Who is larger than an elephant or a shark in size. Species: Cetorhinus maximus = Giant shark. Elephant Shark = Giant Shark

Among animals, as, indeed, among people, there are champions worthy of getting into the Guinness Book of Records. Some of them are recognized as the strongest, others - the fastest. And some can only boast of their huge weight or number of teeth. But today we are only interested in one category, which we will discuss below.

There are many terrestrial and marine life who can compete for the title heaviest animal in the world. If you ask passers-by on the street which animal is the heaviest, you can hear a variety of answers: an elephant and a buffalo, a whale and a shark, a hippopotamus and even a giraffe. But in this article, we must name the only terrestrial inhabitant whose weight and size significantly exceeds the parameters of competitors. You will find out how much an elephant and a hippopotamus weigh, and whether they can be considered the heaviest. First, let's get acquainted with some giants that live on land.

Kodiak bear

This is not the heaviest land animal, but I would like to mention it in our review. A subspecies which in many countries is under state protection. The average weight of a male exceeds 700 kilograms, and that of a female - 300 kilograms. At the same time, it must be said that cases have been recorded when the weight of the kodiak exceeded a ton.

White (polar) bear

It is the heaviest carnivore that lives on land. The largest polar bear weighed a little over a ton and had a body length of about three meters. The height of the predator standing on its paws was 3.39 m. The average body length of male polar bears is about two and a half meters, the height at the withers is up to one and a half meters, and the average weight reaches eight hundred kilograms. Bears are about half the size of males, their weight does not exceed 300 kilograms. It is interesting that a hundred thousand years ago (during the Pleistocene era) a huge polar bear lived on earth, whose weight exceeded 1.2 tons, and its size was four meters in length.

Hippopotamus

This is one of the largest and heaviest animals living on Earth. The weight of large males often exceeds four tons, so the hippopotamus is a worthy competitor to the rhinoceros in the fight for second place in terms of mass among terrestrial inhabitants.

Now the hippopotamus in natural conditions is found only in Africa, south of the Sahara, although in ancient times, for example, it had a wider range. This giant lived in the territory North Africa, as well as scientists believe that he lived in the Middle East. However, by the early Middle Ages, it was destroyed in these regions. In 2006 international union The Nature Conservancy declared the hippopotamus vulnerable.

The number of these animals at that time did not exceed one hundred and fifty thousand heads. The natives of Africa destroy hippos primarily for the sake of meat, so bloody wars and instability in many countries of the continent force starving people to look for food, thereby causing great damage to the animal population.

African elephant

This is the heaviest animal in the world that lives on land. From brothers living on other continents, he differs not only in body weight, but also in huge ears, which help him feel most comfortable under the rays of the scorching African sun.

The tusks of these giants are highly valued. It was they who nearly became the cause of the complete extermination of elephants. A huge number of animals were killed for expensive trophies. The situation with the disappearance of the population was saved by nature reserves and national parks.

The weight of African elephants is impressive: adult males weigh more than 7.5 tons, but at the same time, the heaviest land animal is very mobile, swims well and feels confident even on rocky terrain. African elephants are herbivores. They feed on young shoots of trees and shrubs, grass. An adult absorbs up to one hundred kilograms of green mass per day. Animals form small herds of 9-14 individuals. In addition to humans, elephants have no enemies in nature.

Knowing how much an elephant and a hippopotamus weigh, different ones can easily determine the leader by body weight. This, of course, African elephant, which is the heaviest land animal. It's time to get acquainted with the underwater inhabitants. Perhaps the heaviest animal in the world lives in the depths of the sea.

whale shark

This is the largest shark among its relatives. Despite the impressive size (up to twenty meters) and impressive weight (up to twenty tons), this is not the heaviest. Representatives of this species live in the southern and northern seas. Northern individuals are much larger.

This gray-brown giant, covered with white spots, the location of which is unique to each individual, lives for about seventy years. They feed by filtering out plankton and filtering the water. During the day, the shark passes 350 tons of water and eats more than two hundred kilograms of plankton. The mouth of this "fish" can accommodate up to five people, its jaws are strewn with fifteen thousand small teeth.

But these inhabitants of the depths are never the first to attack a person, and many scuba divers even touch them. Whale sharks are little studied and very slow. Their number is small, so the species is listed in the Red Book.

sperm whale - toothed whale

Another very large, but not the heaviest animal. The weight of an adult male is about seventy tons, and its body length reaches twenty meters. The body shape of the sperm whale (in the form of a drop) allows it to make long journeys in a short time (during the migration period).

