[Amazing] 25 Animals That Are Larger Than You Realize
A shark program show a great white shark swimming past scuba divers in cages. You’re in awe because, after all, it’s a great white shark! A lean, mean, carnivorous hunting machine! You know it’s big, huge even, but not until you see it in comparison to the poor little divers hiding away in their cages can you fully realize the mind-blowing size of this animal. In fact most of us are not really aware of how big some animals truly are. Not a clue! But not to worry, because today (right now) you are about to see animals that are larger than you realize!
The fact is animals come in many shapes and sizes. Some people use weight as the determiner for what they consider the biggest animals, so the heaviest are automatically the largest animals in their minds. Others consider the longest animals to be the biggest while others see “the biggest” in terms of height. At the end of the day, whichever way you measure size there’s no denying that some animals are absolutely HUGE. For example, it is considered common knowledge that the blue whale and the African elephant are the two largest animals on the planet (so naturally we had no choice but to include them on the following list). But what does that mean? What does that look like? How does that compare to things we already know are large like a football field, a building, or even a bus! After taking a better look at some of these animals, we think you’re going to have a better idea at some of their sized (and the revelation may just shock you). These are 25 Animals That Are Larger Than You Realize.
Great white shark
Source: Wikipedia, Image: Wikipedia
The great white shark is famous for its intimidating size, with mature individuals growing up to 6.4 m (21 ft) in length, while there have been reports of great white sharks measuring over 8 m (26 ft), about twice the height of an average truck.
Bottlenose dolphins
Source: Wikipedia
Cute, supersmart, and extremely friendly; the bottlenose dolphin is associated with a general feeling of amicability. The sight of them jumping out of the water and doing silly stunts is relatively common on TV and the internet and it is perhaps the reason why it’s so hard to visualize their impressive size. However, a bottlenose dolphin can range from 2 to 4 meters (6.6 to 13.1 ft) and can weigh anywhere between 150 to 650 kilograms (330 to 1,430 lb). If you swim next to these guys, they will be over twice your size (or more if you are a short person :).
Sperm whale
Source: Wikipedia, Image: Wikipedia
Sperm whales are considered to be the largest toothed whales in the world. Adult males grow to be about 50-60 feet (17-20 m) long and weigh about 40-50 tons (36-45 tonnes), which means that a Boeing 737-800 with a max take-off weight of 75 tons, couldn’t carry two of these beasts.
Hippopotamus
Source: Wikipedia, Image: Wikipedia
Hippos are rotund animals with the distinct title of being the third largest living land mammals, after elephants and white rhinos. They can grow anywhere between 10.8 to 16.5 feet (3.3 to 5 meters) long and weigh up to 3 tons. That’s roughly about the length and weight of a Hummer H2.
Lion
Source: Wikipedia, Image: Wikipedia
Widely known as the “king of the jungle” (don’t really know where this title came from since they’re normally found in grasslands and open woodlands), a mature male lion can exceed 250 kg (550 lb,) that’s about the weight of two men like Brock Lesnar.
Ostrich
Source: Wikipedia, Image: commons.wikimedia.org
Ostriches usually weigh anywhere between 63 to 145 kilograms (139–320 lb), about as much as two adult humans. They are known for their powerful, long legs which help them cover 10 to 16 feet (3 to 5 meters) in a single stride. These big legs can also be formidable weapons since the ostrich’s kicks can kill a human or even a potential predator like a lion.
Burmese python
Source: Wikipedia, Image: Wikipedia
The Burmese python is one of the three largest species of snakes in the world. They average about 3.7 m (12.1 ft) long but there has been reports of some reaching lengths of up to 5.74 m (18.8 ft). Yep, that’s longer than most trees you see in your neighborhood.
Liger
Source: Wikipedia, Image: wikipedia
The hybrid cross between a male lion and a female tiger, the liger is the biggest of all known extant felines. An average male stands (hind legs) at almost 12 feet tall. Just to give you an idea of how tall this is, an average house story is about 10 feet (accounting for an 8-foot ceiling and 2 feet of infrastructure space).
Blue whale
Source: Wikipedia, Image: Wikipedia
At 30 meters (98 ft) in length and 180 tonnes (200 short tons) or more in weight, the blue whale is the largest extant animal and possibly the heaviest known to have existed, including dinosaurs. Just for comparison’s sake, the blue whale is about two city buses long and weighs 10 times as much. Now every time you see two city buses parked next to each other, you can think to yourself, ” Wow, that’s about the size of a blue whale.”
Spanish Fighting Bull
Source: Wikipedia, Image: commons.wikimedia.org
Mature bulls weigh anywhere between 500 to 700 kg (1100-1600 lb), about the same permissible weight for a Formula-1 racing car (702 kg), this includes the driver.
Saltwater crocodile
Source: Wikipedia, Image: Wikipedia
The saltwater crocodile is the planet’s largest living crocodilian. Average-size males reach roughly 17 feet (5 meters) and can weight about 1,000 pounds (450 kilograms), which means that the heavyweight world record holder in powerlifting (430 kilograms) couldn’t lift one of these guys.
