The deadliest animals

Marissa Brent-Tookey

Marissa Brent-Tookey Jul 14, 2025

Feb 6, 2018

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                <h1>The deadliest animals</h1>
                <h2><p>A grimly fascinating infographic from The Washington Post shows that sharks, bears and alligators were responsible for one U.S. death apiece per year between 2001 and 2013. Cows, on the other hand, kill an average of 20 people each year, most of them farmhands. Bees, wasps and hornets lead</p></h2>
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               <p>By <a href="/author/marissa-brent-tookey-crosscut-com/">Marissa Brent-Tookey</a></p> 
              <p><time datetime="2025-02-04T05:00:00-08:00">Feb 6, 2018</time></p>
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            <p>A grimly fascinating <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/wp/2015/06/16/chart-the-animals-that-are-most-likely-to-kill-you-this-summer/?wpisrc=nl_wnkpm&wpmm=1&ref=dev.cascadepbs.org">infographic from The Washington Post</a> shows that sharks, bears and alligators were responsible for one U.S. death apiece per year between 2001 and 2013. Cows, on the other hand, kill an average of 20 people each year, most of them farmhands. Bees, wasps and hornets lead the pack, responsible for 58 deaths a year. Overall, the annual number of deaths caused by animals is about 200 — tiny compared to the 33,000 vehicle fatalities. The takeaway? Instead of worrying about snakes in the desert and sharks in the ocean, avoid bees and stay off the highway.</p>
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A grimly fascinating infographic from The Washington Post shows that sharks, bears and alligators were responsible for one U.S. death apiece per year between 2001 and 2013. Cows, on the other hand, kill an average of 20 people each year, most of them farmhands. Bees, wasps and hornets lead the pack, responsible for 58 deaths a year. Overall, the annual number of deaths caused by animals is about 200 — tiny compared to the 33,000 vehicle fatalities. The takeaway? Instead of worrying about snakes in the desert and sharks in the ocean, avoid bees and stay off the highway.

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By Marissa Brent-Tookey

Marissa Brent-Tookey is an editorial intern at Crosscut. She holds a B.A. in French from Seattle University and now studies film production at Shoreline Community College. In addition to crewing a doz