Weird Nature

Stories, pics, trivia, and interesting tidbits about all creatures, great and small.

Enter the Animal Kingdom

Culture

The natural world is full of majesty and wonder. From the <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.ranker.com/list/creepy-deep-sea-creatures/jodi-smith">deep sea</a> to the rainforest to our own backyards, there's always so much to see - and that's never more obvious than when observing the animal kingdom, which is rich with awe-inspiring and often mind-blowing activity no matter where you look. Most of the time, humans have given animals fairly plain and unremarkable names, but every once in a while, we come up with names or nicknames that match up to certain creatures' bizarre or fabulous appearances and habits.&nbsp;Sometimes even a name like “bone-eating snot flower worm” can't come close to the level of pure strangeness that these creatures embody in their daily lives. From cannibalistic amphibians to sensitive, tiny armadillos with pink shells, all of these creatures are magical in their own right, and yet they exist right here on Earth.

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16 Weird Animal Names That Have Us Scratching Our Heads

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The 16 Weird Animal Names, Ranked By Animal Lovers

E. A. Gordon

Lists about the gazillions of things spinning around the whole infinite universe.

Space: The Final Frontier

The Space Page

According to the International Space Station (ISS) and NASA,&nbsp;<a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://exoplanets.nasa.gov/faq/6/how-many-exoplanets-are-there/">more than 5,000 exoplanets</a>&nbsp;have been discovered and confirmed in the last few decades. But this is only the tip of the iceberg. More are expected to be identified every year thanks to advances in space technology like the Hubble Telescope and <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.ranker.com/list/best-space-race-movies-ranked/jason-f-collins">the expertise of researchers</a>, astrophysicists, and astronomers.&nbsp;With so many planets found, scientists will continue to do what they do best: studying space to find other planets that could sustain life like Earth. So far, there hasn't been much success because even though some planets they have come across seem promising, <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.ranker.com/list/whoa-planet-facts/pierce-nahigyan">most are uninhabitable</a>. Many feature extreme temperatures, molten lava surfaces, ice winds, and superfast orbits that make years pass by in a matter of days.&nbsp;But this doesn't mean explorations will cease, especially considering the weird and wonderful exoplanets that have been found to date. Although numerous planets are worth examining, there are a few super-odd ones in the universe with very unique characteristics.

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The 14 Weirdest Planets In The Universe, Ranked By Astronomy Buffs

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The 14 Weirdest Planets In The Universe, Ranked

Jason F. Collins

Lists to celebrate and educate about some of the earth's most beautiful creations: flowers, trees, mosses, fungi, and even carnivorous plants.

Natural Botanicals

Plants

The natural world is amazing, and across the planet, plants take all kinds of weird and wonderful forms. Like many beautiful things, nature often contains <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.ranker.com/list/plants-to-avoid-while-hiking-camping/jonathan-kantor">hidden dangers</a>, and plants are <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.ranker.com/list/worlds-most-terrifying-and-dangerous-plants/laura-allan">no exception</a>. Danger conceals itself in beautiful shrubbery and vibrant flowers that range from the rainforests of South America to the dry Australian outback, proving you can never be totally <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.ranker.com/list/bizarre-effects-of-plants-fungi/nathan-gibson">safe in nature</a>.Get ready to take a <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.ranker.com/list/ethnobotany-secrets/scaryshari8">journey through species</a> from all parts of the world as we unpack what could happen should you encounter them. We'll reveal the hazards that hide behind their various parts, and equip you with skills to understand their complexity. Nature can be intimidating, but with our rundown, you'll be an expert in no time.Never attempt to eat any parts of any plants on this list.

