Which animal in the world is the most dangerous to come across? As in about 50 feet away from you and you both make eye contact. Which one do you think is?

[u/BrainDeadTakes-]

[u/i-once-was-here]

Polar bear

[u/psymunn → u/i-once-was-here]

One of the few animals that will actively hunt humans, and they aren't scared or deterred by noise or anything. They've evolved to live in an area with no predators other than other polar bears and limited food.

It's unsurprising this and hippo are the top answers, and it becomes pretty academic at this point. Can throw Cape Buffalo in the ring too if you want.  Polar bears don't encounter people as much as the large angry tramply herbivores though, so the number of fatalities is kept much lower

[u/PiesInMyEyes → u/psymunn]

Not entirely true. I went up to Svalbard where they have to live alongside polar bears. What they are scared of is flares. So there’s a whole rule of engagement thing. Can’t leave town without a gun (or accompanied by someone with it), city limits area where you are required to load/unload it. And then have to do everything you can to deter the polar bear first. Which mostly consists of shooting flares at it, that scares them. Had a guide tell me they had a standoff with a very bold polar bear in a ravine for a couple hours. Few guide groups together popping their flares. Problem with flares is the Russians are way too trigger happy with them when other methods are available so some polar bears get more used to it and are not so scared. They also are scared of helicopters, so if they track a polar bear near the city then they launch a helicopter to track it and chase it away.

[u/psymunn → u/PiesInMyEyes]

Ah that's interesting. I only know people who've and to deal with them in North America and they mentioned that noises specifically don't frighten them, presumably because gun shots and large chunks of ice breaking actually can sound similar 

[u/Tupsis → u/psymunn]

When I lived in Svalbard, they told us not to bother using the .30-06 rifle for warning shots. The signal flares are so much louder. If the two you had didn't scare the bear off, then the next steps were the third (red) flare straight in the face and, finally, killing the bear.

[u/Starstuck8 → u/Tupsis]

There is a shotgun shell for scareing birds away called 'bird bangers' - I wonder if they would be effective. I wouldn't want to be the one testing it out.

[u/tHoroftin → u/Starstuck8]

Your comment is very interesting to me. Honestly. I've never in my entire life heard of "bird banger" shells until I read your comment. The further interesting bit is that, being born and raised in the most northern major city in North America and having some of the largest most remote parts of the Rocky Mountains very close by I've grown up with "BEAR BANGERS".

They are not fired out of a shotgun or any other firearm, but basically just a device the size of a pen with a spring loaded trigger. The charge is just threaded into the end of the device and fired directly overhead when needed. They are unbelievably loud, if I had to guess probably the equivalent of about 3/4 of a stick of dynamite. They're not used anymore by our park wardens since they've been found to cause damage to wildlife many many miles away, but holy crap are they powerful.

[u/Slick-Fork → u/Starstuck8]

I carry "bear bangers" for hiking in the rockies. basically a shotgun shell on the end of a pen that launches a small firework.

I've used them effectively against Grizzlies and Moose.

[u/Biancaechidna2 → u/PiesInMyEyes]

The fact that an entire group of armed adults can spend hours trying to convince one bear to leave really puts into perspective who`s actually running Svalbard

[u/inuhi → u/Biancaechidna2]

Polar bear dressed as a man runs for city mayor, tells people not to kill polar bears just scare them off

[u/AutisticPenguin2 → u/inuhi]

Umm, no? That's pretty clearly noted human Sir Bearington... I don't know where this rumour started from, but he would much appreciate it if it would stop.

[u/cbusalex → u/Biancaechidna2]

A half dozen sparrows could probably convince me to leave someplace in less than an hour if they really wanted to.

[u/Electric999999 → u/Biancaechidna2]

Not really, they could have easily just shot it, they just don't want to because Polar Bear populations are already doing badly.

[u/Tupsis → u/Electric999999]

While the polar bear population in Svalbard is stable at least for the time being, killing one carries a pretty strong social stigma, so the guides will always try everything to scare it away alive.

[u/epostma → u/PiesInMyEyes]

I'm imagining them loading a helicopter into a cannon... aiming it near, but not quite at the bear...

[u/Historical_Dish_1941 → u/psymunn]

The difference is that a hippo or Cape buffalo might kill you because you got too close, while a hungry polar bear might see you as an actual meal. One is a terrifying encounter, the other can turn into a hunt, which is a pretty unsettling distinction.

[u/burnsalot603 → u/Historical_Dish_1941]

Siberian tigers will also hunt you and not just to eat you, you may have done something it took offense to.