Sperm whales, unlike whales, live in groups of up to 150 animals. The representative of the species has a huge rectangular head, compressed on the sides. It makes up a third of the entire body of the whale. Below is a mouth with cone-shaped teeth. These animals have lower jaw mobile and can open almost 90 degrees, which helps to capture fairly large prey.

Sperm whales (sperm whales) have one blowhole located in front of the head. It is slightly shifted to the left. Sperm whales feed on cephalopods and fish. But at the same time, they can attack seals, dive to the bottom for squid, crabs, sponges and mollusks, descending to a depth of more than 400 meters.

The blue whale is the heaviest animal

This is really the largest animal on our planet. The length of the body reaches thirty meters, and the mass blue whale is 180 tons and above. The females are slightly larger than the males.

It's hard to imagine, but the tongue of this sea giant weighs about 2.7 tons, which is comparable to the weight Indian elephant. The blue whale has the largest heart among mammals: it weighs 900 kilograms. To imagine its dimensions, look at the Mini Cooper car. They are comparable in size and weight.

The heaviest animal in the world has an elongated and rather slender body. On a huge head are disproportionately small eyes. The pointed muzzle has a wide lower jaw. The blue whale has a blowhole, from which, when exhaling, it releases a fountain of water, reaching a height of 10 meters. In front of the blowhole there is a well-marked longitudinal ridge - the so-called breakwater.

This giant has dorsal, strongly shifted back. Compared to its body size, it is quite small and triangular in shape. Its rear edge is covered with scratches, forming an individual pattern for each whale.

Physiological features

The sense of smell and vision of the blue whale are rather poorly developed. But the sense of touch and hearing are excellent. Representatives of this species of whales have a huge lung capacity, and the amount of blood exceeds eight thousand liters. Despite its impressive size, the blue whale has a narrow throat with a diameter of only ten centimeters. The pulse of this is 5-10 beats per minute and rarely rises to 20 beats.

The skin of the blue whale is even and smooth, except for the stripes on the belly and throat. These animals are practically not overgrown with crustaceans, which often settle on other whales in large numbers. The color of the animal is predominantly gray with a blue tint. The head and lower jaw are usually painted in a darker and more intense gray.

Go to section heading:Sharks

Family: Cetornidae = Giant sharks

Genus: Cetorhinus = Giant sharks

Elephant Shark = Giant Shark

L.A. BELOVA

In the winter of 1939 on the shore Atlantic Ocean, near the city of Provincetown in US state Massachusetts, a sea-bleached skeleton of a huge animal was found. Its length was about 7.5 m. And although the huge skull looked like a fish skull, four truncated legs, or rather, "bones" from them, and a long elongated spine were puzzling. Soon there was talk of the "sea serpent" all over the coast.

But, as it turned out, years this one belonged to a giant shark (Cetorhinus maximus) - the second largest of the currently preserved sharks. In length, this fish can reach 14 m and weigh up to 10 tons. This is only slightly less than that of the "record holder" - the whale shark (Rhincodon typus). Pectoral fins giant sharks are large and powerful - they serve as a kind of "bearing planes" that do not allow the heavy front half of the body of the fish to sink down when swimming. When the body of a dead giant shark is washed ashore and the soft tissues decompose, the remains of these fins remain next to the elongated skull and long spine. And if it was a male shark, then a couple of meter-long pterygopodia can also be found near the skeleton. As a result, it seems that the remains of some mysterious quadruped lie on the shore.

Very large specimens of a giant shark are rare, but even “small” individuals of this species look impressive - their average length is 4–8 m, and their weight is from 3 to 6 tons. Despite its awesome appearance, the giant shark is a harmless creature. This fish feeds on plankton, which it collects by cruising at the surface of the water at a speed of two to three knots (3–5 km / h) with its mouth wide open and filtering through the gills every hour up to 2000, and according to other sources - up to 6000 tons of water. The teeth of a giant shark are small, no more than 0.5 cm. But the gill slits are huge - they cover the head from the dorsal side to the throat, and when the fish sticks out its gills, it seems that its head is about to break off from the body. And through the open mouth, you can see the inside of the gill cavity. Each gill arch bears 1000–1300 long horny gill filaments. chinks on which planktonic organisms settle. The stomach of the giant shark is very large - in large specimens, about 1 ton of plankton mass was found in it.

Some juveniles of the basking shark have a laterally compressed snout hanging over the mouth like a trunk, and the head is flattened at the sides, giving the fish a resemblance to an old elephant with sunken cheeks. Such fish were called the "elephant shark", and for a long time they were considered representatives of a separate species. In adult giant sharks, the snout is bent to a lesser extent, and the resemblance to an elephant disappears.

