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Australia's most dangerous animal has been revealed, and it's extremely surprising

Venomous redneck spiders are prevalent in Australia (Picture: Getty)
Venomous redneck spiders are prevalent in Australia (Picture: Getty)

Australia is a land full of dingos , venomous snakes, poisonous spiders, and a whole load of other beasts that could kill you in their tracks without giving it a second thought.

So understandably, the University of Melbourne set out to answer a very specific question – what is the most dangerous animal in Australia?

Their criteria for assessment was relatively straight forward – the beast that has caused the most deaths and hospital admissions would be deemed the most dangerous.

Snakes proved pretty dangerous, having caused 27 deaths and 6,123 hospital visits between 2000-2013.

Bees and hornets were equally terrifying, having caused the same death rate and a staggering 12,351 hospital visits during the same period.

But in the battle to become Australia’s deadliest beast, there was one extremely unlikely winner that stood out amongst the rest.

The cold dead eyes of a killer (Picture: REX Features)
The cold dead eyes of a killer (Picture: REX Features)

We present to you the horse – that most dangerous of four legged beasts.

It’s a far cry from the poisonous fangs of a venomous snake, but the common horse was responsible for causing 74 deaths between 2000 and 2013 – with the vast majority believed to have been caused by riding accidents.

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Dr Ronelle Welton, who led the study, also explained that while it is natural for humans to be afraid of snakes, we’re far more likely to die after being thrown off a horse or attacked by a dog.

It’s an amazing and somewhat surprising stat – but we’re still not taking our chances.