{"id":372332,"date":"2026-04-10T03:25:08","date_gmt":"2026-04-10T03:25:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/372332\/"},"modified":"2026-04-10T03:25:08","modified_gmt":"2026-04-10T03:25:08","slug":"the-most-dangerous-animal-in-all-of-africa-isnt-a-lion-or-rhino-most-people-never-guess-it","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/372332\/","title":{"rendered":"The Most Dangerous Animal in All of Africa Isn\u2019t a Lion or Rhino \u2014 Most People Never Guess It"},"content":{"rendered":"

There’s no doubt that lions are one of the most ferocious predators on the African savanna, but they pose more of a danger to other animals than they do to humans. About 22 people per year are killed by wild lions<\/a>, but the animal that’s considered “the most dangerous animal in Africa” kills about 500 people per year.<\/p>\n

These formidable beasts can be spotted all over sub-Saharan Africa, especially near the water. They are highly territorial and possess many ways of taking down rivals and opponents. Can you guess what animal this is?<\/p>\n

\"Hippo<\/p>\n

Hippo standing in waterImage via Shutterstock&sol;Henk Bogaard<\/p>\n

(Image via Shutterstock&sol;Henk Bogaard)<\/p>\n

It’s the hippopotamus! These massive animals can be seriously deceiving when they’re up to their eyes in water, but once they reveal their full size, anyone would feel intimidated. But how are they capable of killing hundreds<\/a> of people per year?<\/p>\n

Biologically, hippos are nearly indestructible. Their tough skin and thick muscle (yep, that’s all muscle!) are difficult to scratch or penetrate, and they can grow to a massive 4 tons<\/a>. As if that wasn’t frightening enough, hippopotamuses also have jaws that open to over 150 degrees and sharp canine teeth capable of cutting a human body in half.<\/p>\n

Related: Massive Size Difference Between Mom Hippo and Newborn Baby Has to be Seen to be Believed<\/a><\/p>\n

Because hippos are highly territorial animals, both males and females can be aggressive when people are nearby. Males fight among themselves for territory, as well, while females care for their young.<\/p>\n

One study found that hippo attacks had an exponentially higher fatality rate than those of other African animals. Hippos had a fatality rate of 86.7<\/a>%, while lions and leopards had 75.0% and 32.5%, respectively.<\/p>\n

The World’s Most Dangerous Insect<\/p>\n

Hippos are considered Africa’s deadliest land animal because few people expect them to be so aggressive. However, another animal would take this title if insects were included. As scary as animal attacks may be, one insect kills nearly a million<\/a> people per year with little or no warning at all.<\/p>\n

Some mosquitoes transmit deadly viruses, such as malaria and dengue, that can be fatal if not treated promptly. Fortunately, many major organizations are working to treat and prevent mosquito-borne illnesses, especially in developing nations.<\/p>\n

From microscopic mosquitoes to stubborn hippos<\/a>, many animals can be dangerous if their space isn’t respected. However, a little mindfulness and preparation can go a long way, because animals are also incredible creatures who deserve to be appreciated and protected, regardless of how they feel about humans.<\/p>\n

\ud83d\udc36<\/a>SIGN UP to get \u201cpawsitivity\u201d delivered right to your inbox with inspiring & entertaining stories about our furry & feathered friends<\/a>\ud83d\udc3e\ud83d\udc3e<\/a><\/p>\n

This story was originally published by PetHelpful<\/a> on Apr 9, 2026, where it first appeared in the Pet News<\/a> section. Add PetHelpful as a Preferred Source by clicking here.<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"There’s no doubt that lions are one of the most ferocious predators on the African savanna, but they…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":372333,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[26],"tags":[194513,194515,194516,111,139,69,147,50537,194514,406],"class_list":{"0":"post-372332","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-wildlife","8":"tag-african-savanna","9":"tag-ferocious-predators","10":"tag-massive-animals","11":"tag-new-zealand","12":"tag-newzealand","13":"tag-nz","14":"tag-science","15":"tag-sub-saharan-africa","16":"tag-territorial-animals","17":"tag-wildlife"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/372332","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=372332"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/372332\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/372333"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=372332"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=372332"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=372332"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}