Top 10 Most Misunderstood Animals

So many animals have been given a bad name by human culture and it's all mindless and unfair. These are the ones who have been given the worst name.
The Top Ten
1 Sharks Sharks are a group of elasmobranch fish characterized by a cartilaginous skeleton, five to seven gill slits on the sides of the head, and pectoral fins that are not fused to the head. Modern sharks are classified within the clade Selachimorpha (or Selachii) and are the sister group to the rays. However, the term "shark" has also been (incorrectly) used to refer to extinct members of the subclass Elasmobranchii,... read more

Here's the thing, Sharks have existed on our planet for more than 400 million years! And many people think that they are these killing machines that want to eat us, almost all young children believe that as well. But as you get older, you will realize just like I have, how important sharks are to the ecosystem around the entire world. It's simple, without sharks, the oceans will suffer.

I have mentioned this in another list, but yeah, sharks are seriously misunderstood. It is probably down to film portrayals, their appearance and perhaps their attitude towards their offspring in most species, but most people probably only consider the last two because they compare them to humans (I don't know whether this is true, I'm just guessing).

I hate it how so many people are so scared of them. Most of them do no harm. It's hard enough to even see one, never mind encountering them. Some species don't even have teeth! More people harm sharks than the other way round! People need to stop hating sharks!

2 Wolves The wolf (Canis lupus), also known as the gray or grey wolf, is a large canine native to Eurasia and North America. Over thirty subspecies of Canis lupus have been recognized, with gray wolves comprising the wild subspecies. As the largest extant member of the Canidae family, the wolf is distinguished from other Canis species by its less pointed ears and muzzle, a shorter torso, and a longer tail... read more

*Sigh...* Wolves still are misunderstood, but for a different reason as before... Wolfaboos, listen up. Wolves. Are. Not. Endangered. Some are, like the Ethiopian wolf, or the red wolf, but the grey wolf, the one most think about, is of least concern and its numbers are steady. They also don't have this crazy complex pack order, there are the two alphas that are the parents of the pack. They aren't some god creature, they are simply animals. Also, a Kangal could absolutely demolish a healthy wolf, just getting that out there.

As much as I think wolves are likeable, I rather see a wolf as a villain instead of a hyena as a villain. At least wolves had a few positive portrayals in modern media. Hyenas, on the other hand, are still vilified to this day.

And some believe that the domestic dog has descended from wolves. (Maybe not from the modern gray wolf, but from some extinct wolf species that once roamed Europe according from what I have read. Correct me if I'm wrong)

3 Gorillas Gorillas are herbivorous, predominantly ground-dwelling great apes that inhabit the tropical forests of equatorial Africa. The genus Gorilla is divided into two species: the eastern gorilla and the western gorilla, and either four or five subspecies. The DNA of gorillas is highly similar to that of humans, from 95 to 99% depending on what is included, and they are the next closest living relatives... read more

Why do gorillas represent violence? I mean, they are very gentle and rarely start violence, when they pound their chest it's to seem tough, but they don't want to fight. Watch the YouTube video "KoKo the gorrila cries over loss of kitten"

Gorillas are really gentle and loyal I mean if you get them angry it's kind of reasonable.

4 Black Cats

Not many people are still as superstitious, and black cats are just as popular as pets as any other colour of cat. It isn't racism as a certain colour of cat is not a race. Also, don't wish that kind of fate on anyone, especially if their only 'crime' is being superstitious.

This is not true! I have walked past a black cat plenty of times if one happened to be passing by and nothing bad happened afterwards! Black cats are like all other cats and do not deserve this reputation because of a superstition!

I have a pet Black Cat named Blackie and he is so friendly, But also very shy around new people. Anyway Black Cats are just as good as any other cat!

5 Bats Bats are mammals of the order Chiroptera. With their forelimbs adapted as wings, they are the only mammals capable of true and sustained flight. Bats are more agile in flight than most birds, flying with their very long spread-out digits covered with a thin membrane or patagium. The smallest bat, and arguably the smallest extant mammal, is Kitti's hog-nosed bat, which is 29–34 millimetres in length,... read more

People just don't like these guys because of them either being seen a flying rodents, or as scary monsters from movies like their association with vampires.

