After generations of harsh lessons, it’s understandable that many of us have an innate fear-response when it comes to certain animals, a biological adaptation designed to keep us alive.

It’s easy to forget but just a few generations ago, our ancestors could have faced serious illness or even death after an incident with an animal that nowadays, thanks to modern medicine, we think of as relatively harmless.

And it’s no surprise really that the most common animal phobias are arachnophobia (fear of spiders) and ophidiophobia (fear of snakes), since just one bite from the wrong species of either could deliver a killing blow back in the days before antivenom (and, in the right circumstances, still could).

But according to a new paper published in the journal Environmental Health Insights, there are plenty more animals that are worth being wary of – with the most common killer in the US absolutely not an animal that you might expect.

In the paper, researchers examined all animal-related fatalities occurring in the US, in the five-year period 2018-2023. It is notable, of course, that this time span included lockdowns related to the Covid-19 pandemic.

This amounted to 1,604 animal-related deaths, with an alarming, gradual increase from 227 animal-related deaths in 2018, up to 313 animal-related deaths in the year 2023.

And to put the minds of those anxious about snakes and spiders at rest, only 30 deaths across the five year period were attributed to snakes, with just 26 others attributed to spiders.

As for the main culprits? Surprisingly, these were among the smallest animals you will find.

Overall, the biggest killer was flying insects, with the majority of deaths caused by an allergic reaction to the sting of hornets, bees, or wasps – at a whopping 31% of the total animal deaths recorded in the US between 2018 and 2023, or 497 total deaths.

However, man’s best friend were also, in some cases, man’s worst nightmare, with 420 fatal dog attacks during the duration of the study, and (perhaps logically) the rate rising sharply as the pandemic began.

Other culprits included cows and horses, with bears killing a small number of people too – though the authors are keen to note that any kind of animal-related death is still super rare.

But it all just goes to show that those ‘scary’ animals that we fear on an evolutionary level, perhaps aren’t the ones we should be worried about.

If you thought that was interesting, you might like to read a story that reveals Earth’s priciest precious metal isn’t gold or platinum and costs over $10,000 an ounce!