The giant shark lives in moderately cold and temperate waters of both hemispheres. Individual specimens are also found here - off the coast Kola Peninsula and even in the White Sea. In summer, giant sharks actively feed or drift slowly, sticking their dorsal and caudal fins out of the water, as well as the tip of their snout. For this, the British call them basking shark - a shark basking in the sun. These fish are kept singly or in small groups.

Almost nothing is known about the reproduction of the giant shark. The smallest fish of this species ever caught was 165 cm long. According to indirect data, it can be judged that these sharks are ovoviviparous and bring 1–2 cubs, and the “pregnancy” lasts at least 3 years.

In winter, when the number of planktonic organisms drops and the water temperature becomes low, basking sharks are almost invisible. Many researchers believe that at this time, the energy expenditure of swimming to collect plankton would be much higher than the shark would be able to get from food. Therefore, these fish are probably inactive during the winter, which allows them to economically use their fat reserves accumulated in summer. They lie passively on the ocean floor in such a position that the current provides the flow of water through the gills. But it is not known how things really are - maybe the fish simply migrate south and stay far from the coast.

Fat reserves are deposited mainly in the liver, the weight of which can be up to 20% of the total weight of the fish. Because of this fat, used for technical purposes, giant sharks have long been hunted along Atlantic coast Europe. Seeing an animal grazing on plankton fields, hunters approached it in boats or small vessels and threw harpoons at it. When it became known that shark liver oil contains more vitamins than the classic "fish oil" - cod, the demand for giant sharks increased dramatically. Especially a lot of sharks were caught during World War II. Then the boom passed, but the stocks of these amazing fish were undermined. Now the giant shark is rare and is listed in the International Red Book ...

Our world is truly amazing. It is full of beings big and small, low and high. Today we offer you an extraordinary interesting selection. It contains photographs of the fifteen largest animals in the world, broken down by various categories such as mammals, reptiles, birds, amphibians, etc. Some of these animals are real giants!

1. The largest animal in the world is the blue (or blue) whale.
The blue whale, also called the blue whale or the blue whale (Balaenoptera musculus), is a marine mammal that belongs to the order Cetacea to the suborder Baleen whales. At 30 meters (98 ft) long and 180 metric tons or more in weight, it is the largest of the known to science animals that have ever lived on our planet. The tongue of a blue whale can weigh up to about 2.7 tons (5,952 pounds), which is about the weight of a medium-sized Asian elephant. The blue whale's heart weighs about 600 kilograms (1,300 pounds) and is the largest such organ of any living creature. The heart of a blue whale is not only the size of a small car, but it also weighs about the same as the mentioned car. And the lung capacity of a blue whale exceeds 3,000 liters.

2. The blue whale is thought to feed almost exclusively on small shrimp-like creatures known as krill.

3. The basis of the diet of the blue whale is plankton. Thanks to its filtering apparatus, which consists of whalebone plates, for summer months a blue whale can ingest a whopping 3.6 metric tons (7,900 pounds) or more daily.

4. This means that he can eat up to 40 million krill per day, despite the fact that daily requirement in calories of an adult blue whale is in the region of 1.5 million. kcal.

6. The largest land animal in the world: African elephant. The African elephant is the largest land animal. Male African elephants are 6 to 7.5 meters (19.7 to 24.6 ft) long, 3.3 m (10.8 ft) tall at the withers, and can weigh up to 6 tons (13,000 lb). Female African elephants are much smaller, averaging 5.4 to 6.9 m (17.7 to 22.6 ft) long, 2.7 meters (8.9 ft) high at the withers, and weighing up to reach 3 tons (6600 pounds). Adult African elephants in general have no enemies in their natural habitat due to their extremely large size, but baby elephants (especially newborns) are one of the favorite prey species for bloodthirsty attacks by lions or crocodiles, and are also often attacked by leopards or hyenas. According to the latest data, in wild nature The population of African elephants is from 500 to 600 thousand individuals.

7. The tallest land animal in the world: the giraffe.

The giraffe (Giraffa camelopardalis) is an African mammal from the order artiodactyl families giraffe. It is the tallest land animal in the world. its height averages 5–6 meters (16–20 ft). Male giraffes have an average weight of 1,600 kilograms (3,500 lb), while females can weigh around 830 kilograms (1,800 lb). Distinctive characteristic giraffe is a very long neck that can reach over 2 meters (6 feet 7 inches) in length. In fact, the neck accounts for almost half vertical height animal. Long neck is the result of a disproportionate lengthening of the cervical vertebrae, and not an increase in the number of vertebrae, of which the giraffe, like almost all other mammals, has only seven