They're an important part of the ecosystem and their diet can range from fruit to insects. Some species are even pollinators. Even vampire bats provide help because their anticoagulant saliva has been used in medical science! Not to mention they never drink so much blood it has a negative impact on an animal.
Plus animals don't have to be useful to humans to be worth being kept alive.

Bats are always associates with creepiness. They actually have a network of family and friends and a good social life. When they can have a social life, they are smart.

Bats are very misunderstood. I know that they spread a lot of known sicknesses, but they eat bugs at night, so they are awesome.

6 Pigs A pig is any of the animals in the genus Sus, within the Suidae family of even-toed ungulates. Pigs include the domestic pig and its ancestor, the common Eurasian wild boar, along with other species; related creatures outside the genus include the peccary, the babirusa, and the warthog.

Pigs are misunderstood for their dumbness when they are actually very smart. People usually look at the pigs as dumb, dirty, and dumb. They are kept as pets in some parts of the country. They love human attention and are trainable.

Pigs are really smart, despite not being able to look up all the way. They are nice, and cute. Lots of people simply see pigs as smelly, dirty, rotten creatures. Those people are heartless!

Both the piglets and the adults are the cutest animals I can think of. Lazing around, rolling in mud and not caring what people think of them somehow makes them more so.

7 Bears Bears are carnivoran mammals of the family Ursidae. They are classified as caniforms, or doglike carnivorans. Although only eight species of bears are extant, they are widespread, appearing in a wide variety of habitats throughout the Northern Hemisphere and partially in the Southern Hemisphere. Bears are found on the continents of North America, South America, Europe, and Asia. Common characteristics... read more

I can't believe it when people said bears are evil. What did they do to you? They did NOTHING. They were just being protective of their kids! What's so bad about that? What if YOU had a kid, somebody suddenly comes over and chops your head off thus kidnapping your kids and antagonizing you until your species went threatened? Wow...

Bears are beautiful and not savage. Hunting provokes bears and seeking them out can of course make them feel threatened and make them attack. And yes, hunting is wrong. People once used it only when they needed fur and meat, but as a sport it is disgusting to take something's life just for a cruel 'sport'.

Don't go trying to mess with bears they are very territorial, but they are constantly being killed for sport by the horrendous thing called HUNTING! They are not all bad, if someone you didn't know came in your house and started touching your kids, wouldn't you be pissed?

8 Snakes Snakes are elongated, legless, carnivorous reptiles of the suborder Serpentes that can be distinguished from legless lizards by their lack of eyelids and external ears.

They're an important part of the ecosystem but people see reptiles as lesser than mammals and add the associations of snakes with evil culturally across the world and people with phobias of snakes, and you get the unfortunate bad treatment of snakes everywhere.
I know plenty of people who will viciously harass snake pet owners on social media for their choice of pet.

I see why people think snakes are dangerous. They can be fatal in one bite and eat their pray whole, I think that's a bit scary. But saying they are all mini versions of the devil or are all evil is just childish. You can say that dogs slobber, because it's a proven physical trait, not a personality one. Imagine if every human had the same personality, well, we are saying that is true to snakes. I love how cunning and fast they are, but they aren't mean. I had a pet snake that escaped a lot that was very active but not evil. Saying snakes are evil without even owning one is just childish, so please stop.

9 Bumble Bees

When somebody tells me they got stung by a bee, I always say, "Poor bee." You know why? Because if you get stung once or twice, you'll live most definitely, but bees will die most definitely. Besides, being scared gets you more prone to be stung because bees mistake it as aggression. If you're not scared, they sting you because you mess with them. If you feel like they stung you for no reason, stop being selfish! The bee died while you just got a little owie! It died, okay? The world bumble bee population is going down and nobody seems to care much. Yes, there's honey, but bees pollinate 90% of crops.

People fear them because they have stingers. They think bees will sting you for no reason, but that's not true. They will only sting you if you mess with them. And then the bee dies afterword, but no one seems to care.

There was one in my class the other day. Everyone freaked out. I was confused by the panic and felt sorry for the bee. I wonder who was panicking the most.. The bee or the people?

10 Sloths Sloths are mammals classified in the families Megalonychidae and Bradypodidae, including six extant species. Noted for their slowness of movement, they spend most of their lives hanging upside down in the trees of the tropical rainforests of South America and Central America.
The Contenders
11 Mice A mouse is a small rodent characteristically having a pointed snout, small rounded ears, a body-length scaly tail and a high breeding rate. The best known mouse species is the common house mouse. It is also a popular pet.