The most famous is probably the tiger that hunted down Vladimir Markov for shooting it and stealing some of the meat from the boar it had just killed. Long story short the tiger tracked him like 10 miles to his cabin, destroyed the shed and everything inside the cabin, killed all 3 of Vladimir's dogs (possibly used one to set a trap for Vladimir) and killed Vladimir but instead of eating him he just displayed Vladimir's remains in 2 piles.

[u/cussbunny → u/burnsalot603]

I do my best to live my life in such a way that I am not personally offending any Siberian tigers. So far so good.

[u/AutisticPenguin2 → u/cussbunny]

the Siberian tiger waiting outside your room: perfect, he doesn't suspect a thing!

[u/Adato88 → u/burnsalot603]

Did the tiger tell this story? If he killed all the dogs and Vladimir how do we know it was the tiger?

[u/burnsalot603 → u/Adato88]

The first day he made it back to the camp and hid inside and while the tiger was trying to find a way in he shot it and it ran into the woods. The next morning he went outside and ran to the closest neighbor to ask for help to find one of his dogs and told him the story. The neighbor said absolutely not and Vladimir went back to the cabin. The neighbor went to the cabin with a couple other guys and found it destroyed and followed the blood trail to where they found Vladimir's remains displayed.

They believe the same tiger hunted and killed another man a couole days later for hunting in its territory so they hunted the tiger and killed it.

[u/Partofla → u/Adato88]

It’s a nonfiction book called “The Tiger.”

It’s really good and I have developed an actual fear of tigers because of it.

[u/vintagecomputernerd → u/burnsalot603]

...two?

[u/theMalnar → u/burnsalot603]

Is this real?!? Possibly used a dog as a trap?! I need to know more!

[u/burnsalot603 → u/theMalnar]

Supposedly. He lost one of the dogs the first night. The next day his other dogs took off into the woods when he was going to his neighbor to ask for help. The neighbor said absolutely not and told him he had been marked by the tiger so the best thing to do would be to get as far away as possible but he went back to his cabin instead. The neighbor was part of the task force or whatever that dealt with tigers that needed to be culled and he said he thinks the tiger may have only injured one of the dogs to get Vladimir to try to come and help it since the tiger couldn't get into the cabin. Whether or not that actually happened i have no idea.

[u/theMalnar → u/burnsalot603]

Man, sometimes Reddit really comes through. It’s 6am and I’m dropping my kiddo off at Girl Scout camp. She’ll have a story for the fire and smores tonight!

[u/butiveputitincrazy → u/theMalnar]

Another opportunity to spread The Tiger by John Vaillant.

[u/extinct-seed → u/theMalnar]

Described in terrifying detail in "The Tiger." Friends found what was left of the guy.

[u/Specialist-Cup9239 → u/psymunn]

If it's white, goodnight really is the most terrifyingly accurate rule in nature. Polar bears view us strictly as calories, and knowing they won't even hesitate when they spot a human gives me absolute chills.

[u/Ancient-Republic-939 → u/psymunn]

The scary thing is that polar bears may actually see you as food, while hippos and Cape buffalo can wreck you simply because they feel threatened. It really depends on whether you mean the animal most likely to hunt you or the one you’re most likely to encounter and get killed by.

[u/Ken_Thomas → u/Ancient-Republic-939]

I've spent some time in hippo territory. They don't eat people, and they don't kill you because you're a threat. They kill you because they're (usually) young males, jacked up on breeding-season hormones, and they are just insanely pissed off that you just happened to wander into this section of the river, that looks exactly like every other part of the river, and today this part right here is his territory.

[u/stupit_crap → u/i-once-was-here]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cO1grYvfk5g

Camera man in a cube being "explored" by a polar bear.

[u/Boatsboatsboats__ → u/stupit_crap]

Terrifying, but also want to boop the nose and touch the toe beans

[u/Rasputin_mad_monk → u/Boatsboatsboats__]

Flying and super strength is cool and all but if I had Superman’s powers I’d so cuddle with a polar bear. Play wrestle with a gorilla. Give a lion, tiger or panther belly scritches.

[u/fluffy_floofster → u/Boatsboatsboats__]

A little scritch behind the ears.

[u/MelonMuse69 → u/i-once-was-here]

With a grizzly or a black bear, you have some rules I think… play dead, make yourself big, use bear spray, or back away slowly. They usually attack out of territorial instinct. A polar bear isn't attacking you because you surprised it’s attacking you because you literally are meat They live in a desolate frozen wasteland where food is scarce, so if a polar bear finds a human 50 feet away, he will not doubt…. it sees the easiest good amount of food it has come across in three weeks. You can't outrun it, you can't outswim it, and you can't climb a tree because there are no trees. If you don't have a high caliber rifle ready, you are already dead.

