Our world is home to many of the most amazing animals - very large and very small. In this article we will tell you about the 15 largest animals in the world. In doing so, we classify them into different categories. So, you will find out what the largest sea animals on earth are, the largest snakes, the largest elephants, and so on. Prepare to be surprised! Pleasant and useful time delivery is guaranteed!

The largest animal is the Blue Whale

The blue whale is the largest animal on earth. Not only that, he is also recognized as the largest animal known to science that has ever existed in the world of “beasts”. The length of the blue whale is about 30 meters, and its weight starts from 180 tons and above.

It’s hard to imagine, but the tongue of this amazing marine mammal alone weighs approximately 2.7 tons, which is comparable in size to the Indian elephant. The average weight of a blue whale's heart is 600 kilograms, which is the largest heart in the world. To make it easier to imagine the size of such a heart, let’s say that in size and weight it is approximately comparable to a Mini Cooper car.

The heaviest land animal in the world is the African elephant.

Of all the land animals now living on the planet, the largest is the African elephant. Males of this species reach a length of 6 to 7.5 meters, and a height of 3.3 meters and above. Such giants weigh about 6 tons. Female African elephants are much smaller: on average, their weight is 3 tons, their length is from 5.4 to 6.9 meters, and their height is 2.7 meters. Adult African elephants have enemies in wildlife practically none, but newborn cubs are very vulnerable and are hunted with pleasure by lions, crocodiles, leopards and even hyenas.

Tallest land animal in the world - Giraffe

The giraffe is the tallest land animal in the world. It is an African artiodactyl mammal. Its height is 5-6 meters, and its average weight is 1.6 tons for males and 0.83 tons for females. The giraffe is distinguished by a very long neck, which makes up almost half of the entire vertical height of the animal and is approximately 2 meters. Uniquely, the giraffe's long neck acts as an extension not of a normal spine, but of a disproportionately elongated cervical spinal column.

The largest marine carnivore in the world is the Southern Elephant Seal.

The southern elephant seal is the largest carnivore alive today. Distinctive feature What stands out about these seals is that the size of their males is 5-6 times larger than that of females. This is perhaps the largest sex difference in size of any mammal. Moreover, males weigh from 2.2 to 4.0 tons, while the weight of females is only 0.4 - 0.9 tons, and the length reaches from 2.6 to 3 meters.

Largest land carnivore - White polar bear and Kodiak bear

The largest land carnivores are the white polar bear and the Kodiak bear, serving as a species brown bear. Body size polar bear and the Kodiak bear are approximately the same. Their height is 1.6 meters or more, and the total length is 3 meters. The registered brown and polar bears were recognized as the heaviest, weighing 1,135 kilograms and 1,003 kilograms, respectively.

The largest reptile in the world - Saltwater crocodile

The largest reptile in the world that has survived to this day is the saltwater crocodile. Its habitat is a fairly large area from Southeast Asia and the coast of India to Northern Australia. An adult male saltwater crocodile weighs approximately 0.41 to 1.0 tons, and its length ranges from 4.1 to 5.5 meters. However, individual individuals can exceed 6 meters in length and weigh more than a ton.

This variety of crocodiles is the only species that regularly exceeds 4.8 meters in length. The saltwater crocodile acts as an extremely dangerous predator. He is capable of attacking almost any animal that appears in his line of sight, regardless of whether it is in water or on land.

The largest amphibian in the world is the Chinese giant salamander

The Chinese giant salamander is the largest salamander in the world, measuring approximately 180 centimeters in length. However, as a rule, today they are not allowed to grow to such sizes, since these salamanders are a favorite delicacy of many peoples, and are also traditionally used in traditional Chinese medicine. As the name suggests, the Chinese giant salamander lives in rocky lakes and mountain streams in China. At the same time, she is threatened not only by merciless fishing, but also by pollution of the reservoir where she lives.