Mice are not dirty little rodents, they are actually intelligent. No one is too small to matter, they are natural students who excel at learning and understanding concepts, they have excellent memories, once rats learn a navigation route, they never forget it. Mice and rats are also highly social animals. They become attached to each other, love their own families, and easily bond with their human guardians. They make sounds similar to giggling when having fun. But who cares about rats and mice, right?

I never understood people's deal with rodents, including mice and rats. It's the feral mice/rats that carry diseases and I honestly don't see what people think is so "scary" about them. I have no problem with them.

They are actually really cute, and mostly harmless, I once saves a mouse.

12 Dogs The dog or domestic dog (Canis familiaris or Canis lupus familiaris) is a domesticated descendant of the wolf, and is characterized by an upturning tail. The dog is derived from an ancient, extinct wolf, and the modern wolf is the dog's nearest living relative. The dog was the first species to be domesticated, by hunter–gatherers over 15,000 years ago, before the development of agriculture. Due... read more

Really? They aren't misunderstood. I get that some of them are nice but a vast part of them are not. Call it stereotype, but it's true. One attacked this harmless cute little west I.e. At the dog park and really hurt it. The little waste was so happy, trotting around and smiling. Then a nasty pit bull went charging after it and pounced on it and the good natured west is was so petrified and hurt he couldn't stop him. I will never look at one the same again. I think they are cute and all, and I'm sure there are very nice ones out there, but you have to admit that a lot of them will attack. Way more than any other dog breed. I don't think they are misunderstood, I just think they are untrustworthy. 'enough said.

Pitbulls have a bad reputation because of dog fighting. Dog fighting is a cruel, illegal and unacceptable act which I think should be banned. (And Pitbulls aren't the only dog fighting breed. The English Mastiff, Cane Corso and Tosa Inu were also used for dog fighting, yet their incidents aren't as well known and their reputations aren't as bad. Either way, I still think dog fighting gives any dog a bad name) Although it's usually the irresponsible owners that are bad rather than the dogs themselves, I still think Pitbulls are more untrustworthy than misunderstood. You just don't want to mess with them. (unless you really want to)

13 Spiders

Honestly, there is nothing dangerous about them, unless you saw, say, a tarantula or a black widow. They protect your homes from other, more harmful insects, and you repay them by killing and fearing them. Another reason the human race is stupider than spiders.

Sorry. I'm a HUGE arachnophobe. If I even see a spider, I will not go into the room if I saw it in, and having a brown recluse drop from the ceiling onto my face... that didn't help my case. There's nothing wrong with spiders and they keep the bug population down, but If I see a spider in my house, sorry it's gonna get squashed.

I think spiders are pretty cool and some are actually harmless. They're useful because they prey on nasty, harmful insects like mosquitos and flies that carry disease. If it weren't for spiders, then we would have a problem.

14 Parrots Parrots, also known as psittacines, are birds of the roughly 393 species in 92 genera that make up the order Psittaciformes, found in most tropical and subtropical regions.

People think they are just birds that repeat what we say, they are wrong!

15 Anacondas Anacondas are group of large snakes of the genus Eunectes. They are large snakes found in tropical South America.
16 Ants Ants are eusocial insects of the family Formicidae and, along with the related wasps and bees, belong to the order Hymenoptera.

Thousands of ants are dying each day. When people keep killing ants, it's actually really mean, because they can't do anything but try to run away. Imagine there are these giants who keep smashing everyone. That's probably exactly how ants are feeling.

That's why carpenter ants exist. They are good for the environment and bite you a lot.

17 Humans Humans (Homo sapiens) are the most abundant and widespread species of primate, characterized by bipedalism and large, complex brains. This has enabled the development of advanced tools, culture, and language. Humans are highly social and tend to live in complex social structures composed of many cooperating and competing groups, from families and kinship networks to political states. Social interactions... read more

Humans are not misunderstood. While some of us are pretty smart, there are still a huge number that aren't very smart in one form or another. And with everything we destroy and wipe out, all the greed and hatred we have, and pretty much every other problem we cause day in and day out, humans really are the biggest nuisance that the world has to other. Nothing is a bigger problem than mankind. Animals are more misunderstood than humans and regardless of what some people think, we are definitely NOT the dominant species on this planet.