[u/zakur2000 → u/MelonMuse69]

If it's black, fight back.

If it's brown, lie down.

If it's white, good night (i.e. you're fucked).

[u/SoKrat3s → u/i-once-was-here]

If a bear is brown, lay down.
If a bear is black, fight back.
If it's white, say goodnight.

[u/nmathew → u/SoKrat3s]

If it's gummy, into the tummy.

[u/doodlefan19 → u/i-once-was-here]

Ya know, I recently learned those cuddly things would eat a person alive. The irony they're so cute... but deadly.

[u/Nugur → u/doodlefan19]

If you know the size of the polar bear. It’s not cute anymore

[u/psymunn → u/Nugur]

Barren landscapes really don't provide a sense of scale. They are significantly larger than most other bears

[u/doodlefan19 → u/psymunn]

So... I just looked up how big they are and oh my goodness-

Those textbooks lied to me. Here I was thinking they were cute and dainty. No, they are HUGE.

[u/TheRealPitabred → u/doodlefan19]

My local zoo has a mural of a life sized polar bear standing up (as well as some on exhibit). It's... daunting.

[u/Azuras_Star8 → u/doodlefan19]

They had one realistic display at the NC zoo in ashville. Our face comes up to his bellybutton, or less, when it is standing upright. Their paws are so big it would take like4 or 6 hands side by side to really show how scary they are.

And their mouth is big too.

[u/LeroyBrown1 → u/doodlefan19]

Sorry but what textbooks are you reading that portray polar bears as cute and dainty? Pre school story books?

[u/EntertainerNo4509 → u/Nugur]

Yeah, nightmare fuel actually. They can run pretty fast.

[u/shazamtamp → u/doodlefan19]

Any bear can eat a person alive only bear you actually have a chance of scaring away is a black bear

[u/misanthrope2327 → u/shazamtamp]

Quite a good chance to unless you're between the mother and it's cub.  They're everywhere here, saw one walking my son to school the other day, no big deal. 

[u/cactusfairyprincess → u/misanthrope2327]

You really shouldn’t be letting bears walk your son to school, it’s not good parenting.

[u/coconuthorse → u/cactusfairyprincess]

Yeah, they're not allowed to get on campus with their bear arms so the kid has to walk alone for the last bit.

[u/CJBill → u/coconuthorse]

Thought that was a right in America 

[u/wombatbridgehunt → u/cactusfairyprincess]

The dopamine hit of seeing the exact comment i was thinking is just - chefs kiss

[u/Five_Star_Amenities → u/cactusfairyprincess]

It was just a black bear. No worries.

[u/Chucknasty_17 → u/cactusfairyprincess]

If I can’t trust my son with a pair of large hairy gay men, then who can I trust them with?

[u/Mean-Concentrate3371 → u/shazamtamp]

Sun bear? Koala bear?

[u/thursnov → u/Mean-Concentrate3371]

Koalas are marsupials, not bears surprisingly!

[u/trueblue862 → u/thursnov]

Drop bears will fuck you up.

[u/misanthrope2327 → u/shazamtamp]

A water bear is fairly harmless too 

[u/Electric999999 → u/shazamtamp]

I bet I could scare a panda.

[u/maxdamien27 → u/i-once-was-here]

Given my financial condition, there is no way I get anywhere near a polar bear. If I see a polar bear, good luck to the polar bear in Chennai heat. Lol

[u/LandonitusRex → u/maxdamien27]

So you want to take a polar bear, and make it ANGRY!???? /s

[u/Bobbi_fettucini → u/i-once-was-here]

Polar bears and sloth bears scare the shit out of me

[u/DrHarryCooper]

Most major predators have learned to be wary of humans over hundreds of thousands of years. The ones who weren't got offed by guys with spears, bows, guns, etc.

Polar bears never learned that lesson, so they're basically a mega grizzly perfectly adapted to their habitat, faster and stronger than you, and no or little wariness around humans.

That being said, like someone else said, hippos are absolutely terrifying and kill heaps of people.

[u/Jeramy_Jones → u/DrHarryCooper]

Herbivores are often more dangerous because if they feel threatened they’ll fight for their life. Buffalo, moose, hippos, rhinos, many large herbivores are super dangerous.

[u/hairyploper → u/Jeramy_Jones]

Yeah polar bears are like the exception though. The reason predators are normally less scary than those herbavores is because they've adapted to avoid hunting humans in favor of easier and less risky prey. Polar bears will view and hunt you in the exact same way as a seal or a reindeer or a caribou.