8. largest predator in the world: Southern elephant seal.
The southern elephant seal is the largest carnivore on our planet. The size of the southern elephant seal is evidence of extreme sexual dimorphism, the most significant of any mammal, as male southern elephant seals are typically five to six times heavier than females. While females can average 400 to 900 kilograms (880 to 2,000 lb) and be 2.6 to 3 meters (8.5 to 9.8 ft) long, southern elephant seal males average approximately 2,200 to 4,000 kg (4,900 to 8,800 lb) and can reach 4.5 to 5.8 meters (15 to 19 ft) in length. Absolute record A southern elephant seal shot at Possession Bay, South Georgia on February 28, 1913, measured 6.85 meters (22.5 feet) in length and is estimated to have weighed approximately 5,000 kilograms (11,000 pounds).
Southern marines can dive multiple times while hunting, staying submerged for more than twenty minutes each time, tracking their prey, squid and fish, at depths of 400 to 1,000 meters (1,300 to 3,300 ft). The documented record for the longest time underwater for a juvenile elephant seal was approximately two hours. The maximum depth to which southern sea ​​elephants, is over 1,400 meters (4,600 feet).

9. The largest land predator in the world: Polar bear and Kodiak bear.

The world's largest terrestrial predators are the white polar bear ( Ursus maritimus) and the Kodiak brown bear, (Ursus ARCTOS). If everything is more or less clear with the white polar bear, then the Kodiak bear is less known.

10. Kodiak is a subspecies of brown bears that are found on Kodiak Island and other islands of the Kodiak archipelago off the southern coast of Alaska. Since the polar white bear and the Kodiak brown bear have approximately the same body size, it is not clear which of them actually ranks first in size. In both species, the height at the withers is over 1.6 meters (5.2 ft), and the total body length can reach 3.05 m (10.0 ft). Absolute weight record for polar and brown bear amounted to 1003 kg (2210 pounds) and 1135 kg (2500 pounds) respectively.

11. The largest reptile in the world: Saltwater (combed or spongy) crocodile.
The saltwater crocodile (Crocodylus porosus) is the largest living reptile in the world. The habitat of combed crocodiles is the range from Northern Australia to South-East Asia And east coast India. An adult male saltwater crocodile can weigh between 409 and 1,000 kilograms (900–2,200 lb) and is typically 4.1 to 5.5 meters (13–18 ft) long. However, males can exceed 6 meters (20 ft) in length and sometimes weigh over 1,000 kg (2,200 lb). Nautical combed crocodile- the only one of all crocodile species, whose representatives regularly reach a length of 4.8 m (16 feet) and even exceed this mark. The saltwater crocodile is an active predator that feeds mainly on insects, mollusks, amphibians, crustaceans, small reptiles and fish. However, it attacks almost any animal that is in its territory, either in water or on land. The crocodile always drags the victim, which he watches over on land, into the water, where it is more difficult for her to resist him.

12. The largest amphibian in the world: the Chinese giant salamander.
The Chinese giant salamander (Andrias davidianus) is the largest salamander in the world. Individual individuals of the Chinese giant salamander can reach a length of 180 centimeters (6 feet), although at present such giants are extremely rare. This species is endemic mountain rivers and lakes in China. One of the conditions necessary for the survival of the Chinese giant salamander is clean and very cold water.

13. To date, this species is considered endangered due to habitat destruction, pollution environment and targeted destruction, as giant amphibian meat is considered a delicacy and is used in traditional Chinese medicine.

14. Largest rabbit / hare in the world: "Belgian flandre". The Belgian Flemish is an ancient breed of domesticated rabbit that originates from the Flemish region.

15. They were first bred back in the sixteenth century in the vicinity of the city of Ghent, Belgium. Belgian Flemish rabbits can weigh up to 12.7 kilograms (28 pounds).

16. Biggest bat in the world: a giant golden flying fox. In the photo: a giant golden flying fox. Spectacled flying fox.

The largest of all bat species is the giant golden flying fox (Acerodon jubatus), an endangered bat species from rainforest Philippines, which is part of the fruit bat family. The basis of the diet of giant golden flying foxes is fruits. The maximum weight of giant golden flying foxes can be 1.5 kg (3.3 lb), they can be up to 55 centimeters (22 in) long, and their wingspan can be nearly 1.8 meters (5.9 ft). Giant flying fox (Pteropus vampyrus) giving way to golden flying fox in body weight and length, but ahead of her in wingspan. Scientists have recorded individuals with a wingspan ranging from 1.83 meters (6.0 feet) to 2 meters (6.6 feet).

