# What "dangerous" animals attack humans without reason of hunger? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [July 16, 2017, 2:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-dangerous-animals-attack-humans-without-reason-of-hunger/791369 "2017-07-16T02:21:49Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Velocity](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/velocity/32/18006_2.png) [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2017, 2:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-dangerous-animals-attack-humans-without-reason-of-hunger/791369/1 "2017-07-16T02:21:49Z")
So let’s say you stroll (or swim or whatever) leisurely into the following: A pack of wolves; or A pride of lions; or A few tigers (or cheetahs); or A few sharks; or A group of coyotes; or A group of hyenas; or Some bobcats, ocelots, jaguars, etc., or Some crocodiles or alligators; or any other carnivorous, typically-regarded-as-dangerous creature you can think of. Now, assuming they aren’t hungry, which of these predators would attack you anyway just for walking into proximity of them? (Not need answer fast.) ---
**Author:** ![Velocity](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/velocity/32/18006_2.png) [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2017, 2:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-dangerous-animals-attack-humans-without-reason-of-hunger/791369/2 "2017-07-16T02:27:50Z")
Edit: Let’s ignore territory, too - say they aren’t guarding territory, or territory isn’t an issue. ---
**Author:** ![kambuckta](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/53a042/32.png) [@kambuckta](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kambuckta)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2017, 2:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-dangerous-animals-attack-humans-without-reason-of-hunger/791369/3 "2017-07-16T02:31:03Z")
Hippos ---
**Author:** ![HoneyBadgerDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/honeybadgerdc/32/1033_2.png) [@HoneyBadgerDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HoneyBadgerDC)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2017, 2:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-dangerous-animals-attack-humans-without-reason-of-hunger/791369/4 "2017-07-16T02:34:49Z")
At least two people have died from beaver attacks in recent years. I imagine you skipped bears by accident. Domestic dogs, any kind of large hooved animal or elephant in musk. ---
**Author:** ![Xema](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/9de053/32.png) [@Xema](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Xema)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2017, 2:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-dangerous-animals-attack-humans-without-reason-of-hunger/791369/5 "2017-07-16T02:49:02Z")
> [@Velocity](#): > > which of these predators would attack you anyway just for walking into proximity of them? I don’t think any of the ones you list would reliably do so. ---
**Author:** ![Chimera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Chimera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chimera)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2017, 2:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-dangerous-animals-attack-humans-without-reason-of-hunger/791369/6 "2017-07-16T02:55:26Z")
Geese. No, they’re not predators, but if for example there is a gaggle of them on the sidewalk and you’re foolish enough to try to just walk through them, you’re in for a nasty surprise. Especially if there are young about. ---
**Author:** ![watchwolf49](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e9c0ed/32.png) [@watchwolf49](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/watchwolf49)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2017, 3:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-dangerous-animals-attack-humans-without-reason-of-hunger/791369/7 "2017-07-16T03:15:48Z")
> [@kambuckta](#): > > Hippos Any of them when protecting young … ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2017, 3:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-dangerous-animals-attack-humans-without-reason-of-hunger/791369/8 "2017-07-16T03:27:16Z")
> [@Velocity](#): > > Now, assuming they aren’t hungry, which of these predators would attack you anyway just for walking into proximity of them? None of the animals you list would spontaneously attack you unless they were hungry, or felt threatened in some way. ---
**Author:** ![Ulfreida](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ulfreida/32/8014_2.png) [@Ulfreida](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ulfreida)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2017, 3:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-dangerous-animals-attack-humans-without-reason-of-hunger/791369/9 "2017-07-16T03:34:54Z")
Yellow jackets. ---
**Author:** ![Velocity](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/velocity/32/18006_2.png) [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2017, 3:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-dangerous-animals-attack-humans-without-reason-of-hunger/791369/10 "2017-07-16T03:44:37Z")
> [@HoneyBadgerDC](#): > > At least two people have died from beaver attacks in recent years. I imagine you skipped bears by accident. > > Domestic dogs, any kind of large hooved animal or elephant in musk. Yes, forgot to mention bears. About some other animals - I should clarify: I am not asking for incidents that are rare, but rather, would incur a fairly high % rate of attack. Where, for instance, if you get near Siberian tigers, even well-fed and not territorial ones, they might still attack you just because you’re there right near them. ---