[u/Fakjbf → u/Jeramy_Jones]

Also people tend to underestimate them. If someone sees a river filled with crocodiles they will avoid it and so they never get a chance to kill him. But they might think a river filled with hippos is fine, and so the hippos simply have more chances to rack up kills.

[u/Joxxill → u/DrHarryCooper]

And, unlike the grizzly; 100% carnivorous.

[u/TorrenceMightingale → u/Joxxill]

Where’d you hear that Hippos were carnivorous? (Am high)

[u/Grominoux → u/TorrenceMightingale]

He was talking about the polar bear lol

[u/TorrenceMightingale → u/Grominoux]

Oh. Cool. 🧊

[u/OldnBorin → u/TorrenceMightingale]

All good bro

[u/kyle_c123 → u/DrHarryCooper]

It's like, 'There are old predators and there are bold predators, but there are no old, bold predators' (that's a phrase normally applied to motorcyclists). Except polar bears.

[u/HelgaGeePataki]

A territorial male hippo

[u/NickDanger3di → u/HelgaGeePataki]

And to think we had politicians here in the US introduce legislation to import Hippos to Louisiana to raise them in the rivers there, as a source of meat. The NY Times and Washington Post both endorsed this as a good idea. They called the Hippos "Lake Cows".

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_hippo_bill

[u/spirito_santo → u/NickDanger3di]

They should have googled "cocaine hippos" ....

[u/Begle1 → u/[deleted]]

How is hydrophobic skin relevant in this context?

[u/BowlingGreenMassacre → u/Begle1]

Ever try to wrestle an aggressive hippo? They are slimy as hell due to that skin. It's like wrestling a greased pig but it's 10 times your size with dinosaur-level jaw strength.

5hr later edit: I actually fed and petted a full-grown hippo this summer, which is why I know they are slimy as hell. And the hairs on their head feel like plastic straws. They bend and snap back just like plastic straws. Fascinating creatures!

[u/Hksbdb → u/BowlingGreenMassacre]

I did, back in highschool. Won 4-2

[u/OldeEnglishOE → u/Hksbdb]

Only because you were over their weight class

[u/BrainDeadTakes- → u/HelgaGeePataki]

Assuming the 50 feet way is pretty much in its territory… the Hippo would be so pissed🤣

[u/pokeyporcupine]

Idk why no one has said tiger yet. Have yall heard a tiger roar with your actual ears. That shit triggers that primal fear of oh fuck its gonna eat me

[u/Sarcastic_Backpack → u/pokeyporcupine]

Tigers are amush predators. You don't see them from 50 feet away.

[u/TheGandu → u/Sarcastic_Backpack]

Fun fact, it's even more terrifying for the prey of tigers because they do not have the colour receptors to distinguish orange from green. So to them, tigers are almost invisible.

[u/FlyBulky106 → u/TheGandu]

Fun fact, most mammals don’t have the colour receptors to see reddish tints. Primates are the exception.

[u/TheGandu → u/FlyBulky106]

Technically, it's our fault tigers are orange

[u/IamSunka → u/pokeyporcupine]

My family still lives in an area where wild tigers are still common. Roar of a wild tiger is scary AF. I don't get sleep for an hour at least after hearing a roar at night.

BTW a wild tiger needs to leap twice (maybe even less) to cover 50ft. As a human we have about a second to react if we are lucky.

[u/BadLeroyBrown → u/IamSunka]

Like, tigers are roaming around outside and you can hear them? I would poop my pants. Do people ever get eaten?

[u/IamSunka → u/BadLeroyBrown]

Yep. They take strolls on the estate. They don't come close to us. We got dogs to warn us. But by the time we spot a tiger, it would've spotted us 5 minutes ago. 

They don't like to eat us, too much bones I guess, lol.

One of them kept tailing my family members for days, suddenly it stopped. It followed my aunt to our backyard.

[u/KinkyPaddling → u/pokeyporcupine]

I haven’t heard a tiger roar but I have heard a lion’s roar. That shakes the air around you.

[u/theredmokah → u/KinkyPaddling]

Well if you've ever watched an MGM movie, you've heard a tiger's roar.

[u/MountainMan17 → u/pokeyporcupine]

I've only ever heard them with my fake ears. Damn...

[u/Loose_Possession8604 → u/pokeyporcupine]

Anyone you has watched an MGM grand movie knows a tiger roar because thats the actual noise that their lion makes in their clips 

[u/Realistic-Salt5017]

Hippo. Especially if you accidentally end up between momma and baby.