17. The largest rodent in the world: capybara.
The largest of the existing rodents is the capybara (Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris), a species that is found along the shores of various reservoirs in tropical and temperate parts of Central and South America, east of the Andes - from Panama to Uruguay to northeast Argentina. One of the main conditions for the existence of capybaras is the presence of a nearby reservoir.

18. The largest specimens of capybaras can reach 1.5 meters (4.9 feet) in length and 0.9 meters (3.0 feet) in height at the withers. They can weigh up to 105.4 kg (232 lb). This is a very active species. Capybaras are social animals that live in groups of up to a hundred individuals, but the average number of one colony is 10-20 individuals on average.

19. Largest bony fish in the world: common moonfish (sunfish, headfish).

Osteichthyes, also called "bony fish", are a taxonomic group of fish that have bony, not cartilaginous, skeletons. The vast majority of fish belong to the species Osteichthyes. This is an extremely diverse and numerous group, which consists of more than 29,000 species. This is the most numerous class of vertebrates that currently exists.

20. The largest representative bony fish is the widespread common moonfish (sunfish, fishhead) or Mola Mola. She has an extremely strange body shape - it is laterally compressed, very high and short, which gives the fish an outlandish appearance and a shape similar to a disk. In fact, it does not have a body as such - a sunfish is literally a "head with a tail." A mature Common Fishhead has an average length of 1.8 meters (5.9 ft), a width from fin to fin of up to 2.5 meters (8.2 ft), and an average weight of 1,000 kilograms (2,200 lb). However, scientists have recorded individuals that can be up to 3.3 meters (10.8 feet) long and 4.2 meters (14 feet) across. The weight of such giants can reach 2,300 kilograms (5,100 pounds).

21. largest lizard/ snake in the world: giant green anaconda.

The giant anaconda, sometimes also called the green anaconda (Eunectes murinus), is a species of snake in the boa subfamily. It lives in the tropical part of South America east of the Andes, Paraguay, Northern Bolivia, French Guiana. The maximum recorded body length is 7.5 meters (25 feet), and the maximum recorded weight reaches 250 kilograms (550 pounds), although there are rumors of much larger green anacondas. The reticulated python (Python reticulatus) from Southeast Asia is longer in body length but thinner, and members of this species have been reported to reach a maximum of 9.7 meters (32 ft) in length.

22. The world's largest bird: ostrich.

ostrich, most large bird on our planet (Struthio Camelus), is found on the territory of the plains of Africa and Arabia. The scientific name of the ostrich in Greek means "camel sparrow". A large male ostrich can reach a height of 2.8 meters (9.2 feet), and weigh over 156 kilograms (345 pounds). Ostrich eggs can weigh up to 1.4 kilograms (3 pounds) and are the largest bird eggs in the world today. Ostriches can reach a maximum speed of up to 97.5 km / h (60.6 mph) when running, which makes the ostrich the most fast bird on earth and the fastest bipedal creature in the world.

The Dalmatian Pelican (Pelecanus crispus) is a member of the Pelican family. The habitat of curly pelicans is a significant area from Southeast Europe to India and China. Dalmatian pelicans inhabit swamps and shallow lakes. It is the largest of the pelicans, averaging 160-180 centimeters (63-70 inches) in length, and weighing 11-15 kilograms (24-33 pounds). The wingspan of the curly pelican is just over 3 meters (10 ft). An average weight of 11.5 kilograms (25 lb) makes the Dalmatian Pelican the heaviest flying bird. Although a large male bustard or swan may exceed the pelican in maximum weight.

24. The largest arthropod in the world: Japanese spider crab.

The Japanese spider crab is a type of sea crab that lives in the waters off the coast of Japan. In the span of the first pair of legs, it reaches 3.8 meters (12 feet), and can weigh up to 41 pounds (19 kilograms).

26. In its natural habitat, the Japanese spider crab feeds on shellfish and animal carcasses and can live up to 100 years.

IN documentary show a great white shark swimming past caged scuba divers. You freeze in fear, because this is a huge white shark - a healthy, creepy, carnivorous predator! And you know it's big, even huge, but only until you see it in comparison to the poor tiny divers hiding in their cages. Only then do you truly realize the mind-blowing size of this animal!

In fact, most of us don't really know how big some animals are. They don't even have a clue! But don't worry, if this is about you, then today you will see animals that are actually much larger than you think!

The point is that animals are different forms and sizes. Some people use their weight as a determining factor, believing that the heaviest animal automatically becomes the largest. Others believe that the largest animal is the longest, while others under the concept of "largest" mean the height (height) of the animal.

In a word, no matter how we measure animals, there is no doubt that there are animals of incredibly huge sizes! For example, almost everyone knows that blue whale and the African elephant are the largest animals on the planet (so, naturally, they are also included in this list).

