Nature's Killers - MSN Encarta

Also known as white pointer and white death, this animal is the largest of the strictly carnivorous sharks:

Bull shark

Hammerhead shark

Tiger shark

Great white shark

There are about 1,400 species of this arachnid, characterized by its flat, narrow body, two lobster-like claws, eight legs, and a segmented abdominal tail. Its tail is curved upward and forward over the back, tipped with a venomous stinger supplied by a pair of poison glands.

Tick

Mite

Scorpion

Daddy longlegs

This striped yellow-eyed carnivore, the largest of the big cats, kills and feeds entirely on the flesh of other mammals using its short, powerful jaws and large jaw muscles.

Lion

Tiger

Cougar

Cheetah

This massive nonvenomous snake kills its prey by constriction--coiling its muscular body around the animal and squeezing it to death.

Cottonmouth

Egyptian cobra

Python

Rattlesnake

The largest of the monitor lizards, this creature lives on several Indonesian islands, and is characterized by a long, forked, snakelike tongue, as well as its ability to engulf and swallow large prey whole.

Iguana

Komodo dragon

Gray's monitor

Water lizard

This mammal, a renowned scavenger, is a doglike carnivore with powerful jaws capable of crushing large bones that other predators cannot eat.

Hyena

Aardwolf

Dingo

Jackal

Also known as the violin spider, this arachnid's bite is poisonous to humans and can cause death. It builds a loose, irregular web in sheltered outdoor or indoor corners, and sometimes hides in folds of cloth.

Tarantula

Black widow

Crab spider

Brown recluse

This animal, whose name comes from two Greek words meaning, "river horse," is one of the largest and heaviest land mammals, with an unpredictable temperament and the ability to bite through small boats and slice crocodiles in half:

Rhinoceros

Wild boar

Hippopotamus

Wildebeest

The largest eagle in the Americas, this crested tropical bird can grow up to 100 cm (over 3 ft) long with a 200 cm (6.5 ft) wingspan, and weigh up to 9 kg (20 lb).

Philippine eagle

Harpy eagle

Bald eagle

Golden eagle

Some members of this reptilian family are the largest living reptiles--they can grow up to 7 m (23 ft) in length and weigh up to a metric ton. With 30 to 40 teeth in each jaw, this animal can easily crush its victims' bones.

Crocodile

Caiman

Alligator

Gavial