36 Monsters That Actually Exist
![36 Monsters That Actually Exist](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/9/3/3/871933_320x180.jpg)
Monsters aren’t just in movies and books. They’re everywhere in the real world, too. Images from the ocean are filled with horrible dead-eyed, sharped-teeth creatures that probably wouldn’t have any problem eating a human being alive if they ever got the chance. Land isn’t safe either. Have you seen bugs? They’re abominations! There are also several animals that behave in monstrous ways out there in the wild. Let’s just put it this way: You’re never going to look at seagulls the same way again once you find out what they do to baby seals.
Monsters, man. They’re everywhere.
The Coconut Crab
![The COCONUT CRAB is big enough to eat, well, coconuts. The claws of this beast are strong enough to crack open the coconuts it snacks on. It isn't a vegetarian monster, though-it has been observed to hunt rats and sea birds. CRACKED.COM](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/9/3/1/871931.jpg)
Source: 34 Real Creatures More Terrifying Than Any Work Of Fiction
Promachoteuthis Sulcus
![Promachoteuthis Sulcus CRACKED.COM What look like squid teeth are actually circular, folded lips that surround the critter's beak. So, that's not monstrous at all.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/9/2/9/871929.jpg)
Source: 19 Terrifying Real-World Monsters Straight Out Of A Horror Movie
Black Dragonfish
![The Black Dragonfish CRACKED.COM Its body emits a bioluminescent glow that only it can see. So while other creatures are swimming blind, it can see by its own light.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/9/3/2/871932.jpg)
Source: 19 Terrifying Real-World Monsters Straight Out Of A Horror Movie
Northern Stargazer
![Northern Stargazer GRACKED COM The terrifying face waiting in the sand belongs to a fish that burrows into the ocean floor to sneak up on prey. Then it zaps them with special shock organs over its eyes.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/9/3/0/871930.jpg)
Source: 19 Terrifying Real-World Monsters Straight Out Of A Horror Movie
Shocking Pink Dragon
![THE SHOCKING PINK DRAGON IS A MILLIPEDE. Scientists figure its bright pink color is there to warn predators about its toxicity. CRACKED.COM](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/9/2/8/871928.jpg)
Source: 34 Real Creatures More Terrifying Than Any Work Of Fiction
Darwin's Bark Spider
![THE DARWIN'S BARK SPIDER SPINS 80-FOOT WEBS. It spins its webs across rivers like a fishing net, and scientists speculate that a Darwin's bark spiderweb is strong enough to catch a bird. http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2010/09/photogalleries/100917-darwins- CRACKED.COM bark-spider-new-species-spider-webs-madagascar-science-pictures-strongest/](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/9/2/7/871927.jpg)
Source: 34 Real Creatures More Terrifying Than Any Work Of Fiction
Goliath Tigerfish
![The GOLIATH TIGERFISH eats crocodiles (maybe). You probably shouldn't get too close to this 5-foot-long river monster with a mouthful of dagger-like teeth. It lives in the Congo Basin, where it's said to prey on crocodiles (smaller ones, at least). GRACKED.COM](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/9/2/6/871926.jpg)
Source: 34 Real Creatures More Terrifying Than Any Work Of Fiction
Honeypot Ants
![Honeypot Ants CRACKED.COM The honeypot ant is a living pantry. It gorges itself on flower nectars during the rainy season then feeds other ants mouth-to-mouth the rest of the year.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/9/2/5/871925.jpg)
Source: 19 Terrifying Real-World Monsters Straight Out Of A Horror Movie
The Giant Water Bug
![The Giant Water Bug CRACKED.COM These winged nightmares fly and bite. They're 4 inches long and have one of the more painful bites of the insect kingdom.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/9/2/4/871924.jpg)
Source: 19 Terrifying Real-World Monsters Straight Out Of A Horror Movie
Mata-Matas
![Mata-Matas CRACKED.COM The Mata-Mata is a turtle that strikes like a snake. See that long neck? It gives the Mata-Mata serious distance when it lashes at prey from inside its shell.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/9/2/3/871923.jpg)
Source: 19 Terrifying Real-World Monsters Straight Out Of A Horror Movie
The Velvet Worm
![36 Monsters That Actually Exist](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/9/2/2/871922.gif)
