What’s the most impressive animal you’ve ever seen?

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Wolfblood-is-here@reddit

I live in the Forest of Dean and the boar always impress me with how stupid big some of them get. Does it even count as a bike ride if a 300lbs monster with knives on its face doesn't chase you?

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With knives on its face *that doesn't stop attacking you even when you stab it*. This is why they had to invent boar killing swords with an exaggeratedly wide crossguard to stop the boar fighting its way up the sword onto the attackers arm. Because that's literally what they did otherwise.

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Wolfblood-is-here@reddit

They had to do the same even with 10ft spears.

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RiriTomoron@reddit

They're mad creatures, boars. But then people who charge around forests killing boars are kiiinda gonna get what's coming to 'em!

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purrrrfect2000@reddit

Saw a few grizzly bears in Canada - luckily not close enough to be scary!!!

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RiriTomoron@reddit

Alligator. They just hang around at the side of the highways in Florida. Fucking terrifying prehistoric death logs.

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Nocturnalist1970@reddit

Pod of 150-200 dolphins in eastern Indonesia, roadside elephants in Botswana or killer whales from the ferry to Vancouver Island.

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PMme-YourPussy@reddit

Red squirrels are so fast. I think I saw a sea eagle in scotland. It was huge.

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Adventurous_Lynx7312@reddit

Elephants at a waterhole in Kenya. Mahoosive!

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ExtremeTiredness@reddit

My cat... I watched him catch a mouse, bring it in the house and drop it in the lounge in front of guests causing absolute chaos as the poor frightened mouse just tried to find a safe place to hide...my cat just sat on the coffee table with a smile on his smug face.

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MissionSorbet2768@reddit

It's a shame you won't let us include animals seen in dreams, the tramadol induced tiger-coloured cuddle panda I spent several hours with after having surgery a few years ago was fucking magnificent.

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Hypselospinus@reddit

I saw Probiscis monkeys in Brunei. A whole pack of them sat on this tree.

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STOICSONIA@reddit

Crocodile, grizzly bear, javelina, humpback whale & tiger shark (while scuba diving)

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JamesMMcGillEsquire@reddit

Humpback whale, without a doubt. Went to Monterey Bay in California and the whole boat was surrounded by dozens of these massive monsters jumping out of the sea without warning. Absolutely incredible. But tbh I find most animals impressive. They’re all beautiful.

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InvadingEngland@reddit

Top 4 are Black Bear, Female Moose, Bull Elk and Golden Eagle and if dead animals count Mountain Lion... but I grew up in the States.

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Adorable-Lack-3578@reddit

South American Army Ant. We were hiking in a rainforest, looking up, when I noticed a log that looked in motion. Rather, it was a superhighway of army ants from a colony on the move. Thousands, if not hundreds or thousands of mechanized infantry, all completing different tasks in union. The cooperation was unreal. The logistics were amazing. And this whole mobile city was built around a single female and her eggs. That or Margo Robbie.

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Darren-Manchester@reddit

I got chased by a motherfucker of camel, with a real attitude problem, halfway up a mountain in Lanzarote. It was impressive only by virtue of the fact that it scared the piss out of me and made me run faster than I had ever done before or since.

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Novel_Ad_8286@reddit

My mates girlfriend had a 24 year old cat that could still stalk birds and obliterate them until about a week before it died. That cat was pretty hard for a regular cat.

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smushs88@reddit

Growing up in South Africa was always great getting to see the humpback and southern right whales coming into the bay during whale season. Otherwise the Coati in Mexico were pretty cool.

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Ok_Finger_6818@reddit

Limas are fun to watch. Degu’s are great for kids. Only problem is the smell of their piss. Capybaras are the up and coming. They just chill with all other animals and are great surrogate mothers to litters of kittens and puppies who have lost their mothers.

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merrycrow@reddit

Saw a moose by the side of the road in Canada. If you've never encountered one: they're a lot bigger than you think.

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BroodLord1962@reddit

Camel. Rode one in Morocco. It's only when they stand up you realise how high you are

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MassiveHampton@reddit

Birds of prey in the uk, buzzards or red kites are the biggest so probably most impressive. Watching a big pike attack a shoal of baitfish in clear water is pretty cool.

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TheHeirOfElendil@reddit

Snap mate, a big buzzard flew right across my path about 10ft away at head height while walking my dog and the biggest pike I've ever caught was just under 20lb beating my previous record of any fish by 15lbs. Amazing animals and both a suprise.

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Freckles93@reddit

White tailed eagles, and Golden eagles would like a word!

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MassiveHampton@reddit

Yeah we don’t get many of them in Norfolk

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songbirds_and_snakes@reddit

The reintroduced ones from the isle of Wight have been making some trips to Norfolk, kings Lynn has had a visit apparently. So keep an eye out!

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MassiveHampton@reddit

About 4 miles from me, is that the white tailed or golden flavour of eagle?

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songbirds_and_snakes@reddit

White tailed. They travel really far from the release site.

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MassiveHampton@reddit

That’s awesome, I reserve the right to change my answer once I’ve spotted one

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michaelisnotginger@reddit

Right whale off the coast of South Africa breaching in a cove next to where we were having lunch for about an hour

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wotugonado@reddit

A deer, not that uncommon, but the setting and timing made it quite special. Mountain biking down a wood trail at sunset, so I put my front light on, and bam it ran straight in front of me, stopped for the briefest of moments staring at me with wide eyed surprise and then gone, back into the woods. No more than 10ft away, it was majestic.

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Roger_Tchouttabouffa@reddit

We've repurposed a cheap kids swimming pool as a drinking trough for the deer when it gets stinking hot like last summer. So long as you fill it with the hose pipe through the fence, they don't run, they just watch then wait til you've gone inside to get a drink.