The largest rabbit in the world is the Flemish Giant

The Flemish Giant is an old breed of domesticated rabbit for which the Flemish region was famous. The largest rabbits in the world were bred in the 16th century in Belgium near the city of Ghent. Such giants can weigh up to 12.7 kilograms.

The largest bats in the world - Giant flying golden-crowned fox

The largest species of bat is the Giant Golden-crowned Flying Fox. This is a rare fruit bat, mercilessly exterminated by people, living in tropical forests in the Philippines. It belongs to the megabat family. The maximum weight of giants is 1.5 kilograms. In size, such a mouse has a wingspan of almost 1.8 meters and 55 centimeters in length. If we take a simple large Flying Fox as an example, then in length and body weight it is smaller than the Giant Golden-crowned Flying Fox, but in wingspan it exceeds it: in ordinary foxes the wingspan can reach up to 2 meters.

The largest rodent in the world - Capybara

The largest rodent in the world is the capybara. This guinea pig Found in most tropical and temperate areas of South America and the Andes, it lives near water. Adult capybaras reach a length of 1.5 meters and a height of 0.9 meters. The maximum weight of a pig is 105.4 kilograms. The capybara is a very social species: it gets along easily with humans and even seems to enjoy their company.

The largest bony fish in the world is the Ocean sunfish.

Bony fish (Osteichthyes) are a taxonomic group of fish that have a bony, rather than cartilaginous, skeleton. This group is very rich and diverse, it includes more than 29 thousand varieties. It is also the largest class of vertebrates in existence.

The ocean sunfish is recognized as the largest bony fish today. It is widespread, its body is similar to the head of a fish with a tail, but without a body. An adult ocean sunfish has an average length of 1.8 meters and measures 2.5 meters from fin to fin. On average, such a fish weighs 1 ton. Fishermen also came across sunfish up to 3.3 meters long and weighing up to 2.3 tons.

The largest snake is the Green Anaconda

The Green Anaconda is recognized by biologists as the most massive reptile in the world. The maximum size of the snake that has been officially recorded is 7.5 meters in length and 250 kilograms in weight. There are also many rumors that people have often encountered larger anacondas. The green anaconda's competitor for the title of largest snake in the world is the Python reticulatus, which lives in Southeast Asia. This reptile is longer (its length is 9.7 meters), but it is lighter in weight.

The largest bird in the world is the Ostrich

The largest bird in the world is the ostrich. It lives on the plains of Africa and Arabia. A male ostrich can reach 2.8 meters in height, while weighing more than 156 kilograms. The eggs laid by ostriches are considered the largest: their weight is approximately 1.4 kilograms. Ostriches are also distinguished by the fact that they can run at an extraordinary speed - around 97.5 km/h. Thanks to this, ostriches are considered the fastest birds in the world, as well as the fastest two-legged animals on earth.

The heaviest flying bird in the world is the Dalmatian pelican.

The Dalmatian Pelican belongs to the pelican family. Its habitat is from China and India to the southeastern part of Europe. It lives in shallow lakes and swamps. The Dalmatian pelican is the largest of the pelicans and the heaviest flying bird on earth. Its weight on average ranges from 11 to 15 kilograms. The length of the bird is from 160 to 180 centimeters, and the wingspan is more than 3 meters. In addition, it is believed that large swans and male bustards can grow to such sizes that they exceed the average weight of Dalmatian pelicans.

The largest arthropod in the world is the Japanese spider crab.

The Japanese spider crab is a special species of sea crab that lives in the waters around Japan. The largest arthropod in the world has a unique length of up to 3.8 meters and a weight of up to 19 kilograms. In its natural habitat, the spider crab lives up to 100 years and feeds on shellfish.

The fauna of planet Earth still never ceases to amaze us! Our planet is inhabited by a huge number of different animals, and it would seem that all species have long been discovered and known, but sometimes, even among the most ordinary animals, there are unique representatives! It is these representatives that we will consider below.

The largest rabbit

A 22-kilogram rabbit named "Darry" entered the record books as the largest. No wonder, because his height is 130 centimeters!