Source: 19 Terrifying Real-World Monsters Straight Out Of A Horror Movie
The Bobbit Worm
![36 Monsters That Actually Exist](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/9/2/1/871921.gif)
Source: 19 Terrifying Real-World Monsters Straight Out Of A Horror Movie
Arthropleura
![ARTHROPLEURA Dead for 305 million years. 8.5'LONG CRACKED.COM The Carboniferous Period led to the rise of immense bugs when there was a greater amount of oxygen in the atmosphere, and none were more unsettling than the giant centipede. The 'armor' wasn't meant to help defend it from predators, on account of it being at the top of the food chain.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/9/2/0/871920.jpg)
Source: 34 Real Creatures More Terrifying Than Any Work Of Fiction
Wolf Trap Anglerfish
![THE WOLF TRAP ANGLERFISH HAS A BUILT-IN FISHING POLE. They're called wolf traps because their massive jaws open horizontally, not vertically. CRACKED.COM https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thaumatichthyidae](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/9/1/7/871917.jpg)
Source: 34 Real Creatures More Terrifying Than Any Work Of Fiction
The Yeti Crab
![The Yeti Crab CRACKED.COM Besides looking strange, the yeti crab is crawling with bacteria. Scientists think it cultivates these bacteria, which live in its arm hair, to eat.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/9/1/9/871919.jpg)
Source: 19 Terrifying Real-World Monsters Straight Out Of A Horror Movie
Vampire Deer
![VAMPIRE DEER won't suck your blood (probably). Several species of deer come outfitted with a nice pair of fangs. The long, pointy chompers work better than antlers in thick vegetation, as they don't get tangled. CRACKED COM](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/9/1/8/871918.jpg)
Source: 34 Real Creatures More Terrifying Than Any Work Of Fiction
The Whip Scorpion
![The Whip Scorpion CRACKED.COM Tailless whip scorpions, or whip spiders, have front pincers that they use for grabbing prey. Some even use them for fishing.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/9/1/6/871916.jpg)
Source: 19 Terrifying Real-World Monsters Straight Out Of A Horror Movie
Star-Nosed Mole
![The Star- Nosed Mole CRACKED.COM That squid on his face gives him one of the best senses of touch in the mammal kingdom. Не uses it to catch prey because of course he does.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/9/1/5/871915.jpg)
Source: 19 Terrifying Real-World Monsters Straight Out Of A Horror Movie
Japanese Spider Crab
![Japanese Spider Crab CRACKED.COM The Japanese spider crab can measure 12 feet across. They're omnivores and use those long claws to pry open mollusks, like clams.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/9/1/4/871914.jpg)
Source: 19 Terrifying Real-World Monsters Straight Out Of A Horror Movie
Skeleton Shrimp
![Skeleton Shrimp CRACKED.COM The skeleton shrimp has a transparent body and venomous claws. Those claws are used for defense, and (more terrifyingly) for mating.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/9/1/3/871913.jpg)
Source: 19 Terrifying Real-World Monsters Straight Out Of A Horror Movie
Quetzalcoatlus
![QUETZALCOATLUS Dead for 65 million years. 36'WINGSPAN, 550 LBS CRACKED COM This giraffe-sized flying dinosaur was SO big that, even with hollow bones, scientists are unsure if it could actually take flight. We're not sure which is worse, a pterodactyl with wings the length of a city bus flying towards you, or one galloping at you with its 8' beak wide open.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/9/1/2/871912.jpg)
Source: 34 Real Creatures More Terrifying Than Any Work Of Fiction
Manatees
![Manatees GRACKED.COM When the docile sea cow isn't busy chewing on sea cud, they are filling the waterways with their bubbling plant-farts; all that vegetation in their diet fills them with methane, which they release to control buoyancy.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/9/1/1/871911.jpg)
Source: 34 Real Creatures More Terrifying Than Any Work Of Fiction
White Bellbirds
![White Bellbirds GRAGKED.COM Love is blind, but I bet these birds wish it was mute. The male white bellbird screams directly into the face of its potential mate, at a staggering 125 decibels - as loud as an ambulance siren. Just slide into her DMs like a normal person.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/9/1/0/871910.jpg)
Source: 34 Real Creatures More Terrifying Than Any Work Of Fiction