But what does it mean? How big are they? How can you compare them to something we are familiar with, such as the size of a football field, a building, or even a bus!

Once you know more about these animals, we think you will have a better idea of ​​their size (and this discovery may shock you). Here are 25 animals that are much more than you think!

25. Great white shark

The great white shark is famous for its frightening size: adults, on average, grow up to 4.6 meters in length, although there were individuals up to 6 meters, weighing up to 1.9 tons. For example, Leonardo DiCaprio can tell about one such close one.

24. Bottlenose dolphin, or big dolphin


Cute, very smart and incredibly friendly, bottlenose dolphins are associated exclusively with goodwill. Seeing on TV or in videos posted on the Internet how they emerge from the water and jump through the rings, performing at shows in water parks, it is quite difficult to imagine their impressive size.

However, the size of bottlenose dolphins can vary between 2-4 meters, and their weight can reach 150-650 kg. If you swim next to these animals, they will be almost twice your size (or even more if you are a short person).

23. Sperm Whale


Sperm whales are considered the largest toothed whales on the planet. Adult males grow up to 17-20 meters in length, reaching a weight of about 40-50 tons, which means that a Boeing 737-800 with a maximum take-off weight of 75 tons will not be able to lift two such animals into the air.

22. Hippo, or common hippopotamus


Hippos are large, obese animals that are the third largest land mammals(after elephants and white rhinos). They grow up to 3.3-5 meters in length, reaching a weight of up to 3 tons. This is the approximate length and weight of the Hummer H2 SUV.

21. Leo


Widely known as the "king of the beasts", an adult lion can weigh over 250kg - almost the weight of two people like wrestler Brock Lesnar.

20. Ostrich

Ostriches are the largest modern birds. Usually they weigh somewhere between 63-145 kg, almost like two adults, growing up to 2.7 meters in length.
Ostriches are known for their strength and long legs, which help them overcome 3-5 meters in just one step. Their strong paws are also a formidable weapon, since an ostrich can kill a person or even such a large animal as a lion with one blow.

19. Dark tiger python


The dark tiger python is one of the three largest snake species in the animal kingdom. Its length, on average, is 3.7 meters, but in nature there was an individual 5.74 meters long. Yes, this is longer than most of the trees that grow in your area.

18. Liger


A hybrid cross between a lion and a tigress, the liger is the largest known living member of the cat family. Weight adult, as a rule, exceeds 300 kg, and the length of a liger standing on its hind legs can reach 3.66-4 meters. To give you an idea of ​​how high this is, let's say that the height of the average one-story house is about 3 meters.

17. Blue or blue whale


With a length of 30 meters and a weight of 180 tons, blue whales are the largest animals living on our planet, and possibly the heaviest of all that have ever existed on Earth, including dinosaurs.

Just for comparison, a blue whale is almost two city buses long and weighing 10 times more. Now every time you see two buses parked side by side, you will remember the blue whale.

16. Fighting bull


Fighting bulls are the bulls involved in the Spanish bullfight. The height of an adult (at the withers) is 1.55 meters. An adult fighting bull weighs between 500-700 kg, almost as much as a Formula 1 car (702 kg) with a racer.

15. Salted crocodile


Saltwater crocodile, also known as saltwater crocodile or man-eating crocodile, belonging to the family of real crocodiles, is the largest reptile on the planet. It is also considered the world's largest terrestrial or coastal predator, at the top of the food chain.

Adult males of medium size reach a length of 5 meters and can weigh almost 450 kg - even a heavyweight, world record holder in powerlifting (430 kg) could not lift one of them. However, some males can reach a length of 7 meters, while weighing almost 2 tons.

14. Grizzly


Most adult female grizzlies weigh around 130-180 kg, while males grow up to 180-360 kg, that is, weighing almost four Leonardo DiCaprio, who weighs 79 kg.

13. Tuna


Tuna is a marine finned fish belonging to the tribe Thunnini, which consists of 15 species belonging to 5 genera. The sizes of representatives of this tribe can vary greatly. The size of the largest of them, common tuna, is 4.6 meters in length and 684 kg of weight. This is more than Jon Brower Minnoch - the heaviest man in the history of mankind, weighing an impressive 635 kilograms.

12. White or polar bear


Polar bears are large carnivores that live in cold climates (within the Arctic Circle).

The largest polar bear ever recorded weighed 1,000 kg. On average, polar bears can reach 3 meters in height, standing on their hind legs. It's higher than the most A tall man in the history of mankind (Robert Wadlow), whose height was 2.72 meters.

11. Common wolf

The common wolf is one of the largest currently existing members of its family. Males, on average, weigh 43-45 kg, and females - 36-39 kg.