**Author:** ![purplehearingaid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7bcc69/32.png) [@purplehearingaid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purplehearingaid)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2017, 3:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-dangerous-animals-attack-humans-without-reason-of-hunger/791369/11 "2017-07-16T03:48:47Z")
I agree that none of these animals would attack humans for no reason , if they had rabies or were hurt or protecting their mate and young ones then they may attack a person . I am more afraid of getting stung by an angry honest , wasp or yellow jacket for no reason ! ---
**Author:** ![Crazyhorse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crazyhorse/32/31_2.png) [@Crazyhorse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crazyhorse)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2017, 4:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-dangerous-animals-attack-humans-without-reason-of-hunger/791369/12 "2017-07-16T04:01:25Z")
There is almost no animal on earth that will attack for non-food reasons unless it feels threatened. And even then in most cases it will run rather than fight if it can. But what makes a given animal in a given situation feel threatened varies as does their sense of whether they can flee or need to fight. Even wasps and snakes feel threatened when they attack, but they have hair triggers compared to many other animals. The black mamba seems to go out of its way to attack nearby animals or people rather than flee when it easily could. But I’ve heard that happens because the person or animal is between the snake and a known hiding place it wants to go. ---
**Author:** ![CoastalMaineiac](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e8c25b/32.png) [@CoastalMaineiac](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CoastalMaineiac)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2017, 4:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-dangerous-animals-attack-humans-without-reason-of-hunger/791369/13 "2017-07-16T04:01:28Z")
> [@Chimera](#): > > Geese. > > No, they’re not predators, but if for example there is a gaggle of them on the sidewalk and you’re foolish enough to try to just walk through them, you’re in for a nasty surprise. Especially if there are young about. Geese were my first thought. In fact, some folks use them as a [substitute for a watchdog](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guard_goose). They can be downright mean! ---
**Author:** ![chacoguy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/50afbb/32.png) [@chacoguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chacoguy)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2017, 4:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-dangerous-animals-attack-humans-without-reason-of-hunger/791369/14 "2017-07-16T04:28:35Z")
[Cows.](https://curiosity.com/topics/cows-kill-more-people-than-sharks/) ---
**Author:** ![watchwolf49](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e9c0ed/32.png) [@watchwolf49](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/watchwolf49)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2017, 4:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-dangerous-animals-attack-humans-without-reason-of-hunger/791369/15 "2017-07-16T04:35:11Z")
> [@Velocity](#): > > Edit: Let’s ignore territory, too - say they aren’t guarding territory, or territory isn’t an issue. Well … that excludes wasps and hippos … I think we’re at “none” for animals that attack humans for sport … ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2017, 4:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-dangerous-animals-attack-humans-without-reason-of-hunger/791369/16 "2017-07-16T04:48:23Z")
A certain subset of _Homo stupidens_. ---
**Author:** ![thelurkinghorror](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7c8e57/32.png) [@thelurkinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelurkinghorror)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2017, 4:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-dangerous-animals-attack-humans-without-reason-of-hunger/791369/17 "2017-07-16T04:56:12Z")
There are no known reports of cheetahs killing humans ever. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2017, 5:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-dangerous-animals-attack-humans-without-reason-of-hunger/791369/18 "2017-07-16T05:11:42Z")
Momma bears are very dangerous. Obviously because they feel their cubs are endangered but it’s a pretty broad window there. ---
**Author:** ![watchwolf49](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e9c0ed/32.png) [@watchwolf49](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/watchwolf49)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2017, 5:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-dangerous-animals-attack-humans-without-reason-of-hunger/791369/19 "2017-07-16T05:39:56Z")
So, I’m watching cheesy late night TV … Godzilla attacks humans with no apparent reason … ---
**Author:** ![smithsb](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smithsb/32/12107_2.png) [@smithsb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/smithsb)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2017, 7:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-dangerous-animals-attack-humans-without-reason-of-hunger/791369/20 "2017-07-16T07:36:28Z")
Bears, obligatory Larson: [![](https://i.pinimg.com/736x/85/b1/da/85b1da87c50917e53ec069e913fd71fc.jpg) ](https://i.pinimg.com/736x/85/b1/da/85b1da87c50917e53ec069e913fd71fc.jpg) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-dangerous-animals-attack-humans-without-reason-of-hunger/791369.md?page=2)