The Most Dangerous Plants In The World That Prove Nature Can Be Terrifying

The 15 Most Dangerous Plants in the World, Ranked

Andrew McG

Bugs

Your brain will probably start buzzing when you think of common insect-related phrases:&nbsp;“She caught a bug and has been sick in bed all day.”&nbsp;“I'd love to be a fly on the wall in that room!”&nbsp;“I've got butterflies in my stomach right now.”&nbsp;It turns out that many of <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.ranker.com/list/common-terms-and-phrases-origins/melissa-sartore">these phrases have been around for centuries</a>. A few of these sayings came from literal usages, like the chaos that followed accidentally tipping over a can of worms. Others <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.ranker.com/list/where-hollywood-terms-come-from/emily-mast">come from totally unrelated </a>or surprising sources, like “hearing crickets” or “on the fly.”&nbsp;From bees to grasshoppers to ants, we've rounded up some of the most interesting bug-related phrases. Which do you think are the most buzzworthy?&nbsp;

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The Origins Of Insect-Inspired Phrases That Are Truly The Bee’s Knees

Origins Of Insect-Inspired Phrases

Emily Pogue

People have been living all around the world for literally thousands of years. Here are some of the most interesting things human beings have ever done (that we know about).

Fascinating Ancient History

Animals

Living in the 21st century certainly has its perks&nbsp;&ndash;&nbsp;deoderant, Snapchat, Beyonc&eacute;, and the list goes on. Fortunately for us, we&#39;re aren&#39;t doomed&nbsp;to roam any prehistoric era, when not getting mauled and eaten by a saber-tooth tiger was the most success a person could ask for on any given day. One of the biggest benefit of the modern age would have to be the lack of gargantuan &ndash; and sometimes carnivorous &ndash;&nbsp;prehistoric animals. Creatures of land, sky, and sea <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/why-prehistoric-animals-were-huge/olivia-pasquarelli" target="_blank">were all significantly larger</a> back then, and although most of these age-old giants have some distant relative still living today,&nbsp;they&#39;re&nbsp;not necessarily what you would expect. Check out the list below for things that were terrifyingly bigger in the prehistoric era.&nbsp; &nbsp;

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Weird Ancient History

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Things That Were Terrifyingly Bigger In Prehistoric Times

Animals That Were Terrifyingly Bigger in Prehistoric Times

Jacoby Bancroft

All birds, great and small, from the freaking enormous ostrich to the itty bitty hummingbird and every feathered flapper in between.

Avian Aficionados

Total Nerd

Birds are amazing animals. They've adapted to live in environments throughout the world. They're an extremely diverse group. Most fly, but many don't. Some are herbivores and some are carnivores. Some are shy and some are fearless. This list is full of the coolest birds on earth, from the fierce to the beautiful to the bizarre.All of these cool bird species have a special talent or distinguishing feature that makes them unique — whether that's reaching speeds of 200 miles per hour or migrating more than 40,000 miles per year. Explore the world of interesting birds, and vote for the bird you think is the greatest.

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The Most Interesting Birds on Earth

The Most Interesting Birds on Earth You've Never Seen Before

Katherine Ripley

Lists about insects, spiders, and other things you don't want living in your house.

Bugs & Creepy Crawlies

Run, don't walk!, from these dangerous and terrifying creatures, hunting humans around the world and lurking in your own backyard.

Formidable Beasts

One of humanity's most primal fears is that there is something crawling up your back right now. Seriously, you might want to check that out because a fear of insects resides in just about every one of us. There's good reason for that: there are some insect species who have absolutely no problem causing us real harm and even killing us!Humans may think themselves the dominant lifeforms on the planet, but there are millions of species of insect species in every nook and cranny of the globe. Some of the <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/terrifying-insects/jacobybancroft" target="_blank">scariest types of insects</a>, which attack humans, serve up a healthy dose of fear.The main problem with most insects is that you don't have to worry about one insect that attacks humans, you have to worry about a <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/bug-infestations-in-history/mike-rothschild" target="_blank">swarm of nasty bugs</a>. You might be able to swat one pesky bug, but 10,000 of them? That's a different story. Some of the scariest bug species around are rather ugly, which is one of the reasons people fear and despise them, while others are surprisingly beautiful. Despite their appearance, there are several species of insects that are dangerous to humans and should be avoided at all costs—and many&nbsp;are found on this list.

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The Scariest Types of Insects in the World

The Scariest Types of Insects | List of Scary Bug Species

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Lists of creatures around the world that are simply beautiful (or, at least, very interesting).