Blue Great Dane

And this giant Great Dane was also recorded in the Book of Records as the largest dog on the planet! 7 years ago, this dog was 1.10 meters tall, and this giant weighed about 110 kilograms. The specialists who took the measurements were shocked by the size of the dog!

Largest grasshopper

The scientific name of such a large grasshopper is Veta. It reaches a length of just under 20 centimeters. Usually such creatures live in New Zealand. And such a mutant weighs as much as several mice (about 50 grams).

Palm thief (coconut crab)

The terrifying appearance of this monster is unlikely to make you smile when you meet it. The coconut crab is not a crab at all, it was so named because of its external resemblance, but in fact the palm thief is an ordinary hermit crab that has 10 limbs. Their length is almost 100 centimeters, they are the largest arthropods in the world! The most amazing thing is that such mutants can live for half a century, or even longer. Palm thieves live on the Pacific Islands.

Tallest cow

On this moment The tallest cow on the planet is 13 years old and weighs just over 900 kilograms. The owners named the huge creature “Bloss”, and the veterinarian said that he had never seen such a huge but calm cow. As it became known, last year the Guinness Book of Records recognized this cow as the tallest in the world, because its height is almost 195 centimeters!

The largest donkey on Earth

The name of the giant beast is Romulus. This breed was specially bred in America. At the moment, the donkey lives in America on the ranch of his owners. Kara and Phil Yelot are very proud of their ward. The donkey weighs 600 kilograms and is 172 centimeters tall!

The largest liger on Earth

The largest cat in the world has been registered - the Liger - a hybrid of a lion and a tigress. Up to this point, there have been a huge number of different records about the largest cats. So, in 1973 the record holder was Liger, who weighed almost 800 kilograms. His place of residence was the Bloemfontein Zoological Gardens in Africa. It is also known about a hybrid of a lion and a tiger, which lived in a reserve called Valley of the Kings animal sanctuary, located in America. It is known that the liger weighed just over half a ton.

The largest reptile in the world is the saltwater crocodile

The weight of an adult male individual was 1075 kilograms, the length of the crocodile exceeded 6 meters. Because of its size, locals nicknamed it Lolong. As it turned out, the residents decided to catch the predator because it ate two people. It took the hunters almost 3 weeks and ordinary people to catch this giant monster.

flying fox

This species is called the Bismarck's flying fox. The home of this huge winged creature is New Guinea. This animal can weigh up to one and a half kilograms.

The biggest spider

The Goliath tarantula spider is recognized as the largest in the world, its paw span was 28 cm, it was found in Venezuela back in 1965.

The biggest sunfish

Some types of fish make you not only be horrified, but also smile. Take a look at this giant representative of the underwater world. Its weight can be more than two tons, and its dimensions are simply amazing. Vertically, this “baby” grows up to 400 centimeters, and vertically - up to 350 centimeters.

Largest mammal

Among mammals, the blue whale is recognized as the largest. Its length can reach up to 30 meters, and its weight can reach up to 180 tons; the tongue of this animal alone weighs 2.7 tons, and the heart weighs about 600 kilograms.

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The fauna of the planet is full of a variety of representatives that amaze the human imagination with their size. There are both the tiniest individuals and surprisingly huge specimens that feel quite comfortable in natural environment a habitat. It is the latter that especially attract a person’s attention and force one to only guess what causes such an impressive weight and height. What is the largest animal on Earth?

The blue whale is the largest animal on the planet that humans have had the opportunity to measure and weigh. The weight of a newborn whale is 2-3 tons, and the average weight of adults is 100-120 tons with a body length of up to 30 meters. But history also knows larger animals:

• in 1926, whalers encountered a female weighing 150 tons;
• in 1947, a whale weighing 190 tons was killed.

Due to its incredible size, it is not possible to weigh a whole animal on a whaling ship, so a special method of weighing in parts has been developed.

