Top 3 biggest animals on Earth
The Earth is full of creatures big and small, short and tall. From the tiniest mouse to the biggest elephant. And from the beautiful lion in the jungles of Africa to the playful dolphins in the big blue oceans. But what are the largest beings out there?
Here’s a list of top 5 biggest animals on our planet:
- Blue Whales
- Elephants
- Rhinoceros
1. Great Whales
The largest animals to have ever existed, the Blue Whales. These enormous creatures can grow up to 30 meters in length, and weigh up to 181 000 kilograms.
Largest kind | Female |
Habitat | All oceans |
Diet | Krill (shrimp-like creatures) |
Fun facts:
- The tongue of the Blue whale has about the size of an Asian Elephant
- The heart weights about 600kg
- The Blue Whales can grow taller than a basketball court
Source: Wikipedia »
2. Elephants
The heaviest land animal on Earth: the Elephant. And the biggest amongst them is the African Bush Elephant. The males can reach up to 7.5 meters in length and 3.3 meters in height. They can weigh up to 6.000 kg. The African bush elephant is threatened foremost by habitat loss and fragmentation.
Largest kind | Male African Bush Elephant |
Habitat | Africa and Asia |
Diet | Grasses, creepers and herbs |
Fun facts:
- An African Bush Elephant can weight up to 240,000 average sized mice.
- Elephants are some of the most intelligent animals in the world
- The African Elephant has large ears in the shape of Africa. The Asian Elephant has smaller ears in the shape of India.
Source: Wikipedia »
3. Rhinoceros
Today, five Rhinoceros species exist on Earth: two in Africa and three in Asia. Like the elephants, the largest species lives in Africa, the White Rhinoceros. In the year 2015, it was estimated there are approximately 20 thousand wild-living Southern White Rhinoceros. The Northern White Rhinoceros is much rarer. In 2018 only two were confirmed to be alive, both in captivity. The males can grow 4,5 meters in length with a shoulder height of 170 to 186 cm. The male has an average weight
of 2,300 kg whereas the average female weights 1,700 kg.
Largest kind | Male White Rhinoceros |
Habitat | Africa and Asia |
Diet | Grasses |
Fun facts:
- The white rhinoceros of today was said to be likely descended from Ceratotherium praecox which lived around 7 million years ago.
- The name of the White Rhino is a misunderstanding. The English word “white” is said to have been derived by a mistranslation of the Dutch word “wijd”, which means “wide” in English. The word “wide” refers to the width of the rhinoceros’ mouth.
- A Rhino drinks twice a day if water is available. If not, it can live four or five days without water.
Source: Wikipedia »
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