21 Of The Stupidest Animals In The World (A-Z List And Photos) - Fauna Facts (2023)

Examples of the dumber animals include afghans, cane toads, flamingos, giraffes, and goblin sharks.

Many animals are quite intelligent, like dolphins or chimpanzees. But there are some animals that lack the ability to reason and reason rationally, which makes them look totally stupid.

Animals are generally considered very stupid. The following list of animals proves this point. From the oh-so-dumb cat to the downright dumb dog, this list includes some of the world's least intelligent creatures!

Examples of the dumbest animals

1. Lebrel-Afgano

The Afghan Hound is a sighthound -bred for hunting– and has an excellent sense of smell. But this breed can easily get distracted by something new or interesting, causing them to completely forget what their owner has been telling them.

2. Canary Toads

Cane toads are large, warty amphibians that were brought to Australia in 1935 to control beetles that infest sugarcane fields.

But they ended up creating their own problems: they breed so amazingly (a female can lay 30,000 eggs at a time) and produce so many young with each spawn that there are now more than 200 million cane toads living in Australia.

And toads are poisonous: they produce a poison that can sicken or even kill animals that try to eat them.

3. Flamenco

Flamingo mating rituals are just as stupid. The male stretches his long neck in the air, shakes it back and forth, spreads his wings and lets out a soft caw. If that doesn't catch a woman's attention, he'll shake his head even faster until she submits to his genetic superiority.

Related article: 9 Birds That Look Like Flamingos

4. Giraffes

Giraffes are the world's largest animals: their long necks make them particularly vulnerable to attacks from predators such as lions and hyenas. However, they are so unaware that they chew poisonous leaves without suffering any ill effects.

5. Koboldhai

This shark spends most of its life underwater where it is very dark. As you can see, the shark has a face that only a mother (shark?) could love, or not. It's really terrible.

Researchers believe the flat structures on the sides of its head are sensory organs that help it locate prey in total darkness.

The goblin shark's long, protruding teeth are used for grasping prey. Goblin sharks have been found at depths of almost2,300 feet deepnot ocean.

If this shark wasn't scary enough, it has a unique hunting strategy. It swims after its prey and opens its mouth so quickly that it "explodes" through the prey.

6. Horned Lizard

This is a prime example of an animal whose ability to outwit its predators has been greatly exaggerated.

When attacked by a predator, a horned lizard will usually shoot between the predator's legs and escape unharmed.

While the strategy sometimes works, various animals have learned that they can catch these lizards simply by chasing them.

7. Japanese land snails

The most common predator of these snails is the beetle. These snails can throw their shells 180 degrees to defend themselves against the beetle. Thrushes attack mollusks by smashing them against a rock with a quick snap of their beak.

To avoid being eaten, snails have evolved a defense mechanism called snailsthe exhaust reaction' in which they rapidly retract into their shells and secrete a rubbery substance that seals everything but the upper spiracle.

Within 30 seconds, the snail can completely collapse and fall to the ground, sometimes playing dead, until the danger passes.

8. Springmaus

Gerbils are rodents that live in the desert and have extremely poor eyesight. They live in areas where there isn't much vegetation to help them blend in with their surroundings, so it's a bit silly to choose a hostile environment where they're constantly at risk of being eaten by predators.

A gerbil runs away from a potential predator in a zigzag pattern until it falls. They remain motionless even when predators approach them. A new study shows that gerbils have some super senses that compensate for their poor eyesight, allowing them to flee from predators even when incapacitated.

9. Catch up

The kakapo is an endangered flightless parrot species native to New Zealand. It is easy prey for dogs, cats, mice and stoats. Conservation efforts have led to population growth in recent years, but only 126 known kakapo remain. The birds are too heavy to fly, climb poorly, are docile, move slowly, and have no defense mechanisms.

Related article: Kakapo is in danger?

10. Killer

Killdeers pretend to have a broken wing to keep predators away from their nests, but sometimes they do it right on top of their actual nest.

11. The leaf

Koalas look cute and friendly, but they have a habit of climbing eucalyptus trees to find fresh leaves and then falling asleep on a branch, unaware that they will fall to the ground when napping.

12. Komodowaran

The Komodo dragon is considered the largest lizard in the world. It should also be noted that this creature typically kills over 80% of its victims (usually deer and pigs) through infection, not by actually consuming them.

13. Lila Brustrolle

One of the dumber animals is the lilac breast roller. This African bird will roll in self-generated dust storms to remove ticks and other parasites from its feathers, but it doesn't realize that the dust is also rolling into its own eyes, temporarily blinding it. The result is that it goes round and round in circles, sometimes for up to an hour.

14. Northern Fulmar Pintos

Northern fulmars lay their eggs on cliffs where the young are reared. While these hatchlings are learning to fly, they sometimes throw themselves off the cliff they were born on and plunge into the ocean, their natural instincts unable to correct their course.

15. Norwegian lemmings

They use their strong teeth as their main defense weapon. Therefore, they must get close enough to bite the enemy. Their distinctive white cheeks and chin can draw the attention of predators to their mouths.

16. Ostrich

Also, ostriches are known to be dimwitted. One myth has it that they bury their heads in the ground to search for water to avoid predators, but this is untrue.

Ostriches only bury their heads in the sand when they want to bathe in the sand or wallow, but that makes it appear like they're hiding, as the myth has it.

17. Panda berries

The adorable black and white panda is officially classified as a carnivore by the scientific community. That's because it has a digestive system unsuited to a herbivorous diet. Despite being a carnivorous breed, the panda is determined to pass its time eating bamboo.

18. Secretary Bird

The African secretary bird gets its name from the crest of black feathers on its head that resembles a pin behind its ear. These large birds feed primarily on snakes and can take prey up to two-thirds their own size.

However, they seem reluctant to attack anything that cannot be swallowed whole. Therefore, they often attack poisonous snakes, but end up being bitten and dying.

19. Sloth

Sloths spend most of their time hanging upside down in trees. When they descend, they move so slowly that algae grows on their furry coats.

20. Lori Slowly

When threatened, the Slow Loris raises its arms and spits some secreted substance around its elbows. This venom is poisonous when mixed with saliva, and slow lorises can kill their predator with a single bite.

21.Turkey

There is a well-known urban legend that if you open an umbrella in the presence of a turkey, it will attack you. This has been debunked numerous times, but some people still believe it. It turns out that pointing a finger at a turkey also irks him to the core.