On a note! Only one language blue whale weighs about 2.7 tons - this is exactly the body weight of the average Indian elephant. The heart of a mammal weighs at least 600 kg, which can be compared in weight and size with the dimensions of a Mini Cooper car.

You can meet this record holder in the waters of many countries: Russia, Japan, China, Malaysia, India, USA, Norway, Iceland, Chile, Colombia, etc. They usually live alone, very rarely in groups of 2-3 individuals. A whale spends up to 1 million calories per day, to replenish which it needs to eat 1 ton of krill or other small shellfish.

Other giants of the planet

In addition to the blue whale, other large animals that belong to different categories live on our planet. Thus, among birds, rodents, reptiles and other representatives of the animal world there are their own record holders who attract attention with their abnormally large dimensions.

The largest animal living on land. The average weight of males is 7-8 tons, the body length is 6-7.5 m with a height of 3-3.5 m, and the weight of their tusks can reach 100 kg. They have virtually no enemies in the wild; sometimes only cubs suffer from attacks by lions or crocodiles. But these elephants are often destroyed by humans (elephant tusks are a valuable hunting item), and therefore are listed in the Red Book.

Interesting! African elephants sleep standing up and are still able to mourn the dead, in which they can be compared to humans

The largest predator alive today, since the weight of adult males reaches 4 tons, and the length is 2.6-3 m. They spend most of their lives in the aquatic environment, and very rarely come to land (mainly during the breeding season). A unique feature of these animals is that males are usually 5-6 times heavier than females.

It is considered the largest bird: an adult can weigh up to 150 kg and grow up to 3 m in height. Birds of enormous size live in the lowlands of Africa and the Arabian Peninsula and are also the holders of the title of the fastest bipedal animal. In addition, they lay eggs weighing up to 2 kg, which are considered one of the world's delicacies.

Capybara

The largest representative of rodents on the planet. Adult animals can grow up to 150 cm in height and weigh up to 100 kg. They live near water in temperate and tropical latitudes of South America. Capybaras adapt well to life with humans, so they are sometimes used by local residents as pets.

It is the largest reptile. It lives in Southeast Asia, off the eastern coast of India and northern Australia. The body length of adult crocodiles can exceed 6 m, and their weight is 1 ton. This is a very dangerous predator that is capable of attacking any living object in sight, regardless of whether it is on land or in water.

A giant among snakes, whose weight can reach 200 kg. The maximum recorded length of the snake is 11.43 m. But scientists believe that in wild forests In South America you can find individuals with large parameters. The anaconda wraps itself around its victim until it is completely suffocated and then swallows it whole, after which it can go without food for up to 1 month.

The largest arthropod, since its weight reaches 19 kg, and its body length including paws is 3.9 m. This giant lives in the waters of the Japanese islands, feeds on small mollusks and can live up to 100 years.

Modern large animals of the Earth are by no means inferior in size to their prehistoric predecessors. But if people do not treat them with respect and continue to destroy their habitat, they risk disappearing from the face of our planet, like dinosaurs millions of years ago.

Everyone has heard about dinosaurs, mammoths, pterodactyls and other prehistoric animals, whose size still continues to amaze the imagination of people around the world. Today the world cannot boast of these animals, but even now you can find many interesting and incredible things. We present the ranking of the world's largest animals.

1 place - Blue whale The undisputed leader in all ratings continues to be the Blue Whale, whose dimensions leave one speechless. Even the largest prehistoric animals are no rival for him. Its length sometimes reaches 30 meters, and its weight is 180 tons. Given its weight, the mammal can accelerate to a speed of 35 km/h.

2nd place - Sperm whale Today, only one species of sperm whale is known to the world. They can reach 20 meters in length and weigh about 50 tons. Female sperm whales are significantly smaller than males. Despite its threatening appearance, the animal has practically no enemies in the depths of the ocean. The only exception is killer whales, which often attack females and offspring.

