A new report has revealed Australia’s deadliest animal and it is not what you would expect

In a nation known for having some of the world’s most fearsome creatures, the deadliest animal in Australia is not what you would expect. Australia is home to more deadly snakes than any other country in the world, its coastline is surrounded by fearsome sharks and the world’s largest reptile, the saltwater crocodile, lurks through creeks in the north. But a new report has revealed one animal caused more deaths in Australia than any other. The National Coronial Information System (NCIS) Unit examined animal-related deaths between 2001 and 2021. NCIS found horses killed more people than any other animal in Australia and were responsible for more than 200 deaths over a two-decade period. The majority of people who died in a horse-related incident were aged more than 45 years, with most deaths caused by falling from the animal. NCIS reported about 36 per cent of horse-related deaths involved trail or general horseback riding and 15 per cent involved horse racing. In total, the unit reported 713 people died in Australia from an animal-related death over the two decades. Most deaths involved land mammals (505 deaths), including horses (222 deaths), bovines (92 deaths), dogs (82 deaths) and kangaroos (53 deaths). NCIS found more than half the deaths involving cows or bulls were caused by blunt force contact with the animal where a person was crushed, knocked over, trampled, struck or bumped. Most dog-related deaths were caused by bites or falls and more likely to occurred to people aged over 65 years. The Unit reported terriers, bull-mastiffs and rottweilers were the most common dog breeds to be involved in deaths caused by bites. The report also found all kangaroo deaths were due to vehicle incidents and almost half killed motorcyclists. Males (68 per cent) were more likely to die in an animal-related death, compared to females (32 per cent). In the 20 year period, NCIS found all reptile and amphibian deaths were due to snakes (50 deaths) and crocodiles (25 deaths). Most snake-related deaths were caused by a venomous snake, with 18 occurring in Queensland and 11 in NSW. Snakes killed more people aged 65+ years than any other age group. The report found most people killed by a crocodile were swimming at the time of their death. More people died from bee sting anaphylaxis (45 deaths) compared to sharks which caused 39 deaths. There were 15 people killed by a shark in Western Australia over the 20 year period, followed by 10 in Queensland and nine in NSW. There were no deaths recorded from spider bites over the 20 years.