Wolves are also known for their huge appetite: they can eat 9 kg of food in one sitting. It is more than an ordinary family out of 8-10 people can eat during Sunday lunch.

10 Japanese Spider Crab


An adult giant Japanese spider crab can reach 4 meters in paw span, 45 cm in carapace length and weigh 20 kg.

Japanese spider crabs are considered the largest arthropods, known to man. To give you an idea of ​​their enormous size, let's say that the average American compact sedan is 4.27 meters long. This crab can grab almost the entire car with its claws.

9. Tiger


On average, the length of the body of these predatory animals varies between 1.5-2.9 meters, and their weight varies from 75 to 325 kilograms.

The largest tigers, the Amur or Siberian tigers, can reach a length of 3.3 meters and weigh 300 kg. Just think for a moment: a tiger is over 8 times heavier than the average family dog ​​(using a Labrador as an example).

8 Spotted Hyena


Spotted hyenas are the largest of three types hyenas. The remaining two species are brown and striped hyenas. Adult individuals reach 1.3 meters in length, while weighing 40-64 kg.

The spotted hyena is known for its proportionately large heart, accounting for 1% of its body weight, which gives these animals great endurance during a long chase.

7. Giraffe

Thanks to their long legs and neck, giraffes are the tallest mammals on our planet. Only the leg of a giraffe is much longer than the average height of a man (177 cm). Adults weigh 900-1200 kg and reach a height of 5.5-6.1 meters - it's almost like a two-story building!

6. Moose


The elk is the largest species of the deer family. Males are easily recognizable by their huge horns, the span of which reaches 1.83 meters.

The size of the moose is very easy to underestimate, however, adults in any case can reach 2.3 meters at the withers. If a person with a height of 1.83 meters stands next to an elk, then the animal will rise above him by several tens of centimeters.

5 African Elephant


African elephants are the largest land animals on earth. They are slightly larger than their Asian counterparts. The largest African elephant ever recorded measured 4 meters at the shoulder and weighed over 10 tons. Adjusted one way or another, but it's almost 5 Jeep Grand Cherokee SUVs.

4. Owl


The eagle owl, which lives in most of Eurasia, is one of the major representatives order of owls. Females grow up to 75 cm in length with a wingspan of 188 cm. Males are slightly smaller in size.

3. Medusa Nomura


Medusa Nomura - very large

The oceans have become home to sharks - aggressive and voracious creatures, terrifying many marine life and people. Nature "provided" them with the sharpest teeth, a powerful streamlined body and a "Nordic" character. But it turns out that there are species that look at which you can’t believe that these are sharks, and their behavior is not “shark” at all ...

Carpet Shark or Bearded Wobbegong

Agree, she does not look like a shark at all. These benthic marine animals, common in warm waters, grow in length a little more than a meter, but sometimes three-meter individuals are also found. The body of the wobbegong is flat, expanding towards the head with a rather unsympathetic snout, inexpressive unblinking eyes, small teeth and skin growths resembling a beard. With them, the carpet shark "combs" the seabed, looking for food - crabs, shrimps, mollusks, echinoderms and small fish. The mottled skin allows the bearded wobbegong to be well camouflaged on the bottom, blending in with corals and algae.

Interesting fact. Almost all shark species need to move in order to breathe. And wobbegongs can breathe without moving. These are immobile animals. Consequently, they burn fewer calories, so they need little food.

Carpet sharks are not dangerous to humans, although you should not touch them or grab them by the tail - they can bite.

fox shark

Its other names are sea ​​fox" or "marine thresher". The most prominent part of this shark's body is its large tail. She needs it not at all for beauty or for the convenience of swimming, but for hunting. Seeing the fish, the fox shark begins to circle around them, waving its tail and driving the fish into a dense flock. Then the shark dives down the “fish pile”, positioning its tail up, and strikes it with force on the “potential dinner”. The speed of the tail at this moment is 80 km / h, so the fish that fell under it have no chance of escaping. Hence the name - "sea thresher". The shark is very voracious, so it quickly begins to grab a stunned fish. If its stomach is already full, and the fish killed by the tail is still on the surface of the water, the fox shark regurgitates part of the eaten fish, and begins to devour the fish still floating on the water. Here a prime example boundless greed! The fox shark can also hunt live fish even jumping out of the water. This often does her a disservice, as a careless shark often manages to catch its prominent tail on fishing tackle.