There's a town about a three hour drive from me with official sanctioned street signs that say "Beware of Hippos at Night"

[u/0james0 → u/Realistic-Salt5017]

I've not long come back from St Lucia, such a cool place. I can also confirm Hippos roam the streets at night and it is amazing and terrifying

[u/RedMapleMan → u/0james0]

Ah St Lucia not Saint Lucia. Was extremely confused and a little worried

[u/FruitStripesOfficial → u/RedMapleMan]

Lol. I was wondering if there was another drug lord hippo event I didn't know about on the island.

[u/KaleAtLensSpecs → u/RedMapleMan]

What? Are these two different places?

[u/lurkermuch → u/Realistic-Salt5017]

Interestingly, as someone who grew up in Africa, I don’t think I ever worried about bumping into hippo, but Buffalos scared the shit out of me. I have also seen more people who have been injured by buffalo’s than by hippos.

[u/Realistic-Salt5017 → u/lurkermuch]

I think colloquially that's true, but that's mostly because people view cape buffalo as big cows, and forget that they're vindictive bastards. They'll stomp you, then come back to make sure you're dead.

Hippos sneak up on people, and can move stupidly fast. If i came across a buffalo, I'd be scared and do my best to get out without dying, but if I came across a hippo, I don't know what the hell I'd do. Those things terrify me

[u/psymunn]

If you're making eye contact with an angler fish, you're probably going to die. People really don't survive well at those depths

[u/ComprehendReading → u/psymunn]

Maybe they don't survive well at our levels.

Get trawled, motherfisher.

[u/Damn_Canadian → u/psymunn]

Aren’t they really small though?

[u/psymunn → u/Damn_Canadian]

Oh yes; completely harmless

[u/Bubbly-Travel9563 → u/psymunn]

Idk I've only seen ppl look them in the eye at sea level after accidentally catching one and bringing it to the surface

[u/Extension_Bad7427 → u/psymunn]

If we are talking eye contact then it has to be the Mexican staring frog of Southern Sri Lanka

[u/SignalWorldliness258]

A hippo. People underestimate how dangerous they are because they look slow and clumsy, but at 50 feet away, with one staring directly at you, I’d be questioning every decision that led me there.

[u/president_of_burundi → u/SignalWorldliness258]

I remember a video of a team diving while filming crocodiles in Botswana- like, they were there specifically to be in a river packed with crocs and seemed completely unconcerned about it. The water is pretty cloudy and the main camera guy is swimming, turns and suddenly he realizes he's about ten feet from a hippo hanging out on the bottom of the river. This man, who has no problem with the crocodiles, screams into his diving mask and the entire crew panic and every-man-for-himself it in different directions at top speed.

It was an excellent illustration of exactly how dangerous hippos are.

[u/HamuelCabbage → u/SignalWorldliness258]

And it's not interested in eating you, it just wants you dead. It doesn't want to kill you for calories, just for the love of the game.

[u/fajadada → u/HamuelCabbage]

Rhinos are big cows. Hippos are big honey badgers

[u/A_New_Dawn_Emerges → u/HamuelCabbage]

No, they just have bad vision and are extremely protective. 

"In case of doubt, assume the thin blurry vertical line that moves in front of you is another male who's come to steal your females."  

[u/smpenn → u/SignalWorldliness258]

Yep, other than mosquitoes, hippos are responsible for more deaths in Africa each year than any other animal.

[u/Deeznutzcustomz → u/SignalWorldliness258]

Hippos are responsible for the most (human) deaths of any wild animal in Africa. Is what I’d always heard, I honestly don’t know if it’s true.

[u/Kloppite16 → u/Deeznutzcustomz]

yeah it is a regular occurance. Was in Malawi a few years back and in the space of a week heard of two locals deaths, one to a hippo the other to mosquitos. Lots of fishermen there lose their lives to hippos, the hippo will capsize the fishing boat and then kill the fishermen.

[u/LawfulAwfulOffal → u/SignalWorldliness258]

Hippo is territorial, but polar bear will actively hunt you.

[u/KryanSA → u/SignalWorldliness258]

I had one chase me on the beach once. If there hadn't been trees I could zig zag through, I reckon it would have got me, too.

Super scary

[u/wandering_baller → u/SignalWorldliness258]

I was walking to the dining area of a small safari lodge in eastern Zambia and I literally almost crossed paths with a hippo at dusk, no more than 3-4 metres away. I believe that’s when they leave the water. It saw me, didn’t care at all, and kept moving. Almost 20 years ago and I still think about it.

[u/Secure-Suspect7091 → u/SignalWorldliness258]

This is the answer.

