14 Individual Animals and Packs with the Highest Individual Human Kill Counts
Do the Sloth Bear of Mysore and the dreaded crocodile Gustave sound like a joke to you?!?!
The Sloth Bear of Mysore
This bear went on a rampage in India in 1957, mauling dozens and killing 12 people. There were a few competing theories: This was a mother bear who went nuts after humans took away her cubs; this was a male bear who went nuts after he kidnapped a human girl as his mate and she was taken away from him; or, most likely, this poor guy just went berserker mode after being attacked by humans.
Courtaud, the Killer Wolf of Paris
The winter of 1439 was particularly harsh, and drove a pack of wolves from the countryside into the city of Paris to seek food. Led by one big red jerk that the locals named Courtaud (which, adorably, means “Bobtail”), they ambushed Notre Dame Square and killed over 40 clergymen. The townsfolk later lured the pack into the Notre Dame Cathedral and Red Wedding’d them, ambushing the animals with arrows, spears and rocks.
The Tigers of Chowgarh
This one is like a Disney movie waiting to happen: An old lady tiger and her juvenile son terrorized a 1,500-square-mile swath of Northern India for five years, killing at least 64 people. They were finally hunted down by big-time showboat Jim Corbett. You haven’t heard the last of old Jimmy Corbs, this guy loved hunting man-eating animals.
The Tigress of Bhimashankar
The story of the tigress was almost lost to the outside world, but an author bumped into an old man who had been a police officer in a Western Indian village in the 1940s. He described handling dozens of missing persons reports, only recovering the bodies of two of the animal’s 100-plus victims, and the dramatic conclusion to the saga at the hands of a local hunter named Ismail. The dude even had the paperwork to back up all of his claims.
The Leopard of Kahani
This vampire leopard in central India appeared not to eat the flesh of its 100 victims, but to consume their blood. Big-game hunters closed in on him in the middle of the 19th century, but war broke out and let him kill with impunity for a couple of extra years. A young local hunter finally took him out, almost by accident.
The Leopard of the Golis Range
While other local leopards would attack sheep and goats, this guy killed around 100 people in the mountains of Somaliland. The extremely rocky terrain made for great hiding places along winding trails, and locals even pinpointed one of the leopard’s favorite rocks to hide on — he’d worn out a comfortable perch like Homer Simpson’s couch butt groove.
The Beast of Gévaudan
No one knows what kind of animal this was, or if it was even one animal, but this thing killed 113 people in France over three years in the mid-18th century. It was described as cow-sized, wolf-shaped and almost zebra-printed, with the ability to fly at its victims. The French government threw a ton of money at hunting this dude, and they thought they got him several times before the attacks finally stopped.
The Leopard of Rudraprayag
This seven-and-a-half-foot behemoth killed at least 135 people, although prolific beast murderer Jim Corbett claims it probably killed even more people that were never reported. The leopard employed Big Bad Wolf tactics, breaking down doors and clawing through mud walls.
The Tsavo Man-Eaters
These two maneless lions targeted construction workers building the Kenya-Uganda Railway, taking about 135 men in 1898 alone. When they were finally hunted down, one of them was found to have a broken tooth, which probably made him turn to the soft, defenseless human for sustenance. The other one’s teeth were fine, though, so what’s his excuse?
The Devilish Cunning Panther
This Indian Leopard tragically killed over 150 women and children over just a couple of years. He would travel up to 30 miles per day, and take random villages by surprise.
Gustave the Crocodile
This croc has realistically killed about 60 people, but rumored deaths are up around 300. A 2004 PBS documentary Capturing the Killer Croc tried (but failed) to nab Gustave, and there were unsubstantiated reports of his death in 2019. But it’s likely that he’s still on the prowl in the lakes and rivers of Burundi.
The Leopard of Panar
This male leopard was believed to have been responsible for 400 deaths in North India. Our old friend Jim Corbett (reportedly) had a chance encounter with this beast while he was on the hunt for an even more prolific killer — the Champawat Tiger.
The Champawat Tiger
This tigress killed around 200 people in Nepal before moving to North India and upping her count to 436. When she was finally slain, she was found to have extensive jaw injuries that likely kept her from hunting her natural prey, and resorting to sprinting through human villages in broad daylight.
The Lions of Njombe
This one is pretty dubious, but it tops the list by sheer reported number. A 2005 BBC documentary called The Man-Eating Lions of Njombe spins a yarn about British hunter George Rushby, a brave man who vows to save a Tanzanian village from the lions who have eaten over 1,500 of their people. Supposedly, the villagers believe the lions are under the control of a witch doctor, and refuse to aid Rushby in his noble quest.
It seems more likely that they just didn’t like this white knight who strode into town with a film crew.
