Stranger danger

What is the deadliest animal on the planet? The answer will shock you!

When we think of the most dangerous species of the animal kingdom, the first things that come to mind are snakes, sharks, and crocodiles. While these animals are sometimes lethal to humans, others are even more so. Read on to discover 12 of the world's most terrifying animals. Some of them will probably shock you!

Hippos can be as adorable as they are dangerous. They love water and spend up to two-thirds of their day submerged in rivers and swamps in central and southern sub-Saharan Africa. But behind that gentle, easy-going image lies one of the most aggressive species —even more so than lions and rhinos— killing up to 500 people a year.

With long tusks, strong jaws, and a weight that can reach 5,000 lb, they do not hesitate to confront any species when it comes to guarding their territory. Although they may seem somewhat lazy, they are fast, strong, and territorial. So be respectful and do not disturb their habitat!

There are many dangerous snakes in the world, but the one you should be more cautious about is the Taipan. The inland Taipan, a species endemic to Australia and New Guinea, has the most lethal toxins, and its bite can kill a person in just 45 minutes. Fortunately, there is an antidote to counteract its venom!

This species and others as dangerous as the Black Mamba and the King Cobra are responsible for the death of no less than 80,000 to 130,000 people per year globally.

There are more than 350 species of sharks, but only three are responsible for the highest percentage of attacks on humans: the great white shark, the tiger shark, and the bull shark. Although sharks are dangerous, they are not the most lethal animal for humans. In the last century, there has been an average of only 6 fatal attacks per year, with Australia having the highest number of incidents.

As a matter of fact, despite their reputation as vicious predators in movies, they are often the victims. Sharks are heavily hunted for their skin, fins, meat, and even their organs.

This predatory arachnid arthropod is another of the most dangerous animals for humans: it kills approximately 5,000 people per year worldwide. Scorpions can live in a variety of habitats, from deserts to urban areas, and it’s common to find them under rocks, in crevices, or in construction debris.

However, of the more than 1,000 venomous scorpion species, only about 25 can be deadly to humans. The most venomous scorpion is the thick-tailed scorpion, responsible for 90% of the deaths caused by scorpion attacks in Africa.

In general, bees aren’t violent, but they should be treated with the utmost respect and care since they tend to act in self-defense. When they sting, they can cause anything from a minor injury to acute poisoning if the attack occurs on a person allergic to their venom.

The Apis mellifera scutellata (Africanized honey bee) are among the most fearsome because they act in swarms: although they attack only if provoked, their defense mechanism is so aggressive that they do not stop until they catch and sometimes kill their prey. In the United States alone, between 50 and 100 people die each year as victims of bee attacks.

Despite being carnivores and eating any animal they come across to satisfy their hunger, they kill far fewer people in the world than one might expect. In Tanzania, the birthplace of the African lion, about 22 humans die each year attacked by these animals and it is estimated that there are no more than 100 victims worldwide.

Not that lions are not to be feared: they attack in groups, are capable of running at a speed of 46.0 mph, and can digest 66 lb of meat in a single meal with their sharp teeth and particular claws. So, beware!

Although it’s not in their nature to attack their prey, jellyfish can be dangerous to humans. If you accidentally touch one while swimming, you will be stung and its tentacles will immediately release venom, in many cases even if the animal is dead.

Some species, such as the box jellyfish —found in Australia, the Philippines, and other tropical areas—, are the most lethal. They send out toxic stingers capable of stopping a person's heart in less than five minutes. Jellyfish stings affect hundreds of thousands of humans globally, and numbers indicate that up to 100 of those are fatal. Believe it or not, the smallest are the most poisonous!

Like most animals, spiders will attack only if they feel in danger. If they bite, many pose no threat to humans other than mild swelling or a rash. Others, however, carry deadly venom, such as the Brown Widow, the Red Widow, the Redback, and the Funnel-web spiders.

Fortunately, there are effective antidotes for almost all spider bites. Yet, at least 50 people die worldwide each year, 7 of them in the United States.

These ancient animals are the largest reptiles in the world —they can be up to 20 feet long and weigh over 2,200 lbs. Their powerful jaws and high-action speed make them terrifying to their prey, including humans.

The most dangerous are the saltwater species, abundant in swampy areas of Southeast Asia, northern Australia, and Africa. Saltwater crocodiles are responsible for at least 1,000 deaths annually, the highest number of victims for a large animal.

Did you know that there is a species of ant that releases a poison even more powerful than arsenic or cyanide? The bulldog ant, considered the most dangerous ant in the world, is solitary and aggressive. It lives in parts of Australia, and if it feels threatened, it can cling to its prey with its jaws and sting simultaneously, killing an adult in just 15 minutes.

Another ant to watch out for is the Siafu ant, also known as the army ant. Known for having larger mandibles than most insects of its size, it is found in West Africa and the Congo. This species of ant attacks in groups and can devour an animal a thousand times bigger than their size.

Although it may sound strange, man's best friend is the third-deadliest animal to humans. While deaths from dog attacks are uncommon, a bite from these animals can transmit a lethal disease.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), 59,000 people die each year worldwide from rabies —95% of them in Asia and Africa— a virus transmitted by the saliva of unvaccinated dogs.