Cool-Looking Animals

Most people know of albinism, the famous genetic condition where an animal's skin lacks a&nbsp;pigment known as&nbsp;melanin, but few know its inverse:&nbsp;melanism. You might be asking, what is melanism?&nbsp;<a href="http://www.biology-online.org/dictionary/Melanism" target="_blank">Melanism</a> occurs when a creature develops much more melanin than other members of its species, leading to all black animals that look absolutely beautiful. Melanistic animals actually are&nbsp;somewhat common in nature, with some species even passing on the trait as a genetic adaptation. Black skin and fur&nbsp;assist in nighttime camouflage, and melanism can&nbsp;also help animals deal with extended periods in direct sunlight. While <a href="http://www.ranker.com/list/albino-animal-pictures/ranker-science" target="_blank">albino animals</a> remain&nbsp;vulnerable to UV rays, many melanistic animals&nbsp;benefit from their unique genes.These photos of all black animals capture the rare, almost statuesque beauty of animals caught in the world's most slimming shade. Though some <a href="http://www.ranker.com/list/extremely-colorful-animals/erin-mccann" target="_blank">animals thrive in every color</a>, others sport one and only one color, and they deserve proper notice for pulling it off.&nbsp;Whoever said orange is the new black clearly never saw a fox rocking a goth's signature color.

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17 Photos Of Melanistic (All Black) Animals That'll Leave You In Awe Of Mother Nature

19 Photos Of Black Animals You Had No Idea You Could Even Be Black

Eric Luis

Watchworthy

A list of organisms, including animals as well as plants, bacteria, etc., named for celebrities and other famous people (but excluding biologists, botanists and other scientists.)

Frequently when devising names for new species, scientists will fall back on famous people or historical figures who have inspired them over the years, or whose work in some way reflects an interest or relationship to that organism. (For example, one researcher named flies for Microsoft founders Bill Gates and Paul Allen, because of their contributions to Dipterology, the study of flies.)

This list is organized by the name of the celebrity and includes the full name of species commemorating or dedicated to them.

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102 Celebrities Who Have Entire Species Named After Them

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Animals Named for Celebrities | List of Stars Who Inspired Animal Names

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Lists about some of the most beautiful, dangerous, and otherwordly creatures that thrive in our very own oceans.

Our Neighbors in the Sea

Lists about some of the rarest, scariest, and most fascinating creatures that inhabit specific places around the world.

Animal Planet

If you&#39;re looking for some of the <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/creepy-deep-sea-creatures/jodi-smith" target="_blank">creepiest deep sea creatures</a> on the planet,&nbsp;look no further than the Mariana Trench, located in the Pacific Ocean directly east of the Philippines. Neither these scary-looking <a href="http://www.ranker.com/list/horrifying-creatures-found-in-the-deep-sea/laura-allan" target="_blank">sea monsters</a> nor the trench itself &mdash; largely considered one of the <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/creepy-places-in-the-oceans/edira-putri" target="_blank">creepiest places in the ocean</a>&nbsp;&mdash;&nbsp;are&nbsp;for the faint of heart.

The deepest part of any of Earth&#39;s oceans, the Mariana Trench is five times longer than the Grand Canyon and would be 7,000 feet deeper than Mount Everest if the peak&nbsp;was submerged&nbsp;there. There is no sunlight at&nbsp;3,280 feet below the surface;&nbsp;the pressure at the bottom is 1,000 times greater than at sea level; and the temperature hovers&nbsp;just above freezing. Any&nbsp;living animals&nbsp;swimming in its murky depths&nbsp;require&nbsp;specialized adaptations,&nbsp;such as bioluminescence &mdash; AKA the ability to&nbsp;glow in the dark &mdash;&nbsp;or&nbsp;glowing&nbsp;photophores,&nbsp;bodily&nbsp;organs that emit light,&nbsp;to survive.