3rd place - African elephant At the same time the most dangerous and largest land creature on the planet. It can reach 3.5 meters in height, while weighing about 12 tons. The large mass does not allow the elephant to sleep in a lying position, so you can often find the animal dozing while standing. Despite its enormous weight and dimensions, it can easily overtake a person.

4th place – Indian elephant The Indian elephant is slightly smaller in size than its African relative. They live mainly in forests, easily crossing dense thickets and viscous swampy terrain. Animals can reach a height of 3.5 and a weight of 5.5 tons.

5th place – Sea Elephant

According to official data, the elephant seal is by far the largest pinniped in the world. They can grow up to 6 meters and at the same time have a mass of 6 tons. They spend almost their entire lives in the ocean and rarely come to land, mainly to reproduce.

6th place – Hippopotamus

One of the most dangerous African inhabitants for humans is among the ten largest animals on the planet. An adult hippopotamus can reach 1.6 meters and weigh from three tons. It lives mainly in water, where during the day it hides from the annoying sun. Only in the evening does it come out onto land in search of food.

7th place – White rhinoceros

Despite the fact that the rhinoceros is a herbivore, its appearance continues to inspire fear in many. It can grow up to 2 meters in height and weigh 3 tons. There are individuals that significantly exceed the figures given.

8th place – Walrus

One of the few “fossil” animals that inhabit our planet to this day. The remains of fossilized walruses were found in the United States and dated to approximately 28 thousand years ago. The animal really amazes with its appearance and dimensions: an adult grows up to 2 meters in height and weighs about 2 tons.

9th place – Black rhinoceros

The black rhinoceros, unlike the white one, weighs significantly less. And he usually doesn’t reach the size of his “brother.” Thus, the average height of an adult black rhinoceros is 1.6 meters and weight is 2 tons. It has no enemies in nature, and therefore becomes a very easy prey for hunters.

10th place – Saltwater crocodile

It is surprising that the largest reptile in the world is specially raised by humans on crocodile farms for industrial purposes. It's all about the unique leather, which is actively used in light industry. An adult can grow up to 7 meters in length and weigh one and a half tons.

Modern animals are in no way inferior to prehistoric dinosaurs and mammoths. And the main task for humans today is the need to protect each of the above species so that they do not suffer the fate of their fossil ancestors.

We often hear that more and more animal species are on the verge of extinction, and their extinction is only a matter of time. The inexorable expansion of human activities such as hunting, destruction of natural habitats, climate change and other factors are contributing to a species extinction rate that is 1000 times greater than natural level. Even though species extinction is a tragedy, sometimes it can be beneficial for a certain species... ours! From a 12-meter mega-snake to giraffe-sized flying creatures, today we tell you about twenty-five stunning extinct creatures that, fortunately, no longer exist.

25. Pelagornis sandersi

With a wingspan estimated to exceed 7 meters, Pelargonis Sandersi appears to be the largest flying bird ever discovered. It is possible that the bird could only fly by jumping off cliffs and spent most of its time above the ocean, where it relied on wind currents bouncing off the ocean to keep it aloft. Although it is considered the largest of the flying birds, compared to pterosaurs such as Quetzalcoatlus with a wingspan of almost 12 meters, it was quite modest in size.

24. Euphoberia (giant centipede)


Ephoberia, which is similar to modern centipedes in shape and behavior, had a striking difference - its length was almost a full meter. Scientists are not entirely sure what exactly it ate, but we do know that some modern centipedes feed on birds, snakes and bats. If a 25-centimeter centipede eats birds, imagine what a centipede almost 1 meter long could eat.

23. Gigantopithecus


Gigantopithecus lived in what is now Asia from 9 million to 100,000 years ago. They were the largest primates on Earth. Their height was 3 meters, and they weighed up to 550 kilograms. These creatures walked on four legs, like modern gorillas or chimpanzees, but there are also those scientists who are of the opinion that they walked on two legs, like humans. The features of their teeth and jaws suggest that these animals were adapted to chewing hard, fibrous foods, which they cut, crushed and chewed.