Megalodon
![MEGALODON Dead for 3.6 million years. 67', 132,000 LBS CRACKED.COM Megalodon was not only one of the biggest fish ever but one of the largest predators to terrorize the planet. The only natural predator to today's Great White shark (besides humans) are Killer Whales, but during the Miocene era not even whales were safe from the megalodon's 11' wide jaws.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/9/0/9/871909.jpg)
Source: 34 Real Creatures More Terrifying Than Any Work Of Fiction
Tarantula Hawk
![Tarantula Hawk CRACKED.COM The female tarantula hawk lures the tarantula out of its burrow, paralyzes it, drags it to her nest, and lays her eggs in it. When they hatch, the tarantula is their first meal.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/9/0/4/871904.jpg)
Source: 19 Terrifying Real-World Monsters Straight Out Of A Horror Movie
Penguins
![Penguin Beaks GRACKED.COM Penguins swallow their food alive and wriggling, so their tongue and mouth parts are lined with spines to keep food moving into their bellies.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/9/0/6/871906.jpg)
Source: 19 Terrifying Real-World Monsters Straight Out Of A Horror Movie
Atolla Jellyfish
![The Atolla Jellyfish CRACKED.COM The atolla jellyfish lights up like a cop car when it's under attack. Scientists call this type of bioluminescence a burglar alarm display.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/9/0/8/871908.jpg)
Source: 19 Terrifying Real-World Monsters Straight Out Of A Horror Movie
Assassin Spiders
![Assassin Spiders CRACKED.COM They don't spin webs. They use their fanged beaks and long necks to reach out and pluck other spiders out of their webs.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/8/9/7/871897.jpg)
Source: 19 Terrifying Real-World Monsters Straight Out Of A Horror Movie
Seagulls
![SEAGULLS EAT THE EYES OF NEWBORN SEALS. Kelp gulls will wait for the blinded seal to die and then come back for its remains. CRACKED.COM](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/9/0/2/871902.jpg)
Source: 34 Real Creatures More Terrifying Than Any Work Of Fiction
Birds
![PETTING A BIRD AROUSES THEM. A bird's sexual hormones are stimulated when it gets pet on its back. Some vets advise you to only pet the head and feet of a bird in order to not sexually frustrate it. CRACKED.COM](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/9/0/7/871907.jpg)
Source: 34 Real Creatures More Terrifying Than Any Work Of Fiction
Otters
![OTTERS ARE KNOWN TO KILL BABY SEALS THROUGH INTERCOURSE In addition, they have been reported to have violent, forced sex with dogs. Males have also been seen having sex with dead otter bodies. CRACKED.COM](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/9/0/1/871901.jpg)
Source: 34 Real Creatures More Terrifying Than Any Work Of Fiction
Koalas
![BABY KOALAS EAT THEIR MOM'S POOP Joeys initially breastfeed, but for several weeks it will peek its head out of its mom's poach to feast from its mom's butt. CRACKED.COM](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/9/0/3/871903.jpg)
Source: 34 Real Creatures More Terrifying Than Any Work Of Fiction
The Musk Deer
![The Musk Deer CRACKED COM Deer aren't supposed to have fangs, but this one does. It doesn't have antlers, though, so there's that.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/9/0/0/871900.jpg)
Source: 19 Terrifying Real-World Monsters Straight Out Of A Horror Movie
The Lamprey
![The Lamprey CRACKED.COM Lampreys grow to 3.5 feet and feed by eating their way into the sides of fish till guts come out of the hole. They've been sucking along like that for 360 million years.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/9/0/5/871905.jpg)
Source: 19 Terrifying Real-World Monsters Straight Out Of A Horror Movie
The Pink Handfish
![The Pink Handfish CRACKED.COM It's one of nine new species of handfish discovered near Tasmania. Not only do they have limbs where their fins should be, but they use them to walk around under water.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/8/9/8/871898.jpg)
Source: 19 Terrifying Real-World Monsters Straight Out Of A Horror Movie
Deep-sea Hatchetfish
![Deep-sea Hatchetfish CRACKED.COM The deep-sea hatchetfish comes closer at night. It lives in deep water, but it travels to shallower water at night to hunt.](https://s3.crackedcdn.com/phpimages/imageset/8/9/9/871899.jpg)
Source: 19 Terrifying Real-World Monsters Straight Out Of A Horror Movie