Hippos were the animals my friends in Kenya were most worried about 

[u/cacope5 → u/Secure-Suspect7091]

Because there's no polar bears in Kenya

[u/GlitteringVillage135 → u/SignalWorldliness258]

Saw a video on here the other day of one biting a big croc. It didn’t even look like it put any effort into the bite and the croc’s lower jaw came off like a twig. Horrific power.

[u/Wahoo412]

Polar bears are the only animal that view humans as food. Absolutely and every time. Not fight or flight. Just “hey something I can run faster than and eat!!” Everything else you have a chance. No chance against a polar bear except with transport out or weapons.

[u/Rich-Pomegranate1679 → u/Wahoo412]

I think this is the winner. I saw a video just a day or two ago where a guy was outside near a polar bear. He actually had some kind of rifle and tried shooting it, and it responded by running full speed directly toward him. He barely managed to jump on his snow mobile and drive away, mere seconds before he ended up as dinner.

[u/Pink_Floyd29 → u/Rich-Pomegranate1679]

There’s a YouTuber named Cecilia Blomdahl who lives just outside of the Arctic archipelago of Norway. They carry rifles anytime they go into town or are hiking/cross country skiing/snowmobiling. Just in case they encounter a polar bear 🫣

[u/EldritchSanta → u/Rich-Pomegranate1679]

From what I've read, they've also got the intelligence to bypass some alarms that humans set up to warn of nearby bears.

[u/Horknut1 → u/Rich-Pomegranate1679]

I saw that. The guy was VERY LUCKY the bear got spooked by his exhaust, or the sound of the snow mobile, enough that it paused. It definitely had time to grab him if it hadn't reared back for a couple seconds.

[u/ChosenCharacter → u/Rich-Pomegranate1679]

The fact that bears can shrug off bullets is maybe the scariest shit about them and they have a lot of scary shit about them.

[u/FrostingStrict3102 → u/Rich-Pomegranate1679]

Yeah you’re not supposed to shoot them it just makes them angry and aggressive. I had a professor who was in polar bear territory for a research trip; he said they were each given shotguns or rifles and were told specifically to shoot near, but not at the animal. The goal was to scare it off. The likelihood of killing it with 1 shot was pretty much zero 

[u/zeuswasahoe → u/Wahoo412]

Hey, I don’t mean to scare you or be an ☝️ well actually person, but this fact isn’t ENTIRELY accurate anymore. We are also in the food chain of crocodiles, and also not in the flight or fight way. In very much the ‘if I can chomp on this, I’m going to’ way. If I remember correctly, the general suspicion of scientists is that they learned at one point the humans on boats had spears and could fight back so we weren’t worth the effort, but now they know we don’t, and there are rivers you can’t take small vessels down anymore because the crocs WILL yank you out of your kayak, given any sort of chance.

That being said, some big cats (not typically lions!) also will actively hunt and prey on humans as a primary meal, but typically only if they’re injured and chasing down their normal prey isn’t as easy.

I only say this because I see the fact ‘polar bears are the only animal that actively hunt us’ fact just as frequently as ‘your brain is done developing at 25’ and while they’re half-truths, the science has changed!

[u/JD1070 → u/zeuswasahoe]

Tigers too

[u/LikesBlueberriesALot → u/Wahoo412]

To add to this:

If you end up in a “eat or be eaten” situation with a polar bear and you happen to be on the winning side. Do NOT eat its liver. A single bite of polar bear liver contains enough vitamin A to kill you dead as a hammer.

[u/PintsOfGuinness_ → u/LikesBlueberriesALot]

Thank God you posted this, I just killed a polar bear and was about to enjoy some reddit scrolling with a nice meal

[u/GoldenRamoth → u/Wahoo412]

I think this is it for a predator.

Otherwise, likely one of the megafaunas - hippo, or bison that views you as a threat, and then play defense at your expense.

[u/CTRAP → u/GoldenRamoth]

polar bear is megafauna

[u/hearke]

Man (riding a polar bear)

[u/some_one_234]

Hippo is probably the best answer but I heard a moose will also f you up

[u/Strict_Poet_5814]

Humboldt squid

If you are in the water with them without any chainmail, the humboldt squid is terrifying

Check some videos out on these, you thought crocs, gators, sharks are scary in the water.

[u/BrotherThump → u/Strict_Poet_5814]

Dude I saw a video where people were diving at night to film Humboldt Squid. Fuck. That. I cannot imagine what kind of mindset that gets you into diving at night in pitch black water to film those things. It’s a waking nightmare.

[u/Unique-Coffee5087 → u/Strict_Poet_5814]

I saw a TV nature show on them.

No amount of metal will help when it can drag you past your depth limit and hold you until you stop struggling.

