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A cassowary appears like a flamboyant ostrich and is often found
wandering the rain forests of Australia and New Guinea. It prefers to keep a
low profile, but when disturbed this flightless bird can become extremely
aggressive and territorial. Capable of running and leaping at high speeds,
the cassowary attacks by thrusting its large claws forward with the aim of
disemboweling its target.
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The cassowary can
charge up to 30 miles per hour and leap more than 3 feet in the
air, reports Smithsonian. The birds' claws — one curved and two straight
as daggers — are so sharp that New Guinea tribesmen put them over the tips of
their spears to really make their weapons dangerous.
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Poison Dart Frog
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Poison dart frogs wear some of the most brilliant and beautiful colors
on Earth. Depending on individual habitats their coloring can be yellow,
gold, copper, red, green, blue, or black. Their elaborate designs and hues
are deliberately ostentatious to ward off potential predators, a tactic
called aposematic coloration. The charismatic colors might catch our eye, but such pizzazz is also nature's
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way of telling you to stay away. The poison dart frog is among the
most poisonous creatures on Earth. The two-inch-long golden poison dart frog,
for example, has enough venom to kill 10 adult men, reports National
Geographic. Indigenous American Indians used the toxic secretions to poison
the tips of blowgun darts. That's how the frog earned its common name. Scientists
aren't sure where the frogs' toxicity comes from. They may gather plant
poisons carried by ants, termites, beetles and other prey they eat. Poison
dart frogs that are raised in captivity and isolated from native insects
don't develop venom.
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Blue-ringed Octopus
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Blue-ringed octopuses are among the most dangerous animals in the sea.
Throughout their range in Australia and the eastern Indo-Pacific, several
humans suffer bites each year. Unfortunately, some of these are fatal. In
Australia where blue-rings occur in shallow coastal waters and can be
relatively common in areas frequented by beach-goers, there have been dozens
of reported bites and several deaths.
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Typically, the victim is unaware of the danger and either picks up the
innocuous looking octopus or inadvertently contacts it. The bite is slight
and produces at most only a small laceration with no more than a tiny drop of
blood and little or no discoloration. Bites are usually reported as being
painless. Often the victim doesn't even know that he had been bitten. This
can make it difficult for emergency and medical personnel to determine the
cause of a patient's distress. In cases with prolonged contact, the venom
might pass directly through the skin. The
tiny blue-ringed octopus can pack a wallop. It is widely regarded as one of
the world's most venomous animals. It lives in tidal regions ranging from
Australia to Japan and is frequently encountered by people wading in tide
pools. If provoked or stepped on, it will bite. Blue-ringed octopus poison
has no antivenom and can kill an adult human within minutes. The name comes
from the bright iridescent blue rings that show up when the octopus becomes
alarmed. The blue rings are a warning when threatened. If a predator doesn't
leave, the octopus attacks by ejecting venom that causes paralysis, and then
death. The more common blue-ringed octopus, Hapalochlaena
maculosa, carries
enough poison to kill 26 adults in just a few minutes.
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Gila Monster
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The Gila monster is one of only a few poisonous lizards in the world.
The Gila is the largest lizard native to the United States. Their black
bodies are covered in beadlike scales with bright spots, blotches, or bands
of pink, orange, or yellow, which probably warn other animals to stay away. Their bulky bodies, slow-moving stride, thick forked tongue, and snort-
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ting hisses
reinforce the name Gila monster. They live in the dry, arid regions such as the Mojave, Sonoran, and Chihuahuan
Deserts of the southwestern U.S. and northwestern Mexico. They are named
after the Arizona Gila River Basin, where they were first
discovered. This chunky lizard with pink or orange spots, though, is
sluggish, the Gila monster is capable of delivering a painful dose of venom
when provoked or stepped on. The venom comes from glands in the lizard's
lower jaw. The Gila monster has a strong bite and will often not loosen its
grip for several seconds, even chewing to help spread the venom deeper into its
victim. If you are bitten by Gila monster, the University of Adelaide
Clinical Toxinology Resources group suggests you submerge the lizard in
water to break free from its strong jaws.
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Giant Anteater
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As its common name suggests, the giant anteater (Myrmecophaga tridactyla) is the largest
of the living anteaters and is instantly recognized around the world. They
are strange-looking animals, with the body roughly divided into three equal
regions: the long nose and head, the body and the tail. Beneath the skin of
the long nose is a bone tube formed by the fusion of the upper and lower jaw.