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wotugonado@reddit

I'd love that! I thought about getting a night vision camera to go back there and see if I could see some more.

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Opening_Ad_7451@reddit

First time I saw I shire horse I immediately felt like I was in a cartoon

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theWelshy1980@reddit

In Canada with the army and we came across a moose, it was massive

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cheese_fancier@reddit

A capybara mama and her baby swimming in the lake in Rio, I love them so much.

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Jaxxs90@reddit

I was living in Banff and I went for a drive up the Bow Valley Pky and came across this massive grizzly bear named split lip, this guy was massive and just watching him walking along the tree line was wild.

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Roger_Tchouttabouffa@reddit

I'm glad we only get black bears where I live. Cool to see a Grizzly, but I don't think I'd like to meet one at my back door...

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Roger_Tchouttabouffa@reddit

Javelina I saw near Laredo in Texas a few months ago were pretty cool. Like hairy dwarf pigs. Totally unbothered by me watching them from my lorry with the window down literally six feet away. I wouldn't like to meet one out of the vehicle though, they could mess you up if they fancied it - small they may be, but they have 4 inch long teeth (for munching cacti and things - which is where they get their water - apparently the spines don't affect them) https://imgur.com/gallery/SGbXUwk On the other hand, American badgers are evil looking. Saw one not long ago in Eastern Washington State. Not cutesy like our European badgers - these things dig ground squirrels out of their burrows to much on. The one I saw looked at me after it crossed the road in front of me - if an animal could scowl, it would be an American badger.... (Generic pic - I was driving at the time) https://images.app.goo.gl/p9A8w2PmSCfDB1Xi8

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Cam2910@reddit

Discounting animals in the zoo, the most impressive is an albino peacock that loves freely at a country house with a bird garden.

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Daftsquatch@reddit

“Loves freely at a country house”? What a life.

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Cam2910@reddit

Hah! I exhaled through my nose in amusement.

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hoksworthwipple@reddit

Ronnie Pickering.

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WalnutOfTheNorth@reddit

Who?

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keelekingfisher@reddit

I got attacked by a robin once. The males are actually super territorial and may attack anything red, and my scarf was just the right shade to get his goat. This bird that weighed less than an ounce sincerely attempting to take down a fully grown man was genuinely impressive.

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Mossley@reddit

A massive manta ray off Tenerife.

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inevitablelizard@reddit

Probably white tailed eagle, one of the ones released on the Isle of Wight. One or two made some local visits during covid lockdown in spring/summer 2020. Adders are another rare and unusual one I've seen on occasion. Our only venomous snake.

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Comfortable-Use5648@reddit

One of my cats has learnt to distinguish between parcel delivery men and takeaway delivery men. If it's the latter, he'll come inside and beg for his plate of chicken or fish. I sometimes order extra for the little dictator.

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Bbew_Mot@reddit

A large millipede in South Africa. It was interesting to look at but I'm glad that species doesn't live in this country!

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Davina33@reddit

Mandarin duck. They are very handsome.

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Unusual_residue@reddit

Shire horses - big... big magnificent animals... aren't they

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Clever_Username_467@reddit

That fat snapping turtle seen in the Chicago river recently that Twitter is talking about is pretty formidable looking.

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wolfwalke@reddit

Saw a Wolf on the side of the road out in Canada. Soooooo impressive it was amazing

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FelisCantabrigiensis@reddit

Cape buffalo - seen in person while on guided safari and driving myself around the Kruger National Park. They're big, they're notoriously hard to kill even if you have a large rifle and know how to use it, and they can either trample or gore you to little pieces. Most of all, they are intelligent and suspicious, and may well decide to attack you just because they don't like you and want you gone. This wasn't behind some fence - they were a few meters away at one point with nothing between them and us. If they'd really taken a dislike to me, I doubt vehicle would have saved me. I was with professionals who could tell whether they were annoyed, and when they started to get annoyed, we left. Immediately. Even then, the baddest motherfucker I have seen in person is a cassowary but it was behind two rows of fencing. The Cape Buffalo were clearly not to be trifled with, but the cassowary ran out from cover and stared at me, convinced it could and would have me if it got a chance. Total respect from me.

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Iamamancalledrobert@reddit

Otter that defeated the Dark Lord, and now he’s only able to post on Reddit

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Freckles93@reddit

Gannets are awesome. Spent time working on fishing and research vessels and watching hundreds of them diving is awesome! They're genuinely like bullets into the water.

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Dude_and_The_Bug@reddit

A pissed off swan is a sight to behold. I once saw one frighten a fisherman after he’d snagged her duckling.

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bouncing_pirhana@reddit

Cygnet. Unless it was Grimm’s ugly duckling, which was in fact a swan. But yeah - she’d be right to be pissed off.

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Dude_and_The_Bug@reddit

Oh yeahhh. Lovely, cute little fella’s. Mummy was very annoyed.

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psycho-mouse@reddit

Kingfisher

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HecatesOracle@reddit

Pine Martin in my great uncles back garden in Scotland. Way cooler than the squirrels we got back home 😅 Puffins were pretty cool too, went on a boat trip to an island that was literally only puffins once, they are smaller than I thought they would be, and do not shut the hell up 🤣

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StabbyMcStabbedface@reddit

Watching a duck bill platypus swimming!

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Reemixt@reddit

Squirrel. That guy’s back flipping off trees escaping predators, super-human sensory danger perception, and long term intergenerational resource planning all while looking like a well dressed rat. And, they’re everywhere, no continent uncolonised. Case closed.

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