This appears to confirm the generally-held consensus that snakes and spiders are the most feared animals, at least as far as people are concerned. In the end, the researchers were able to categorize the animals into five groups based on the amount of fear and disgust they provoked.
“This confirms the general agreement in the literature that snakes and spiders are the most intensively feared animals in humans with the highest prevalence in the general population.”
Snakes are a major one, but humans are also instinctively afraid of spiders, hunting cats, and herbivorous animals that may have posed a danger. Just trying to avoid getting hurt by these animals has shaped our instincts and physical senses.
#1 The Fearful Deer: High Alert for Dangers
Deer are known to be easily frightened and will run at the slightest sound or movement. They have evolved to be on high alert for potential dangers, including predators, humans, loud noises, and unfamiliar objects.
It may come as a surprise that many animals, including some apex predators, are terrified of humans. According to scientists, it's because we're big and loud and 'novel' to them. And so to protect themselves, they try to avoid us as much as possible.
Most lions flee, even from people on foot, but an attack is a possibility and knowing how to react could save your life. Walking safaris are a relatively new concept, and lions still perceive humans on foot as a threat.
Pumas avoid places with audible human voices, and they act more cautiously as well (left panel). Bobcats become more nocturnal when they hear people speaking in an area; skunks avoid these areas; and possums forage less widely and less often in them (middle).
Female vampire bats are tight-knit.
Though they have a bad rap because of horror movies, vampire bats are generally not a threat to humans and they're extremely social in their own communities. Female vampire bats live in close communities where they will often care for and shelter each other's young.
The honey badger has been called the world's most fearless animal because it doesn't hesitate to attack animals much larger than itself- even lions and crocodiles! Honey badgers are found in arid grasslands and savannahs and even rainforests. They live in burrows in the ground.
In fact, our most common fears—fear of heights, enclosed spaces, blood or injury, and animals like snakes and spiders—generally involve stimuli that are threatening.
Experts who have studied dogs and their sense of smell have concluded that dogs can't necessarily smell the emotion that is fear. They can, however, detect smells and see movements and body postures that may help them sense when a person is nervous, anxious, or afraid.
So can animals smell fear? Not in the strictest definitions of “smell” and “fear,” but sweat from fear could produce an odor and through an animal's keen sense of emotion, it's quite possible our four-legged-friends know when we're freaked out.
Jealousy is very common in dogs who are so very loyal to their owners and they often feel keen resentment if they think that for some reason they have been relegated to second place in their owner's affections. Jealousy it would seem is a common emotion among many other non human animals as it is among humans.
Foxes are such sneaky animals that the saying “sly as a fox” has been associated with them. They are small, agile, and can move quietly when hunting. While they live in small families called “skulks,” foxes are lone hunters and travel alone, making it easier for them to remain undetected.
Animals with no natural predators are called apex predators, because they sit at the top (or apex) of the food chain. The list is indefinite, but it includes lions, grizzly bears, crocodiles, giant constrictor snakes, wolves, sharks, electric eels, giant jellyfish, killer whales, polar bears, and arguably, humans.
Lions are extremely accomplished predators and adept hunters. For them, humans count as prey. Ignoring their prowess in this department is a big mistake.
Nevertheless, attacks in human villages do occur. Most tigers will only attack a human if they cannot physically satisfy their needs otherwise. Tigers are typically wary of humans and usually show no preference for human meat. Although humans are relatively easy prey, they are not a desired source of food.
No, an unarmed human could not beat a lion in a fight.
Even if a human came upon a sleeping lion, their chances of killing it would be laughably small. Humans aren't going to knock out a lion with a kick or punch in one shot. They're also not going to strangle a lion to death.