Africa is a bloody battlefield. The desperate struggle for life here does not stop for a minute. It is worth gape, and you have already become someone else's dinner. These ten most dangerous animals in Africa are swift and ruthless. Near the water and in the sand, among the dense greenery and in the vast expanses of the savannah, ideal predators lurk.
10. Spotted Hyena
The piercing laughter of a night hunter does not bode well - even a lion will not risk being in the way of a hungry flock spotted hyenas. Sharp teeth and powerful jaws, effortlessly crushing the buffalo bones, leave no chance for the victim. Contrary to myth, hyenas eat carrion only in one of five cases - acting together, the clan is able to defeat the antelope, giraffe and even a young elephant!
Fortunately, spotted hyenas rarely attack humans. Being social animals, they relatively calmly tolerate neighborhood with humans and are easily tamed. But if the hunting grounds are impoverished, the clan can raid villages. Nearly a meter at the withers, the compression force of the jaws exceeds the lion’s, the speed of 60 km / h - the peasants are defenseless in front of a bloodthirsty flock.
9. Great white shark
If the lion is the king of animals on land, then White shark rules the marine life. With a length of 6 meters and an average weight of 1,500 kg, it has no natural enemies - only combed crocodiles and killer whales occasionally attack young individuals. White sharks prey on pinnipeds, porpoises, dolphins, young whales. They eat carrion and often try inedible objects on their teeth.
By the way, the teeth of an adult cannibal shark have more than 500 - the picket of sharpest blades goes deep into the throat and is constantly updated. Despite the illegibility in food, they attack people, apparently by accident - out of 100 victims, 90 survive. This is simply an incredible percentage, taking into account the absurd temper, the enormous size and the indefatigable appetite of a sea predator.
8. Yellow scorpion
The Sahara is home to the most dangerous scorpion on the planet - yellow desert scorpion. Under cover of night, he waits for the victim in ambush, attacking rodents, large spiders and insects. Grabbing the prey with jagged claws, the scorpion instantly kills it with the strongest toxin. The poison of a ten-centimeter desert inhabitant is three times more effective than the poison of Cape Cobra, one of the most poisonous snakes in the world!
Fortunately for the locals, the amount of poison is not enough to kill a healthy adult. The usual consequences of a bite are severe fever and high blood pressure. But the bite of a yellow scorpion kills children, old people and people with a heart condition in a matter of minutes. Cases of anaphylactic shock, stroke and pulmonary edema are frequent.
7. African lion
Feline grace with a weight of 250 kg, powerful jaws, sharp vision, impeccable hearing and scent - african lion rightfully considered the perfect hunter. And do not be fooled by the sleepy serenity of the maned male — he is ready to defend the pride at any moment. As social animals, lions prey on wildebeests, zebras, buffalos and warthogs.
In the hunger period, lionesses with the support of the leader can attack a young elephant, giraffe and even hippo. The pride does not regard humans as prey, but there are cases of cannibalism - single males hunted down peasants near villages. In recent decades, cases of lion attacks on humans have been isolated due to a sharp decline in the population of these proud predators.
6. The savannah elephant
Once upon a time african elephants dominated the whole continent, but today their area has decreased from 30 million to 4 million km². The largest land mammal is considered extinct in Mauritania, Burundi and the Gambia. Leading a nomadic way of life, elephants constantly encounter obstacles - roads, towns, fenced with barbed wire gardens and fields.
Typically, elephants do not threaten people, but after a few hassles they memorize negative experiences and can attack people at subsequent meetings. The three-meter giant weighing seven tons effortlessly demolishes fences and huts, and a car racing at full speed - cars and brick buildings. A person has no chance even against the trunk, with which the elephant easily lifts 200 kg.
5. Black buffalo
Adult African Male Weight black buffalo reaches a ton with a height at the withers of about two meters. Bulls are extremely aggressive in protecting the herd, surrounding females and calves with a dense ring. Even lions belong to these giants with special parity - a sharp meter-high horn easily pierces the body through, and a blow with a hoof in the head kills instantly.
Because of the unpredictable absurd temper, the African buffalo was never domesticated. The herd does not tolerate close proximity with people, but is in no hurry to flee - about 200 people die as a result of targeted attacks by buffalo. Another hundred die under the hooves of a frightened herd racing at a speed of about 50 km / h.
4. Nile crocodile
The compression force of the jaws of this insidious predator is 350 atmospheres, which is second only to the combed crocodile. The average weight of the Nile giant exceeds 300 kg with a body length of about 3 meters! The largest individuals even attack lions and hippos - revolving around its axis, an insatiable hunter tears a huge carcass into pieces.
Nile crocodile ready to eat in each case, absorbing a portion equal to 20% of its own weight. He hunts in ponds across Africa, lurking off the coast. According to various estimates, annually, giant reptiles kill 400-700 people. There are so many cases of non-lethal attacks that they are not recorded - local residents often settle near water bodies and encounter crocodiles almost daily.
3. Hippo
Four tons of serenity, resting in the water, instantly turn into an uncontrollable rage, you just have to disturb the peace of a deceptively good-natured beast. Developing a speed of 30 km / h, hippopotamus easily drives away any aliens, not yielding even to rhinos and elephants. In addition to vegetation, hippos eat carrion and attack ungulates, including livestock.
For a person, meeting a furious male or a female protecting offspring is fatal. The hippopotamus does not just drive away - it seeks to finish off the enemy, piercing his body with terrible fangs or banally crushing. About 1,000 people die from hippo attacks each year. This is more than killing lions, buffalos and leopards.
2. Mosquitoes
Unlike other representatives of the African fauna, mosquito in itself is not a threat to humans. But his bite can lead to death - tens of thousands of people die every year from diseases transmitted by mosquitoes:
- malaria
- yellow fever
- West Nile Fever
- dengue fever
- Zika virus
- chikungunya virus
Scientists around the world are looking for ways to reduce the population of bloodsucking parasites, but all measures give only temporary effects. African mosquitoes mutate, adapting to poisons and repellents. Fortunately, timely vaccination steadily reduces the number of victims of invisible killers.
1. Black mamba
Africa's largest poisonous snake reaches a length of 3.5 meters and speeds up to 14 km / h! Contrary to the name, the snake is painted in olive or gray color - it is black because of the ink shade of the mouth. Mamba easily enraged and completely fearless. They attack people, with each bite injecting a new portion of a deadly toxin into the blood of the victim.
The wound burns with fire and quickly swells. After a few minutes, vomiting and diarrhea opens, and then paralysis and suffocation occurs. Only an antidote introduced immediately after a bite can save from painful death. Unfortunately, the antidote is not available to many people in Africa - according to various sources, 7000-12000 people die every year from the bite of this snake.