The&nbsp;creatures that live in the Mariana&nbsp;Trench have adapted, but they&#39;ve adopted terrifying appearances in exchange.&nbsp;Scientists and filmmakers&nbsp;continue to study the largely unexplored area, but who are these creepy Mariana&nbsp;Trench creatures, and what makes them special?&nbsp;

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The Creepy Creatures Who Live In The Mariana Trench

The 17 Creepiest Creatures Who Live In The Mariana Trench

Erin McCann

Yes, the great potoo is an actual, genuine creature in the real world. No, the Universe isn't playing a joke. These wide-eyed, gape-mouthed clowns with one of the <a href="http://www.ranker.com/list/funny-bird-names/amylindorff" target="_blank">funniest bird names</a> around&nbsp;are the things amazing memes are made from—and they've taken the Internet by storm. Once you get a few facts about these birds under your belt, you'll realize that these hilarious birds not&nbsp;only look awesome, they are&nbsp;awesome. Well, awesome and kinda weird.Despite the goofy looks, the funny-looking great potoo bird is a creature that is actually kind of creepy.&nbsp;Between their ominous, heartbreaking cries, and the fact that they eat other birds, potoos are a force to be reckoned with. These nocturnal creatures love to hang out on their perches and stealthily hunt their prey. They are the strangest birds in the rainforest—not just because of their look, but because of their strange behaviors. Read on to discover more about the amazing great&nbsp;potoo!

10 Facts Most Don't Know About The Great Potoo, &quot;The Cartoon Bird&quot;

10 Interesting Facts About The Great Potoo, A Truly Cartoonish Bird

Mariel Loveland

Don't let their beauty or fact that they have a baseball team named after them deter you from thinking blue jay birds aren't a bunch of airborne jerks. They may be protected by the <a href="https://www.fws.gov/birds/policies-and-regulations/laws-legislations/migratory-bird-treaty-act.php" target="_blank">Migratory Bird Treaty Act</a>, but sometimes it seems other birds are the ones who need protection from mean blue jays. Dive bombing, stealing food, and even eating their victims babies are just a few of the intimidation tactics from the spooky smart blue jays.Blue jays can be found east of the Rocky Mountains throughout North America and have commonly been spotted living near cities. They are related to crows and ravens and other <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/smart-bird-corvids-facts/chase-christy" target="_blank">genius corvid birds who have amazing intelligence</a> and abilities. Blue jays may not <a href="http://www.ranker.com/list/crow-court-bird-justice/katejacobson" target="_blank">hold court like crows</a>, but they can mimic the cries of hawks, use tools, and work together in groups. If you've ever witnessed a blue jay going after another bird or even a human, you may have wondered &quot;why are blue jays aggressive?&quot; Here's a look at what's up with these blue jay jerks.

Blue Jays May Be Cute, But They're Airborne Jerks Of The Highest Order

Think you know your favorite animals? Study up on fun facts and fascinating trivia to drop at your next cocktail party.

Up Close with Awesome Animals

Sea Creatures

Among fluffy kittens and big eyed puppies, one of Earth&#39;s cutest animals is often said to be the cuddly little otter. But don&#39;t be fooled by the hand holding and cheek rubbing seen in pictures used for memes, posters, and throw pillows, otters are still wild animals and can be dangerous.

Otters can be found <a href="http://www.otter-world.com/facts-about-otters/" target="_blank">living on almost every continent</a> on Earth and these mean otter facts apply&nbsp;to all 13 species, many of which are unfortunately endangered due to over hunting, habitat destruction, and pandemic viruses among certain otter populations. Despite this, they win over many human fans with their adorable appearance, their playfulness, and their energetic antics. While they slide down hills, wrestle with each other, and engage in other cute <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/animals-with-human-hobbies/anna-lindwasser" target="_blank">humanlike hobbies</a>, people can easily overlook the horrors otters inflict on the members of their own species as well as others.

Are otters mean? It would be unfair to judge and characterize an entire subfamily of mammals through human moralization, but yea, they can be pretty vicious.

Terrifying Reasons Why Otters Are Not As Cute And Cuddly As They Appear

Otters Are Not Here For Your Cute Memes - They're Bloodthirsty Terrorists

The birds do it. The bees do it. Every animal species does it! Study up to learn how.

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Do you want some dating advice? You could learn a thing or two from the monogamous animals on this list, as they all mate for life. Whereas over half of marriages end in divorce, the animal pairs in the following photos usually stay together for the long haul. If certain birds, rodents, fish and even microscopic worms can remain faithful for life, do you think you can keep off Tinder and focus on your significant other? Swans are notoriously known to mate for life, but I bet some of the other animals on this list will surprise you.&nbsp;Take a look at the animal couples in the following photos that are a true testament to monogamy. Maybe some of them will inspire you to do the same.

