What animal weighs the most

The world's heaviest animals – presented in one well-arranged chart! Plus additional exciting infos! If we had simply made up a top ten list of the heaviest animals, neither the polar bear nor the leatherback sea turtle would appear in it. All ten slots would be occupied by whales exclusively. That's true!

But why? The blue whale is not the only heavy whale. Right whales such as the North Pacific right whale, the southern right whale, the North Atlantic right whale, and the Greenland right whale (to mention just a few) are much heavier than all the other animals, too. They weigh between 50 and 100 tons. That's why we've picked records from the most diverse animal orders and genera.

Gosh, They Are So Big!

In movies even big animals often look rather sweet and not as chubby and heavy as they really are. A polar bear and the leatherback sea turtle alone are as heavy as a small car. Have you ever tried to lift a car with your hands? Then you know what this means.

190 Tons? How Much is This?

A blue whale can weigh up to 190 tons. For comparison: A blue whale weighs as much as 10 city busses, 95 helicopters or 2,000 human beings. This is still hard to imagine, isn’t it?

How Do You Measure the Weight of a Whale?

Personal scales (those in the bathroom) mostly can only measure weights of up to 309 lb (140 kg). So how do you measure the weight of giraffe or an elephant? For this purpose the animals are led onto a weighbridge. These devices are designed for weights of up to 60 tons.

So far so good, but how does it work with a blue whale? It is much heavier than 60 tons. And how can you get the animal out of the water to put it on the weighbridge? The exact weight of living whales can usually only be estimated. Yet you can measure the weight of stranded (dead) animals by means of a crane scale.

The Largest Dinosaur

Dinosaurs were the largest and heaviest terrestrial animals that ever lived. But even they cannot compete with the blue whale. With up to 100 tons, the Argentinosaurus is considered to be the heaviest dino. Scientists have been arguing about the exact weight for ages, but they can only revert to the dino’s bones to get a rough idea.

Animals differ quite a lot in their physical characteristics. Not only by their height but even more so by their weight. While heavy animals definitely do not come from the fastest animals on Earth, they do possess other evolutionary benefits due to their size and weight. Heavy and large animals tend to be practically immune to lots of things and risks.

The following ranking lists the 10 heaviest animals known around the globe. The ranking is based on the maximum weight a particular species is known to have achieved.

1.Blue Whale, up to 410000 pounds

The blue whale is the biggest known species of animal ever survived on Earth. A fully grown blue whale has a body length of 30 meters and a weight as much as 200 tons.

They found in all oceans throughout the world. Interestingly, the tongue of a blue whale has the same weight of an elephant. Their groans and pulses can be heard from 1000 miles away. They also use such noises to communicate with other whales.

2.Whale Shark, up to 40000 pounds

Whale sharks are the largest fish in the sea that having a length of 12 meters and a weight as much as 40000 pounds. They are mostly found in warm and tropical ocean waters throughout the world. The strong jaws and filters assist whale sharks to take in a large quantity of food quickly.

Further Reading:  Beautiful Types of Lotus - Nelumbo Nucifera

The enormous, whale sharks are harmless to humans. The big mouth of whale sharks can expand as much as 1 meter in width. Their diet generally consists of microalgae, krills, crabs, and also other vertebrates. Whale sharks make unlimited migration searching for enough amount of food. They have 300 -350 rows of teeth. However, these tiny teeth have no role in feeding. Because whale sharks are filter-feeders, it suggests they eat by separating the food by filtering out the seawater.

3.African Elephant, as much as 14000 pounds

An African elephant is the heaviest, living land animal worldwide. An adult African elephant can weigh to 14000 pounds and as much as 4 meters in height. They have large ears and tusks than other types of elephants.

They live in the jungles of West and Central Africa. An adult African elephant can consume approximately 300 pounds of food within a single day. Yards, roots, and fruits are the primary food of African elephants. They take a trip long distance in look for food.

4.Asian Elephant, as much as 11000 pounds

Asian elephants are the second largest species of elephant worldwide, just after the African elephants. They are the largest land animal on the Asian continent. An adult Asian elephant weighs approximately 11000 pounds and has a height of 3.5 meters. Unlike African elephants, Asian elephants have small ears. Elephants have the longest gestation period than any living land animal– 23 months. Also, a baby elephant can weigh around 200 pounds.

Further Reading:  Powerful Bites in Animal Kingdom

5.White Rhinoceros, up to 7800 pounds

White rhinoceros are the 2nd largest land animal in the world. They discovered in various regions across Africa. White rhinos are likewise the largest of 4 living types of rhinos on the planet. White rhinos have a body length of as much as 4 meters and weigh between 3600 to 7800 pounds.

White rhinos are the largest pure grazers on the planet. They found most time grazing in huge meadows. White rhinos can live without water for up to 5 days.

6.Hippopotamus, as much as 7500 pounds

The hippopotamus, also called the hippo, typical hippopotamus, or river hippopotamus, is a big, mostly herbivorous, semiaquatic mammal and ungulate belonging to sub-Saharan Africa. It is one of just 2 extant species in the family Hippopotamidae, the other being the pygmy hippopotamus.

The hippopotamus is the third-largest land mammal in the world. An adult hippopotamus weighs as much as 7500 pounds They invest the most time in the water to cool down their heavy body. Daily, a hippopotamus consumes more than 80 pounds of grass, especially at night.

7.Asian Guar, approximately 2500 pounds

Asian Guars are the most abundant species of cattle worldwide. They are from South Asia. Asian Guar has a body length in between 2.5 and 3.5 meters and weighs approximately 2500 pounds. Asian Guars have an enormous head and sharp horns. The male Guars are 30 percent larger than the females. Asian Guars mainly spend the day time in feeding.

They can survive for a particular period in the absence of food. The diet of Asian Guars primarily consists of grass and leaves.

8.Crocodile, up to 2300 pounds

Crocodile is the biggest reptiles in the world. Crocodiles or true crocodiles are large semiaquatic reptiles that live throughout the tropics in Africa, Asia, the Americas, and Australia.

The length of an adult crocodile varies between 6 and 25 feet and has a weight of up to 2300 pounds. Crocodiles can live without food for months. In such cases, they use energy from the body which kept in the form of fat.