This is a list of the deadliest animals to humans worldwide, measured by the number of humans killed per year. Different lists have varying criteria and definitions, so lists from different sources disagree and can be contentious. This article contains a compilation of lists from several reliable sources.
List of the most deadly animals
| Source: CNET | Source: Business Insider | Source: BBC News | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Animal | Humans killed
per year |
Animal | Humans killed
per year |
Animal | Humans killed
per year | |
| 1 | Mosquitoes | 1,000,000 | Mosquitoes | 750,000 | Mosquitoes | 725,000 |
| 2 | Humans (homicide) | 475,000 | Humans (homicide) | 437,000 | Snakes | 50,000 |
| 3 | Snakes | 50,000 | Snakes | 100,000 | Dogs | 25,000 |
| 4 | Dogs | 25,000 | Dogs | 35,000 | Tsetse flies | 10,000 |
| 5 | Tsetse flies | 10,000 | Freshwater snails | >20,000 | Crocodiles | 1,000 |
| 6 | Assassin bugs | 10,000 | Assassin bugs | 12,000 | Hippopotamuses | 500 |
| 7 | Freshwater snails | 10,000 | Tsetse flies | 10,000 | ||
| 8 | Scorpions | 3,250 | Scorpions | 3,250 | ||
| 9 | Ascaris roundworms | 2,500 | Ascaris roundworms | 2,500 | ||
| 10 | Tapeworms | 2,000 | Tapeworms | 2,000 | ||
See also
Notes
- Mosquitoes do not kill humans directly. Rather, they are a vector that transmits mosquito-borne diseases.
- Dogs seldom kill humans directly. Rather, they are primarily a vector that transmits rabies.
- Tsetse flies do not kill humans directly. Rather, they are a vector that transmits sleeping sickness.
- Assassin bugs do not kill humans directly. Rather, they are a vector that transmits Chagas disease.
- Freshwater snails do not kill humans directly. Rather, they are a vector that transmits a variety of tropical diseases.
References
- Ritchie, Hannah; Spooner, Fiona; Roser, Max (14 February 2018). "Causes of death". Our World in Data. Retrieved 10 April 2023.
- Learish, Jessica (October 15, 2016). "The 24 deadliest animals on Earth, ranked". CNET. Archived from the original on March 24, 2019. Retrieved March 24, 2019.
- Ramsey, Lydia (September 4, 2016). "These are the world's deadliest animals". Business Insider. Archived from the original on June 3, 2021. Retrieved June 3, 2021.
- "What are the world's deadliest animals?". BBC News. June 15, 2016. Archived from the original on July 31, 2019. Retrieved March 24, 2019.
- Deadliest animals to humans, discoverwildlife.com. Accessed May 15, 2024.
Further reading
- What Animals Kill The Most Humans Each Year?, World Atlas
- Malaria, World Health Organization
- Animal bites, World Health Organization
- West Niles virus, World Health Organization
- Forrester, Joseph D.; Weiser, Thomas G.; Forrester, Jared A. (March 1, 2018). "An Update on Fatalities Due to Venomous and Nonvenomous Animals in the United States (2008–2015)". Wilderness & Environmental Medicine. 29 (1): 36–44. doi:10.1016/j.wem.2017.10.004. ISSN 1080-6032. PMID 29373216.
External links
- The Deadliest Animal in the World, Gates Notes
- These Are The Top 15 Deadliest Animals on Earth, Science Alert
- Top 10 Deadliest Animals To Humans In The World, Toptenia
- The 25 Most Dangerous Animals In The World, List 25
- The Most Dangerous Animals in the World, Animal Danger
- Top 10 Most Dangerous Animals In The World, Conservation Institute
- Schistosomiasis: Still a Cause of Significant Morbidity and Mortality, National Center for Biotechnology Information, U.S. National Library of Medicine