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13 Monogamous Animals That Mate For Life

Monogamous Animals | List of Animals That Mate For Life

Not&nbsp;too often does&nbsp;one&nbsp;see fruits and veggies in the wild, and if you did you might not recognize the undomesticated fruits or vegetables that form the basis of the polished produce in&nbsp;grocery stores (yes, apples are even waxed). Undomesticated fruits and vegetables look a whole lot different -&nbsp;and, in some cases, are nowhere near as sweet as <a href="http://www.ranker.com/list/most-delicious-fruits/analise.dubner" target="_blank">delicious domesticated&nbsp;fruits</a>. Nowadays,&nbsp;grapes&nbsp;taste like cotton candy and apples&nbsp;take forever to brown. <a class="edS-cl" href="https://www.ranker.com/list/the-shower-rat-is-a-hoax/beth-elias?ref=internalCrossLinking_keyword">Sorry to break it to you</a>, but that comes from&nbsp;genetic modification and selective breeding. Most wild fruits do not look or taste like that. Period. So, what did fruits look like before domestication?

Well, nearly every fruit and vegetable you see in the grocery store weighs in at&nbsp;about three times larger than their wild counterparts. They barely bruise, take way longer to rot, and are brightly colored to appeal to human tendencies toward shiny objects. Basically, domesticated fruits and veggies are often the opposite of a genuine, wild fruit or veggie. Some people argue&nbsp;the genetic modification of human&nbsp;food supply is really dangerous, but others think it&#39;s no big deal. Seriously, who wouldn&#39;t want to eat a strawberry the size of an apple? The comparisons may be a bit alarming, but remember that when left in the wild, all sorts of <a href="http://www.ranker.com/list/weird-looking-fruit/chwang" target="_blank">weird fruit</a>&nbsp;and veggies can grow.

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17 Pics Of Common Fruits And Vegetables As You Know Them Compared To Their Undomesticated Forms

Food

20 Common Fruits Vs Their Undomesticated Forms (Photos)

Wild Facts

It's common for&nbsp;scientists to publish some report that says dinosaurs and birds had a lot in common physically. For some people, that might make dinos seem less terrifying. But in some cases, it makes birds seem a little scarier.&nbsp;One example is the shoebill stork, a species that many consider the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/scariest-birds-list/ranker-science" target="_blank">scariest bird</a> to walk the planet.If you’re looking for a modern-day dinosaur, then&nbsp;the elusive shoebill stork might be the closest you'll get.&nbsp;The shoebill bird is native to the marshes of East Africa. It's a&nbsp;masterful hunter and endangered species, but&nbsp;it's also a frightening creature to&nbsp;the inhabitants of the lands it occupies. If you want to understand just how bone-chillingly terrifying nature can be, then here are some reasons why the shoebill stork is&nbsp;a scary bird that&nbsp;you'd never want to encounter.

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Borderline Terrifying Facts About The Shoebill Bird

10 Terrifying Facts About the Shoebill Bird

Justin Andress

Weird Nature lists at Ranker - the ultimate source for lists and rankings in all categories

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Weird Nature lists at Ranker - the ultimate source for hundreds of Weird Nature lists and rankings.

Lists of bizarre real headlines and 100% true actual news stories from the physical world in which we all really live that are stranger, scarier, and more depressing than any fiction writer could ever dream.

Unbelievable News

Take the kids out for a fun day at the zoo! See wild animals in tiny recreations of their natural habitats! Watch as they suffer stress, indignity, unnatural climates, and public mating! ...Ooh, a monkey!!!

Locked Up: Animals Behind Bars

Mockery

Nothing good is going to come of a situation that involves being in a cage with a wild&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/cute-dangerous-animals/ranker-science" target="_blank">animal</a> at the zoo. And yet, people keep putting themselves in situations where &mdash;&nbsp;despite warnings from the zoo and others around them &mdash;&nbsp;they come face-to-face with lions, tigers, and bears. Some of these people were taken out by&nbsp;a caged animal; others were merely assaulted by a captive wild beast.&nbsp;

These are the tales of the outlandish&nbsp;and sometimes most inebriated people to ever jump the fence at a zoo.&nbsp;

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19 People Who Climbed The Fence At The Zoo

Stupid People At Zoos: Attacks & Idiots Jumping Fences

Danielle Dauenhauer

A look at some of the oldest known, recorded, and/or existing things on earth.