When you think of the most lethal animal to humans, what comes to mind? Perhaps a shark or any of the venomous creatures listed in this article, such as snakes and scorpions. Well, you’d be wrong. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the animal that threatens human life the most is none other than the mosquito.

Yes, this slender, long-legged little insect, whose buzzing sound is one of the most annoying sounds in the world, is the deadliest animal on the planet. Why? Because mosquitoes are vectors of many dangerous diseases, such as malaria and dengue fever. According to the WHO, mosquito-borne diseases cause some 700,000 deaths a year.

Daily Italian

Do you speak Italian? These 10 common words say you do

Although French and Spanish are undoubtedly the Romance languages that have influenced English vocabulary the most, Italian is not absent from our dictionary. Be it because of Italian immigration —especially in American English— or as a remnant of a time when Italian was the language of culture and knowledge, Italian words are present in our everyday speech, though not always with their original meaning. Let’s explore 10 words we inherited from Italian.

Is there anything more American than a pepperoni pizza? Most people would agree that pepperoni is an American staple, and asking for it anywhere in the U.S. would result in a spicy sausage. Not for Italians, though. American ‘pepperoni’ is a corrupted form of the Italian word peperoni, the plural for ‘bell peppers’. The shift in meaning from bell pepper to spicy sausage came from the use of paprika (made from peppers) in spicy sausage, and the double ‘p’ was influenced by the word ‘pepper’.

As many English-speaking tourists know from personal experience, asking for a ‘latte’ in Italy will get you a glass of milk. After all, latte is Italian for ‘milk’. Why do we use it for a drink of espresso and steamed milk, then? This coffee-based drink is of Italian origin, and it’s called caffè e latte or caffelatte (‘coffee and milk’). In America, it was eventually shortened to ‘latte’, but the original name is still used in Italy, which leads to many confused tourists.

The difference is quite small here: asking for a ‘panini’ in English will get you a toasted sandwich, and asking for a panini in Italian will result in more than one sandwich. In Italian, panini is the plural of panino (‘little bread’). While Italians use panino for a small bread roll, it is also a common word for a ciabatta, panino or focaccia sandwich, often filled with cold cuts, vegetables, and cheese.

From the Latin diva (‘goddess’), this Italian word became popular in the 19th century to refer to highly celebrated female singers, particularly in opera. English adopted this use and continues to call female stars ‘divas’, but the word has also gained a negative connotation thanks to the popular association of some female entertainers with entitlement and arrogance.

In Italian, vendetta means ‘vengeance’ or ‘vindication’, while in English it’s used for a long, bitter feud. Despite the difference in meaning, the English meaning of ‘vendetta’ was also coined by Italians. In the 19th century, vendetta became a common name for the bloody family feuds in Southern Italy, a meaning that entered English through Italian immigration. Although the word is many times associated with organized crime, it is also common to describe any personal or political rivalry.

If you go back to English class in high school, you might remember ‘stanzas’ as groups of verses in a poem. In Italian, stanza is derived from the Latin stantia (‘’standing or stopping place’), which resulted in the Italian word meaning ‘a place where one stays’, ergo, a ‘room’. How did it shift from ‘room’ to ‘group of verses’? While a room is a place where one stops, a poem also stops momentarily after a group of verses, and stanza is used in the literary sense in Italian as well. While the domestic meaning never made its way into English, the literary term did.

Being stabbed by a stiletto is painful in both English and Italian, but the situation described is not necessarily the same. In Italian, stiletto is the diminutive form of stilo (‘dagger’), used in the 1500s for a needle-like, narrow dagger. The name carried to the iconic shoes in the 1950s, when Salvatore Ferragamo started using steel rods to stabilize thin heels. Although English had adopted ‘stiletto’ in the 17th century in relation to the weapon, it is now mainly used in its fashion sense.

Scenario comes from the Latin scena (‘stage’ or ‘scene’), and was originally used in Italian to describe the written plot or outline of theater plays, that is, the things that happened on a stage or scene. English adopted the term with this theatrical meaning, but eventually it also came to be used for hypothetical future outcomes. In Italian, the word kept its meaning as ‘stage’ and as ‘plot outline’, but is also used with the meanings of ‘context’ and ‘landscape’.

From the Latin extravagans (‘wandering outside’), the Italian estravaganza evolved to mean ‘an oddity’ or ‘unusual behavior’. While the word was borrowed by English with this meaning in the 18th century, its spelling quickly changed into ‘extravaganza’ by association with other similar-sounding words. Used in association with theater plays, its meaning eventually shifted from ‘odd behavior’ to ‘lavish and spectacular show’.

We all know the term ‘influenza’ as the name for a respiratory virus, commonly shortened to ‘flu’. In Italian, influenza means ‘influence’, and is derived from the Latin influentia, ‘something that flows in’. Related to cosmic forces flowing from above, influenza was used in astrology to describe the pull of stars and planets, which is why, after blaming a 16th-century epidemic on a bad star alignment, the term became associated with a quick-spreading disease.