[u/cockmanderkeen → u/Strict_Poet_5814]

I don't recommend swimming in chainmail

[u/View-Maximum]

Polar bear. Hungry, no fear of humans. You are toast.

[u/crazybutthole → u/View-Maximum]

That's why I moved to southern California.

I haven't seen any polar bears in my neighborhood in years

[u/ibeatobesity]

I haven't seen cassowary yet so, cassowary. Those pricks are scary.

[u/Chiron17 → u/ibeatobesity]

Nah, I've been 50ft away from them and I'll prefer them any day over a hippo, croc, shark, bear (any), tiger, lion etc.

[u/n3m0sum → u/ibeatobesity]

We have some in our local zoo.

They look like they'd kill a muthafucka like it ain't no thing. Probably wouldn't even enjoy it, just do it.

[u/Ultimate_Sigma_Boy67]

Most people saying hippos and polar bears which is right, but tigers are overlooked like bro they're just sooo string.

[u/Newsman1977]

Hippo or Polar Bear, depending on what I have to escape in, where I am, and the mood/hunger of the animals. Probably dead either way.

[u/SoKrat3s]

Drop bears.

Is there a single legitimate report of a drop bear being 50 feet up in a tree, attacking someone, and that person survives?

I thought not.

[u/PuurVuur]

I'd say a human being. Those are some cruel motherf***rs.

[u/Izzyforreal15 → u/PuurVuur]

You're gonna lose your mind when you learn about cities. There's like a hundred people within 50 feet of you at all times

[u/RDandersen → u/Izzyforreal15]

I live in one of these places. My secret for surviving? I haven't made eye contact with a human in 12 years.

[u/FlyAirLari → u/PuurVuur]

As a human, I am offended. I haven't killed anyone in years.

[u/fausthushtra]

What about an armed and hostile human?
Particularly one that believes you or anyone not part of their group / tribe / nation is "evil"?

[u/JoeFred8888]

Chihuahuas. You can run but you cannot hide.

[u/BowlingGreenMassacre]

This entire thread will be people who have read Michael Crichton's Congo and people who haven't.

[u/pm-me-kitten-pix → u/BowlingGreenMassacre]

The entire population of the world technically fits with this criteria and therefore you are correct.

[u/Raeezordazetoo → u/pm-me-kitten-pix]

There's 10 kinds of people in the world, those who understand binary and those who don't.

[u/Sad_Cantaloupe_8162 → u/Raeezordazetoo]

There are two kinds of people in the world.

1. Those who can extrapolate from insufficient data

[u/cacope5 → u/Sad_Cantaloupe_8162]

There are 3 kinds of people. Those who can count and those who cannot.

[u/Hefty-Resort871]

Hippo

A very angry thing that can run as fast as a horse and weighs three times more.

[u/Wildly_Uninterested]

If farcry 4 has taught me anything, it's definitely the honey badger...

[u/jncoeveryday]

Statistically it’s a mosquito

[u/PuffinChaos]

Hippos were my first thought but you could always climb a tree to escape.

Gotta be a jaguar. When I went to the Amazon rainforest, the local villagers had a saying in their language that translated to “No man sees the whites of a jaguars eyes and lives to tell the tale”

[u/OkQuail3971]

Moose in mating season. Say your prayers! 

[u/UncleDuude]

Polar bear

[u/Nepeta33]

obvious answer is human. very violent beasts.

ones that scare me personally? cassowary. if you are close enough to get a good picture of a cassowary, you're too fucking close.

[u/HumpieDouglas]

Having grown up in New Engalnd I'd say a bull moose. Those tanks are fucking huge and if they decide they don't like you, well goodbye.

[u/jackalopeDev → u/HumpieDouglas]

I'd rather com across a black bear then a bull moose.

[u/HomesteadRenai → u/HumpieDouglas]

They're fast for their size, too. On a 55 MPH high way I came across a family once late at night, 2AM-ish. I slowed to swerve around them because the buck was in my lane. He didn't like it, so that thing GALLOPED alongside me for few hundred yards while I regained speed. He must have done like 1200 feet at 40-50 mph.
He actually overtook me enough that his head was parallel with my hood. I could see him tilt his head to get ready to shoulder check my passenger door. This was 15 years ago and to this day I have to stop and be thankful that I had the good sense to slam on my brakes as he made his attempt. He was bigger than my truck and would have absolutely obliterated it and me. He 'charged' himself off to the shoulder of the road and I used that opportunity to floor it past him.

Probably the scariest moment of my life.

[u/blackday44]

Bull moose in rut.

Mamma bear.