Old School Cool

Biology

This list of the oldest living things on Earth, including the <a href="https://www.ranker.com/list/longest-living-animals/robert-desalvo" target="_blank">oldest animals</a>, species, and organisms, will definitely make you feel young. You could probably nitpick some of these life forms within a million years here, a million years there... but the fact remains that these animals have been around a loooong time. What are the oldest living organisms on earth? And more importantly how have they stuck around this long?

These ancient organisms have been around for millions, or ever billions of years and have achieved apparent perfection in their environment. Millennia have passed, and they keep on keeping on. Sure, a tail might shorten, an extra tentacle might grow, or they might develop a more streamlined coat of armor... but, like that guy you know with the haircut he&#39;s had since high school, these animals have asked themselves the question: Why change it if it&#39;s working?

These are the oldest living things on the planet, and they just might still be here long after we are nothing more than fossils found buried in a pile of styrofoam take-out boxes.

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The 10 Oldest Living Things On Earth

The Oldest Animal on Earth (and the Oldest Living Things)

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Interesting

List of the world's smartest animals, in order of their animal intelligence ranking. When putting this list of the smartest animals in the world together, I had to give myself criteria to follow. A complex brain is not a factor so much as the ability to use creative thinking. Sure, these are my own standards, and some might complain that this list is decidedly anthropomorphic– seeing as how I'm judging these smart animals by obvious human criteria. For example, why should creative thinking mean one animal is smarter than another animal that can remember the location of 2,200 individual nuts it buried over 2 years? That's just how I decided to do it. To me, creative thinking makes an animal smart, not memorization. I couldn't limit myself to a list of just the top 10 smartest animals because that would have eliminated some incredibly smart and creative creatures. What is the smartest animal in the world? Check out this list of nerdy mammals to find out which of our pets will ultimately rule the planet when humans go extinct!

Out Of All The Animals On Earth, These 15 Are The Smartest

Smartest Animals: List of Most Intelligent Animal Ranking

Graveyard Shift

We're all more scared of one thing than another. Maybe it's the idea of being mauled by a Grizzly or having spiders crawl in your ear while you're sleeping. Maybe it's just the IDEA that a snake might be nearby. Whatever it is, vote on the animal that scares you the most, and of course, feel free to add any of the <a class="edS-cl" href="https://www.ranker.com/list/frightening-facts-about-the-world-s-scariest-animals/aaron-edwards?ref=internalCrossLinking_keyword">scariest animals in the world</a> that might be missing from this list.Any list of the scariest animals in the world will likely include sharks, spiders, and snakes. But what terrifies one person might not scare another at all. It's interesting to look at why certain animals strike fear, and others don't. Is it because many of the animals listed here are potentially deadly? Some spiders' bites can be horrible, but <a href="http://www.ranker.com/list/10-amazing-things-about-spiders/analise.dubner" target="_blank">spiders can also be pretty amazing.</a> Sure, but that doesn't explain why cockroaches freak people out (if you don't believe me, just check the list, and see the votes for yourself). It's highly unlikely that you'll be done in by a killer cockroach – so what gives? Well, they're creepy, they're crawly and (depending on where you live) they *can* fly. That qualifies as scary.And yes, some of the scariest animals listed here, we'll never ever encounter in real life. Oh, we might see a great white shark in an aquarium or on TV during <a href="http://www.ranker.com/list/full-list-of-shark-week-episodes/reference" target="_blank">Shark Week</a>, but really? The odds of us actually coming face to face with a great white are pretty slim. Still, we've all seen Jaws, so that sucker shoots to the top of the list. And bats: Yes, some believe they are scary, but there are a lot of <a href="http://www.ranker.com/list/top-10-untrue-myths-about-animals/analise.dubner" target="_blank">myths surrounding these and other animals</a> that, if you knew more, might make them a bit less terrifying.Which animals scare you the most? Are they insects? Reptiles? Mammals (and yes, this includes man)? Time to vote!