The largest and smallest inhabitants of the world

Flora and fauna of the Earth are represented by different kinds of animals and plants. The largest number of species can boast vertebrates and amphibians. Sometimes it is even impossible to imagine that there are such tiny amphibians, birds or mammals. Ground inhabitants can present many surprises. And in the past, the planet was inhabited by very different animals, which also had their own characteristics.

The largest inhabitants of the world

It's no secret that the biggest animal that lives on land is an elephant.

The African elephant can reach a height of up to 3.5 meters and weigh seven tons. In the Guinness Book of Records, a case was recorded where an elephant was killed on the hunt, the weight of which was more than 12 tons. This is an absolute record holder.

The Greatest Predator

But a large animal can be determined not only by weight. The largest inhabitants of the land-predators are polar bears.

The average weight of polar bears is 400-600 kilograms, and the length is more than two and a half meters. The Guinness Book of Records recorded a bear, whose weight exceeded a ton. There are rumors that someone met a brown bear much more than his brother, but they were not confirmed, and still the polar bear remains the largest predator.

The tallest animal

The highest inhabitants of the land are giraffes. The growth of an adult can be more than five meters, with half the length of the neck. This length is necessary for it to be convenient to tear off leaves from high branches. The record holder is a giraffe who lived in Kenya. His height was 6 meters 10 centimeters.

The longest animal

The longest inhabitant of the land is an anaconda. There are suggestions that there was a specimen on the ground that was 11.4 meters long. But this is not known reliably, because this anaconda has not survived.

In the Guinness Book of Records it is recorded that the maximum length of an animal that lives on earth is 10 meters. This is a mesh python.

The smallest animals

The smallest animal is the tiny frog Paedophryne. Its length is about 8 millimeters.

A little bit more frogs, but also small in size - chameleon brooksia. Their length does not exceed one and a half centimeters. But, like large chameleons, the ability to mimic the environment has been preserved.

Dwarf gecko is 1.5 to 1.8 centimeters long. It was discovered quite recently, at the beginning of two thousandths, but this species is already endangered by extinction.

The smallest bird is the hummingbird. Its length varies from 5 to 7 centimeters, and the weight does not exceed two grams.

The swinebucket bat has a length of only three centimeters and weighs about two grams. Because of its size it is easy to confuse with insects. This animal is put almost to the brink of extinction, so it can only be found in the national park of Thailand. As well as other species of bats, they lead a nocturnal life and bring offspring once a year.

The smallest mammal is a dwarfish multibeam. The length without the tail of this animal is only 3-4 centimeters. In appearance, it looks like a small copy of a mouse or rat.

Well, the last mammal, which is much smaller than all representatives of its species - is the northern pood. This miniature deer is up to forty centimeters tall. The horns are almost invisible. He lives only in Chile.

The most extinct animals

Before the appearance of man on Earth lived just giant monsters, but to this day they have reached only in the form of archaeological finds.

Prehistoric flora and fauna amazes with its species. Some animals have not undergone any changes, while others, on the contrary, have changed beyond recognition.

It should be noted that during the dinosaur period, all animals were distinguished by gigantism, like those that lived on land, and those who lived in the water.

The largest terrestrial vertebrates that ever lived on the planet are dinosaurs. The largest of them is superzaur. He lived in the US. The length of his body was about 34 meters, growth was about 10 meters, and weight - forty tons. Ironically, this animal was herbivorous.

Prehistoric elephants are huge animals with a mouth resembling the beak of a duck. In Latin they are called "platibeladons."

In length they could be up to six meters and have up to three meters in height. But, despite the frightening appearance, this elephant was herbivorous and with the help of its "shovel" digs up the roots of plants.

The giant short-nose bear is the progenitor of the modern bear, but it was much larger. If he walked on his hind legs, his height would be about 3.5 meters. The weight of the "bear" is also right, almost a ton.

The smallest extinct animals

The smallest inhabitants of the land died out not only because of natural causes, but also because of a person.

The smallest (Balinese) tiger was completely destroyed, presumably in 1939. The weight of a Balinese tiger reached one hundred kilograms, which is very small in comparison with other tigers.

The smallest dinosaur is cosmognathus length. He lived on the territory of modern Germany and France.

Of course, it is small compared to other dinosaurs. Its length was about 70 centimeters, and the weight was three kilograms.