[u/Devchonachko]

Gonna go with a grizzly bear or polar bear. Bonus points if either has cubs nearby.

[u/DocJanItor]

Velociraptor/Utahraptor. You stare at it and it stares right back at you. That's when the attack comes; not from the front, but from the sides. By the other two raptors that you didn't even know were there.

[u/Capable-Detective-69 → u/DocJanItor]

clever girl

[u/iam_iana]

Hippopotamus followed closely by Cape Buffalo. If you are within 50 feet of either it's probably because you are already dead.

[u/Fantastic-Half-7670]

Bears, polar / grizzly.

[u/extinct-seed]

Hippopotamus.

[u/SnooRegrets1386]

Moose

[u/deep-impact1994]

Polar Bears

[u/VvvlvvV]

Hippos kill hundreds of people a year. They can run 20 miles an hour and will cross the 50 ft in 2 seconds. 

Hippos are very aggressive and will try to kill you.

A hippo would slaughter a polar bear.

[u/Seifty_First]

Really can’t understand the people saying hippos, cassowaries, ostriches, and fucking ticks???

A tiger 50ft away from you with no where to hide is the hardest to escape. Literally nothing you can do if it’s hungry.

[u/MushroomTwink → u/Seifty_First]

Had a tick on my bed yesterday so I picked it up with a tissue and flushed it down the toilet.

Has anyone tried that with a tiger yet? Might work. 

[u/WhiskeyRiver223 → u/Seifty_First]

Dude, Steve Irwin himself admitted on camera that hippos scare the hell out of him. Y'know, the guy famous for poking dangerous beasties with sticks, literal poster-boy for Australian wildlife. And even he was visibly nervous around hippos.

Yeah Moo Deng is cute, but only because she's so damn tiny. Hippos are legitimately more dangerous than lions and tigers combined just going by annual body count.

[u/IllegalGeriatricVore → u/Seifty_First]

Ticks like mosquitos is a dumb response from people thinking they are smart.

For the tick to be dangerous it has to get on you, stay on you, bite you, and remain undiscovered for a while to infect you, and actually be a carrier.

I live in tick central, get dozens on me every year. Two bites ever, zero diseases.

I'll take my chances with the ticks and mosquitoes over polar bears and hippos.

[u/Pertinentonly → u/IllegalGeriatricVore]

Especially if the tick is 50 ft away lol

[u/Automatic_Llama]

That one dude's hamster who always bit him even tho he was so nice to him

[u/Head_Attempt7983]

Bigfoot

[u/AlienInOrigin]

Polar bear or pissed off hippo/elephant.

But an interesting one is a honey badger. Might take it a while to kill you, but it isn't going to stop.

[u/NoRoleModelHere]

The animal that scared me the most was the Shoebill Stork. I saw one on a surf trip in Africa. We were in Sudan I think and it scared the fucking hell out of me waddling down the beach. They are loud as fuck, but probably not insanely dangerous.

The correct answer is polar bear. My big medulla oblongata tells me it's the Shoebill Stork.

[u/Sarria22 → u/NoRoleModelHere]

shoebills are supposedly really chill and friendly for the most part.

[u/BFTT]

Gorilla’s specifically dislike eye contact and can see it as aggression

While I agree polar bears are probably the worst I wanted to leave this nugget of into

[u/LeighAmanda → u/BFTT]

Gorillas will rarely actually attack people in the wild though. They prefer to try charging at them and scaring them away first, which usually works. A chimpanzee is way scarier. They like violence.

[u/LiluLay]

Sloth bear

[u/pabodie]

In water with a hippo 

[u/FlowbeeMaster]

Polar bear.

[u/vietbond]

It's a polar bear. There isnt really another answer. You are immediately food and you can't really stop it.

[u/ice1000 → u/vietbond]

Seems there are other answers

[u/katanakid13]

Dragonfly. If I'm making eye contact, that means I'm super tiny, prey sized. And 50 ft is nothing to a dragonfly. They have the highest successful predation rate in the game for a reason.

[u/iam_iana → u/katanakid13]

Okay this had me curious, so I looked it up. 95% successful hunt rate is unreal. I thought Blackfooted Cat was nuts at 60-70%, but it's not even close. All of a sudden a Meganeura seems like a much scarier animal.

[u/CapnNugget → u/iam_iana]

They’re really fascinating! Iirc it has a lot to do with the lenses in their eyes and the way they’re shaped, helps the dragonflies to accurately predict the necessary flight path to intercept and ambush their prey. Their wings and bodies are also built and controlled differently, which allows them to execute crazy midair maneuvers that other insects can’t do.