zoo hippos in Colombia introduced by Pablo Escobar.
Great white shark
The great white shark, Carcharodon carcharias, also known as the great white, white pointer, white shark, or white death, is a large lamniform shark found in coastal surface waters in all major oceans.
It is known for its size, with the largest individuals known to have approached or exceeded 6 metres (20 ft) in length, and 2,268 kilograms (5,000 lb) in weight. This shark reaches maturity at around 15 years of age and can have a life span of over 30 years.
The great white shark is arguably the world’s largest known extant macropredatory fish and is one of the primary predators of marine mammals. It is also known to prey upon a variety of other marine animals including fish and seabirds.
It is the only known surviving species of its genus, Carcharodon, and is ranked first in a list of number of recorded attacks on humans. The IUCN treats the great white shark as vulnerable, while it is included in Appendix II of CITES.
The best selling novel Jaws by Peter Benchley and the subsequent blockbuster film by Steven Spielberg depicted the great white shark as a “ferocious man eater”. In reality, humans are not the preferred prey of the great white shark.
Saltwater crocodile
The saltwater crocodile (Crocodylus porosus), also known as the estuarine or Indo-Pacific crocodile, is the largest of all living reptiles. It is found in suitable habitats from Northern Australia through Southeast Asia to the eastern coast of India.
The saltwater crocodile has a longer muzzle than the mugger crocodile: its length is twice its width at the base. The saltwater crocodile has fewer armor plates on its neck than other crocodilians, and its broad body contrasts with that of most other lean crocodiles, leading to early unverified assumptions that the reptile was an alligator.
Saltwater crocodiles generally spend the tropical wet season in freshwater swamps and rivers, moving downstream to estuaries in the dry season, and sometimes travelling far out to sea.Crocodiles compete fiercely with each other for territory, with dominant males in particular occupying the most eligible stretches of freshwater creeks and streams. Junior crocodiles are thus forced into the more marginal river systems and sometimes into the ocean.
Cape buffalo
The African buffalo, affalo, nyati, Mbogo or Cape buffalo (Syncerus caffer) is a large African bovine. It is not closely related to the slightly larger wild Asian water buffalo, but its ancestry remains unclear.
The African buffalo is a very robust species. Its shoulder height can range from 1 to 1.7 m (3.3 to 5.6 ft) and its head-and-body length can range from 1.7 to 3.4 m (5.6 to 11 ft). The tail can range from 70 to 110 cm (28 to 43 in) long. Savannah type buffaloes weigh 500 to 910 kg (1,100 to 2,000 lb), with males, normally larger than females, reaching the upper weight range.
A record-sized savannah-type male weighed 1,000 kg (2,200 lb). Forest type buffaloes, at 250 to 455 kg (550 to 1,000 lb), are only half that size. Its head is carried low, its top located below the backline.
The front hooves of the buffalo are wider than the rear, which is associated with the need to support the weight of the front part of the body, which is more powerful than the back Savannah type buffalo have black or dark brown coats with age. Old bulls have whitish circles around their eyes.
Females tend to have more reddish coats. Forest type buffalo are reddish brown in colour with horns that curve out backwards and upwards. Calves of both types have red coats.
The horns of African buffalo are very peculiar. A characteristic feature of them is the fact that the adult bull’s horns have fused bases, forming a continuous bone shield referred to as a “boss,” which can not always be penetrated even by a rifle bullet. From the base the horns diverge, then bend down, and then smoothly curve upwards and outwards.
The distance between the ends of the horns of large bulls is more than a metre. The young buffalo horn boss forms fully only upon reaching the age of 5–6 years. In cows the horns are, on average, 10-20% less, and the boss is less prominent.
Forest buffalo horns are much smaller and weaker than those of the savannah buffaloes and are almost never fused. They rarely reach a length of even 40 cm.
Owing to its unpredictable nature which makes it highly dangerous to humans, it has not been domesticated unlike its Asian counterpart the domestic Asian water buffalo.
Poison dart frog (also dart-poison frog, poison frog or formerly poison arrow frog) is the common name of a group of frogs in the family Dendrobatidae which are native to Central and South America. These species are diurnal and often have brightly-colored bodies.
Although all wild dendrobatids are at least somewhat toxic, levels of toxicity vary considerably from one species to the next and from one population to another. Many species are critically endangered. These amphibians are often called “dart frogs” due to the Amerindians’ indigenous use of their toxic secretions to poison the tips of blowdarts.
However, of over 175 species, only three have been documented as being used for this purpose (curare plants are more commonly used), and none come from the Dendrobates genus, which is characterized by the brilliant color and complex patterns of its members.
From: oddstuffmagazine.com
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