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The nose houses an impressively long, sticky tongue, which can measure
up to 50 centimeters in length. You wouldn't know it by looking at it, but
this large creature feeds only on ants and termites. Its size is part of what
makes it such a dangerous animal, but the true weapons are the powerful,
sharp claws. If threatened, an anteater can maul a human and do an incredible
amount of damage with just one swipe. Anteaters aren't aggressive, but will
fight back fiercely if cornered. A threatened, cornered anteater will rear up
on its hind legs, while using its large tail for balance. It will lash out
with its claw which can be four inches long. The giant anteater is ferocious
enough to fight off animals as aggressive as jaguars and pumas.
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Bears
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Bears are large mammals that eat mostly meat and fish, with the
exception of panda bears which are herbivores and live also entirely on
bamboo. There are only eight
living species of bears and they can be found throughout most of the world. Bears are some of the most lovable large carnivores in the world, often
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the subject of childhood tales and treasured as teddy bears. It's a strange
association, given that they are also on the shortlist of animals known to
hunt and kill humans. Grizzlies and polar bears are the most feared, but all
large species of bear can potentially be dangerous — even the vegetarian
giant panda.
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Leopard Seal
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The leopard seal is named for its black-spotted coat. The pattern is
similar to that of the famous big cat, though the seal's coat is gray rather
than golden in color. The leopard seal
is at the top of the food chain in its home in the Antarctic, and this is one
predator you don't want to swim with.
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It is bold, powerful and curious, and it has been known to hunt people,
although it usually targets penguins. This seal is sometimes called the sea
leopard, and the resemblance is more than skin deep. Like their feline
namesakes, leopard seals are fierce predators. They are the most formidable
hunters of all the seals and the only ones that feed on warm-blooded prey,
such as other seals. Leopard seals use their powerful jaws and long teeth to
kill smaller seals, fish, and squid.
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Monkeys and Apes
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These animals are most similar to humans, creating a natural bond and
some pitfalls as well. Some diseases carried by monkeys and apes can be
easily transmitted to humans. Even a small monkey can bite, potentially transmitting a virus like
hepatitis C. Larger apes, such as chimpanzees, orangutans and gorillas are powerful
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animals capable of mauling a human if they feel threatened.
Sometimes even chimps kept as pets have harmed their owners. It could be due to aggressive tendencies,
illness or even frustration. In any case, the one thing that can't be underestimated
is their brute strength.
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Elephant
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Elephants are the largest land animals on Earth. They have
characteristic long noses, or trunks; large, floppy ears; and wide, thick
legs. There are two species of elephants. The Asian elephant and the African
elephant live on separate continents and have many unique features.
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There are several subspecies that belong to one or the other of these
two main species, though there is disagreement over just how many subspecies
there are. The elephant is often portrayed as a lovable giant, and animals
domesticated by trainers and zookeepers can be quite peaceful. But if
agitated, abused or if encountered in the wild, an elephant can be one of the
most dangerous creatures in the world. Elephants experience unexpected bouts
of rage and are known to be vindictive. In India, hundreds of people
are killed by mistreated or rampaging elephants.
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Pfeffer's Flamboyant
Cuttlefish
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Pfeffer's flamboyant cuttlefishes are truly amazing animals and well
named. A favorite of underwater photographers and videographers, flamboyant
cuttlefishes display stunning changing colors and patterns and actually
"walk" along the bottom of the sea. It has a maximum mantle (the part behind the head) length of 6-8 cm with 3 pairs of flap-like fleshy papillae and a V-shaped ventral (underside) fleshy ridge, These cuttlefishes also have large vio-
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let
oblique V-shaped patches on both sides of their dorsal (topside) mantle.
Papillae are also present over their eyes. The papillae are used for
camouflage to break up the outline of the cuttlefish. Don't try to cuddle
this cuttlefish. Though charming and colorful, this aptly named fish's
displays are meant as a warning. Like octopuses and some squid, cuttlefish
are venomous. The muscles of the cuttlefish contain a highly toxic compound.
Although cuttlefish rarely encounter humans, their poison is considered extremely
toxic and can be as lethal as the poison of the blue-ringed octopus.
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