Elephant shark or gigantic (giant) shark

This giant with a laterally compressed body and a head with a short trunk grows up to 10 meters in length and weighs more than 4 tons. The mouth of this shark is so large (up to three meters in diameter) that small teeth are completely invisible. It would seem that having such a mouth, you can easily eat large animals. But no. The elephant shark only eats plankton. She, slowly swimming with her mouth open, pumps a huge amount of water with plankton into it, then filters the water through the gills, and swallows the plankton. Her stomach can hold up to a ton of food.

The giant shark has another name - "basking shark", because it loves to swim on the very surface of the water, exposing its powerful body to the warm sun. The gigantic shark feeds especially actively in summer and spring, and in the cold season, when plankton becomes smaller, it either feeds on the fat reserves of the liver, or descends to great depths (up to 1 km) in search of plankton.

The liver of this shark is 1/5 of its weight, fat is considered very useful for humans, and meat with bones has been used in humans. Therefore, these giants are massively destroyed. Too bad, because they are completely harmless.

Hammerhead shark

The hammerhead shark is one of the largest sharks (from 5 to 7 meters) and one of the oldest fish on our planet (over 25 million years old). Its weight can reach 350 kg. These sharks live in warm seas.

This shark has a very unusual head with two lobes located on the sides, on which small eyes and special organs are visible to capture the smell. The hammerhead shark is very voracious and illegible in food: it eats both large animals and its shark relatives.

"Potential food", trying to hide from this predator, burrows into the sand, but in vain. The hammerhead shark catches with its head the impulses coming from their bodies, rushes at them and literally tears the frightened quivering fish out of the sand. The hammerhead shark is also dangerous to humans.

longwing shark

This is a very aggressive and slow shark, common in warm seas. She patiently waits for some prey to fall into her field of vision. And when this happens, for example, a school of fish appears, a long-winged shark begins to greedily grab food. After eating these sharks, many half-eaten animals or fish swim on the surface of the bloody water.

She does not hesitate and human flesh. For example, in the forties of the last century near South Africa shipwrecked with a thousand passengers on board. Almost all people who fell into the water were eaten alive by long-winged sharks.

Long-winged sharks circle near sailing ships, grabbing everything that is thrown from them. In the womb of the caught sharks, bales of garbage were sometimes found.

Long-winged sharks are caught by people for their large fins, which are used as food.

cat shark

This spotted, like a cat, small shark (maximum 1m 20 cm) leads a sedentary lifestyle in warm seas, among corals. During the day, she lies motionless, hiding in corals, and at night she goes in search of food. The shark probes the bottom with its antennae and looks for small fish and crustaceans there.

Amazing fact. These interesting animals have adapted to do without water for more than ten hours. This is a feature developed over many centuries, which arose due to the fact that these sharks often leave the tide on the shore.

The cat shark is often kept in aquariums.

largemouth shark

The largemouth shark is one of the least studied marine animals and the rarest fish in the world. It was first discovered in 1976, since then people have discovered only 47 of these animals.

The weight of these five-meter giants with a large head and a meter-long thick-lipped mouth is one and a half tons. They feed on krill, and they do it in a very interesting way. Their mouth has a luminous surface from the inside, which attracts small animals and plankton. This is the largest luminous sea animal! Having captured a huge amount of water and "food", the giant filters the water, and pushes the food with a huge tongue down the throat. If a particularly nimble victim tries to escape from the mouth of a goblash, then small teeth stand in her way, arranged in 23 rows of 300 pieces each!

The largemouth shark has a watery body that prevents it from drowning. But it often becomes the prey of other predators. A clumsy and very slow shark can be attacked by a flock of stone perches, which tear pieces out of its body with their sharp teeth. It can also be swallowed whole by a sperm whale.

saw shark

The saw-nosed shark is a small fish (up to two meters) with a long outgrowth on the nose, equipped with teeth. Why is it needed? To loosen the soil with them, injure the "food" and fight with rivals. Interestingly, broken teeth can grow back. Saw-bearing sharks live in warm seas.

Glowing sharks

Glowing sharks are very aggressive fish, but one thing distinguishes them from their fellows: they do not kill victims, but only bite off the part they like from them and swim back home. Their diet includes whales, killer whales, swordfish, or even brothers, the same luminous sharks. But sometimes they also become someone's dinner. Once a luminous shark was found in the stomach of a large tuna.

These 50 cm sharks live in warm seas. During the day they live at great depths (sometimes up to 3 km), and at night they rise to the surface.

Goblin Shark or Goblin Shark

This ugly shark with a very strange appearance is very little studied. She has an elongated nose and ugly jaws with protruding sharp teeth, which at the right time (during the hunt) can move forward. The brownie shark weighs about 200 kg, and its length is 3.5 m. It is distributed at great depths in all oceans. She has very poor eyesight Yes, she doesn’t need it at such a depth!