22. Andrewsarchus


Andrewsarchus was gigantic predatory mammals, who lived during the Eocene era 45 - 36 million years ago. Based on the skull and several bones found, paleontologists estimate the predator could have weighed up to 1,800 kilograms, possibly making it the largest land-based carnivorous mammal ever known. However, the behavioral habits of this creature are unclear and according to some theories, Andrewsarchus could have been an omnivore or a scavenger.

21. Pulmonoscorpius


Literally translated, Pulmonoscorpius means “breathing scorpion.” It's extinct giant look scorpion, which lived on Earth during the Visean era of the Carboniferous period (approximately 345 - 330 million years ago). Based on fossils found in Scotland, it is believed that the length of this species was approximately 70 centimeters. It was a terrestrial animal that most likely fed on small arthropods and tetrapods.

20. Megalania


Megalania, endemic to southern Australia, became extinct as recently as approximately 30,000 years ago, meaning that the first Aboriginal people to settle Australia may well have encountered it. Scientific estimates as to the size of this lizard vary widely, but it may have been approximately 7.5 meters long, making it the largest lizard ever to have lived.

19. Helicoprion


Helicoprion, one of the longest-living prehistoric creatures (310 – 250 million years ago), is a shark-like fish from the genus subclass that was distinguished by its spiral-shaped clusters of teeth called dental helices. The length of Helicoprion could reach up to 4 meters, but the body length of its closest living relative, the chimera, reaches only 1.5 meters.

18. Entelodon


Unlike its modern relatives, Entelodon was a pig-like mammal with a wild appetite for meat. Perhaps the most monstrous-looking of all mammals, Entelodon walked on four legs and was almost as tall as a human. Some scientists believe that entelodons were cannibals. And if they could even eat their relatives, then they would definitely eat you.

17. Anomalocaris


Anomalocaris (meaning "abnormal shrimp"), which lived in almost all seas of the Cambrian period, was a species of marine animal related to ancient arthropods. Scientific research suggest that it was a predator that fed on sea creatures with hard shells, as well as trilobites. They were particularly notable for their eyes, which were equipped with 30,000 lenses and were considered the most advanced eyes of any species of the period.

16. Meganeura


Meganeura is a genus of extinct insects from the Carboniferous period that resemble and are related to modern dragonflies. With a wingspan of up to 66 centimeters, it is one of the largest known flying insects that has ever lived on Earth. Meganeura was a predator and its diet consisted mainly of other insects and small amphibians.

15. Attercopus


Attercopus was a species of spider-like animal that possessed a tail like a scorpion. For a long period of time, Attercopus was considered the prehistoric ancestor of modern spiders, but scientists who discovered the fossils found more specimens recently and rethought their original conclusion. Scientists find it unlikely that Attercopus spun webs, but think it is quite possible that it used silk to wrap its eggs, construct threads for locomotion, or to line the walls of its burrows.

14. Deinosuchus


Deinosuchus is an extinct species related to modern crocodiles and alligators that lived on Earth between 80 and 73 million years ago. Even though he was much larger than any of the modern species, in general he looked the same. The body length of Deinosuchus was 12 meters. He had large sharp teeth that could kill and eat sea ​​turtles, fish and even large dinosaurs.

13. Dunkleosteus


Dunkleosteus, which lived approximately 380–360 million years ago during the Late Devonian period, was a large carnivorous fish. Thanks to its terrifying size, reaching up to 10 meters and weighing almost 4 tons, it was the apex predator of its time. The fish had very thick and hard scales, which made it a rather slow but very powerful swimmer.

12. Spinosaurus


Spinosaurus, which was larger than a tyrannosaurus, is the largest carnivorous dinosaur to ever exist. The length of his body was 18 meters and he weighed up to 10 tons. Spinosaurus ate tons of fish, turtles, and even other dinosaurs. If this horror lived in modern world, then we probably wouldn’t be there.