Habitat destruction, poaching and war crimes. These are the things we human beings are often associated with. While it is true that there are really terrible people, not all of us are some rampant monsters who are hell-bent on destroying habitats, hunting wild animals to extinction, killing millions of innocents, etc.

List of misunderstood groups of human beings: autistic people, Black people, gingers, homosexuals, Muslims, Native Americans, and transgenders.

18 Meerkats The meerkat or suricate is a small carnivoran belonging to the mongoose family. It is the only member of the genus Suricata.
19 Piranhas A piranha or piraña, a member of family Characidae in order Characiformes, is a freshwater fish that inhabits South American rivers, floodplains, lakes and reservoirs.
20 Opossums

Some people think Possums are ugly and mean. They are SO not ugly. They are really nice, don't chase or attack your pets, and their not mean I will say that again. When they are only in trouble they hiss, drool, try to look tough, and show their teeth. Their only protecting themselves. Don't be mean to them and say their ugly.

21 Lions The lion (Panthera leo) is a large cat of the genus Panthera native to Africa and India. It has a muscular, broad-chested body, short, rounded head, round ears, and a hairy tuft at the end of its tail. It is sexually dimorphic; adult male lions are larger than females and have a prominent mane. It is a social species, forming groups called prides. A lion's pride consists of a few adult males, related females, and cubs. Groups of female lions usually hunt together, preying mostly on large ungulates. The lion is an apex and keystone predator; although some lions scavenge when opportunities occur and have been known to hunt humans, the species typically does not actively seek out and prey on humans. ...read more.

How are lions, cattle, and white tigers misunderstood? Not hating, just asking.

22 African Harrier-Hawks
23 Hyenas Hyenas or hyaenas are any feliform carnivoran mammals of the family Hyaenidae /haɪˈɛnᵻdiː/. With only four extant species, it is the fifth-smallest biological family in the Carnivora, and one of the smallest in the class Mammalia.

You know what is sad? Some people actually defend the bad reputation of hyenas, saying stuff like "they make good villains", or "hyena biologists are acting ridiculous", or "we must follow folk traditions since the 'evil hyena' stereotype has been used before so it must be kept being used again and again for generations" or other crud I don't care about. I know fiction is fiction, but The Lion King has been a horrible influence on peoples' views on the animals. Fans of the bad hyenas in The Lion King and The Lion Guard are not true hyena lovers.

It's all The Lion King's fault that hyenas have gotten such a horrible reputation and I thought the old folk stories of the past had it bad enough. Hyenas are often mistaken as henchmen or a species exclusive to the villain side because of this movie. For a change, I rather see a good guy/gal that is a hyena instead of another villain that's one. In reality, hyenas are intelligent and excellent hunters who hunt their own prey most of the time and it's usually the lions who scavenge from hyenas more often than the other way around (No offense to lion lovers, just telling the truth).

24 Cats The cat (Felis catus) is a domestic species of small carnivorous mammal.
It is the only domesticated species in the family Felidae and is often referred to as the domestic cat to distinguish it from the wild members of the family. A cat can either be a house cat, a farm cat or a feral cat; the latter ranges freely and avoids human contact.

Domestic cats are valued by humans for companionship... read more

There is no such things as cats that are "bad luck" and Sphinx cats may look odd, but I wouldn't say ugly. And contrary to popular belief they are not actually hairless. It only looks that way because it's so light and short. The superstitious belief of black cats bringing bad luck and Sphinx being ugly is pure nonsense!

They're often hated for looking "ugly" or having a "smooshed face", when they, like the black cats, can be as good and well cared for as any other cat.

They are probably the best thing in the world who hates them? Kill mode is loading.

25 Porcupines Porcupines are rodentian mammals with a coat of sharp spines, or quills, that protect against predators.

Poor porcupines no one likes them, they don't try to prick you, Derek Small, the director of Wildlife Encounters Zoo says that this is not true. A porcupine cannot shoot its poisonous quills, but it can definitely release them into the face of some animal that starts sniffing it a little too close.

I love porcupines! They are so cute and their quills are only there to defend them against predators who want to eat them!

If you saw a sad-looking porcupine in the street holding a sign saying, "Free hugs", would you hug it?

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