If the size of these animals are blowing your mind, wait til you see the largest dog breeds in the world.
Grizzly bear
Source: Wikipedia, Image: Wikipedia
Most adult female grizzlies weigh about 130–180 kg (290–400 lb), while adult males weigh on average 180–360 kg (400–790 lb), that’s about the size of four Leonardo Di Caprios (he weighs 175 lb).
Tuna
Source: Wikipedia, Image: Wikipedia
A tuna is a saltwater fin fish that belongs to the tribe Thunnini, which comprises fifteen species across five genera. The sizes of this tribe can vary greatly, with the bluefin averaging about 2 meter (6’7 ft) in length and weighing more than 70 kg (1,600 lb). That’s more than the heaviest man in recorded history-Jon Brower Minnoch-who weighed an impressive 1,400 lbs.
Polar bear
Source: Wikipedia, Image: Wikipedia
Polar bears are large carnivorous bears that inhabit cold climates (within the Arctic Circle). The largest polar bear ever recorded weighed 2,209 pounds (1,000 kg). On average, a polar bear can reach heights of up to 10 feet tall (3 m) while standing on its hind legs. That’s taller than the tallest human in recorded history (Robert Wadlow), who was “only” 8’11 tall (2,72 m).
Gray Wolf
Source: Wikipedia, Image: Wikipedia
The gray wolf is the largest extant member of its family, with males averaging 43–45 kg (95–99 lb), and females 36–38.5 kg (79–85 lb). It is also known for its huge appetite, since it can consume 20 pounds (9 kilograms) of meat at a sitting, more than a normal family of 8-10 people can consume on a Sunday dinner.
Japanese spider crab
Source: Wikipedia, Image: commons.wikimedia.org
Fully grown, Giant Japanese spider crabs can reach a leg span of almost 4 meters (13 feet), a body size of up to 37.5 cm (15 inches) and a weight of up to 20 kg (44 lb). It is considered to be the largest known arthropod. Just to give you an idea of it’s sheer size, the average American compact sedan is about 14 ft long, this crab can almost span your entire car.
Tiger
Source: Wikipedia, Image: Wikipedia
On average, tigers are anywhere between 4.8 to 9.5 feet (1.5 to 2.9 m) long and weigh 165 to 716 lbs. (75 to 325 kilograms). The largest tigers, the Siberian, also called Amur, can reach lengths of up to 10.75 feet (3.3 meters) and weigh 660 lbs. (300 kg). Let this sink in for a minute: a tiger is over 8 times heavier than your average family dog (using Labradors as a comparison measure).
Spotted hyena
Source: Wikipedia, Image: Wikipedia
Spotted hyenas are the largest of three hyena species. Brown and striped hyenas are the other two. The spotted hyena is also known for its proportionately large heart, constituting close to 1% of its body weight, thus giving it great endurance in long chases.
Giraffe
Source: Wikipedia, Image: Wikipedia
Giraffes are the world’s tallest mammals, thanks to their towering legs and long necks. Giraffe’s legs alone are taller than an average man (5 ft 10 in) with a total height of 18 ft. That’s almost as high as a two story building!
Moose
Source: Wikipedia, Image: pixabay.com
Moose are the largest of all the deer species. Males are easily recognizable thanks to their huge antlers, which can spread to about 6 feet (1.83 meters) from end to end. It’s easy to underestimate their size, however an adult can be anywhere between 4.6 ft to 6.9 ft tall. If you are a 6 foot person and you stand besides a moose, it will tower you by 9 inches…
African elephant
Source: Wikipedia, Image: commons.wikimedia.org
African elephants are the largest land animals on Earth. They are slightly larger than their Asian cousins and can be identified by their larger ears. The largest recorded individual stood four metres (13.1 ft) at the shoulders and weighed more than 10 tonnes. Give or take, that’s as much as the weight three Jeep Cherokees.
The Eurasian "eagle" owl
Source: Wikipedia, Image: Wikipedia
The Eurasian eagle-owl is a species of eagle-owl that resides in much of Eurasia. It is one of the largest species of owl, with females growing to a total length of 75 cm (30 in) with a wingspan of 188 cm (6 ft 2 in). Males are slightly smaller.
Nomura's jellyfish
Source: Wikipedia, Image: Wikipedia
Nomura’s Jellyfish is a very large jellyfish that grows up to 2 meters (6’7 ft) in diameter and weighs up to 200 kg (440 lb). As a comparison your average sumo wrestler is about 6’1 tall and weighs about 150 kg (330 lb).
Rhinoceros
Source: Wikipedia, Image: YouTube
The white rhino is the largest of the five species of rhinoceros. They can weight over 2,400 kg (5,000 lb), reach a length of 4m (13.1 ft) and a shoulder height of over 186 cm (6ft).
Manta ray
Source: Wikipedia, Image: YouTube
Manta rays are large rays belonging to the genus Manta. The larger species, M. birostris, reaches 7 meters across (23ft). That’s about a meter more than the width of a racquetball court.