11. Smilodon


Smilodon, endemic to the Americas, roamed the earth during the Pleistocene era (2.5 million to 10,000 years ago). He is the best known example of a saber-toothed tiger. It was a strongly built predator with particularly well-developed forelimbs and exceptionally long and sharp upper fangs. The largest species could weigh up to 408 kilograms.

10. Quetzalcoatlus


With an incredible wingspan of 12 meters, this giant pterosaur was the largest creature to ever fly on Earth, including modern birds. However, calculating the size and mass of this creature is very problematic, since no living creature is similar in size or body structure, and as a result, published results vary greatly. One distinguishing characteristic that was observed in all specimens found was an unusually long, rigid neck.

9. Hallucigenia


The name hallucination comes from the idea that these creatures are extremely strange and have a fairy-tale appearance, as in a hallucination. The worm-like creature had a body length that varied from 0.5 to 3 centimeters and a head that lacked sensory organs such as eyes and nose. Instead, Hallucigenia had seven claw-tipped tentacles on each side of its body and three pairs of tentacles behind them. To say that this creature was strange is to say nothing.

8. Arthropleura


Arthropleura lived on Earth during the Late Carboniferous period (340 - 280 million years ago) and was endemic to what is now North America and Scotland. It was the largest known terrestrial invertebrate species. Despite its enormous length of up to 2.7 meters and previous conclusions, Arthropleura was not a predator, it was a herbivore that fed on rotting forest plants.

7. Short-faced bear


The short-faced bear is an extinct member of the bear family that lived in North America during the late Pleistocene until 11,000 years ago, making it one of the most recently extinct creatures on the list. However, in size it was truly prehistoric. Standing on its hind legs, it reached a height of 3.6 meters, and if it extended its front legs upward, it could reach 4.2 meters. According to scientists, the short-faced bear weighed more than 1,360 kilograms.

6. Megalodon


Megalodon, whose name translates to "big tooth", is an extinct species of basking shark that lived between 28 and 1.5 million years ago. With its incredible length of 18 meters, it is considered one of the largest and most powerful predators that has ever lived on Earth. Megalodon lived all over the world and looked like a much larger and more terrifying version of the modern white shark.

5. Titanoboa


Titanoboa, which lived approximately 60–58 million years ago during the Paleocene epoch, is the largest, longest, and heaviest snake ever discovered. Scientists believe that the largest individuals could reach a length of up to 13 meters and weigh approximately 1133 kilograms. Her diet usually consisted of giant crocodiles and turtles, which shared her territory in modern times. South America.

4. Phorusrhacid


These prehistoric creatures, informally known as "terror birds", are an extinct species of large carnivorous birds that were the most close-up view top predators in South America Cenozoic era, 62–2 million years ago. These are the largest flightless birds that have ever lived on Earth. The terrifying birds reached 3 meters in height, weighed half a ton and could supposedly run as fast as a cheetah.

3. Cameroceras


Cameroceras, which lived on our planet in the Ordovician period 470 - 440 million years ago, was a giant ancient ancestor of modern cephalopods and octopuses. The most distinctive part of this mollusk was its huge cone-shaped shell and tentacles, which it used to catch fish and other sea creatures. Estimates of the size of this shell vary greatly, from 6 to 12 meters.

2. Carbonemys


Carbonemis is an extinct species of giant tortoise that lived on Earth approximately 60 million years ago. This means that they have experienced mass extinction, which killed most of the dinosaurs. Fossil remains that were found in Colombia suggest that the length of the turtle's shell was almost 180 centimeters. The turtle was a carnivore with huge jaws that were strong enough to eat large animals such as crocodiles.

1. Jaekelopterus


At an estimated size of 2.5 meters, Jaekelopterus is one of the two largest arthropods ever found. Although sometimes called the "sea scorpion", it was actually more of a giant lobster, living in freshwater lakes and rivers in what is today Western Europe. This terrifying creature lived on Earth approximately 390 million years ago, earlier than most dinosaurs.