Top 15+ Dumbest Animals In The World

If you look at the animal kingdom, then you will see that there are millions of animal species, half of which you don’t even know about. And although most animals are intelligent, more than humans, like a dolphin. But there are a lot of animals who are just dumb. 

Don’t think that we are crazy in saying an animal is dumb because maybe they lack the grey matter in their brain or are less intelligent. 

But they appear dumb by just the way they act and behave in the wild. Their behavior and actions are often so illogical compared to other animals that they seem like the dumbest animals in the world. 

So if you are curious about the animals on this list, then keep on scrolling, where we listed down the dumbest animals. 

How To Know If An Animal Is Dumb Or Intelligent?

You might be wondering what constitutes an animal to be dumb, is it the size of their brain or something else entirely? 

The animals we have listed down here are not by the size of their brain but by whether they use their brain at all or not. Because some of the actions of these animals suggest that they don’t use their brain at all and hence are categorized as dumb. 

The three main criteria that experts take into account while assessing the intelligence of an animal are adaptable intelligence, obedient intelligence, and, foremost, instinct. 

To survive in the wild, there are certain survival strategies that animals adapt to show their intelligence and creativity, whether it’s during hunting, herding, or even retrieving. How well an animal adapts in the wild is very important to judge the animal’s intelligence. 

So keeping in mind these certain criteria, we have created our list of the dumbest animals in the world. 

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Measuring Brain Power

The Encephalization Quotient or EQ is a measure that scientists use to compare the size of the brain of an animal to their body. This is an indicator of their cognitive abilities or their intelligence. 

A higher EQ indicates that they have potential for complex cognitive functions. Animals that have low EQs adapt to their environment in different ways that does not require complex cognitive functions.  

Also, neuron counts, mostly in the cerebral cortex, are related to an animal’s capacity for processing information and solving problems. However, using neuron counts for measuring intelligence is quite complex. 

In general, animals with a low neuron count in the cerebral cortex show fewer cognitive abilities and complex behaviors.  

Top 15 Dumbest Animals In The World

So, if you wanna know which are the dumbest animal in the world, then just keep on scrolling; that way, you will understand our rationale for putting them here on the list. 

1. Ostrich

The first member on the list is the largest bird in the world, the Ostrich. These giants have a prehistoric look to them, with a height of 9 ft. The best thing about these birds is that they are super fast runners with their long skinny legs. 

Being flightless birds, their long necks and legs are also their weapon of attack as well. These Ostriches don’t seem like dumb animals, but when they are in danger, they somehow forget all about their huge size and large kicking legs. 

When faced with danger, other than running and hiding, even attacking with their sharp claws, these Ostriches push their heads on the ground. That way, these Ostriches think they become invisible, and the predator can’t see them anymore. 

Their head is just 1/10th the size of their body, so pushing their head inside the ground in front of danger is not a great disguise; at least, that’s what it seems like. 

2. Panda Bear

Even though biologically, Pandas are carnivores, they depend almost entirely on bamboo. It is a low-calorie food that gets them some nutrients, but not much. These cute creatures are one of the least intelligent animals.  

They have specific dietary needs that make them highly vulnerable to environmental changes and food scarcity. Pandas are known for their clumsy nature and often injure themselves falling from trees. 

They exhibit several behaviors, from a zoological perspective, which are puzzling and unintelligent.  

3. Turkey

Turkey’s are just wide-eyed dim-witted birds who are in an eternal state of confusion. These birds ooze the word dumb. 

Turkey owners said that these so-called “birds of courage” prefer drinking water falls downwards, so they love the rain. 

But don’t be fooled into thinking they are drinking the rainwater; they just love to stare at the sky, even at times for half an hour. 

4. Jerboa

The not-so-rodent, like Jerboa, is rather bizarre-looking; they are known to have great speed. And that is their only quality since their hyper-speed quality is what saves their lives from most predators. In front of danger, they just run from one corner to another.  

Seeing this bizarre behavior, even the predator might not understand what is happening. Other than running away, they just run around in the same place.

5. Goblin Shark

The Black sheep of the shark family, these sharks are sluggish, poor swimmers, and have poor eyesight. This shark gives a bad name to its shark cousins. 

These sharks are not as good predators as other sharks, they are too lazy to hunt for food and depend on crabs, fishes, squids, and mollusks. As Jaws fans, we are disappointed. 

6. Sloth

The main thing about sloths is that they are more lazy than they are dumb. Don’t immediately think of Sid the sloth from Ice Age when I say dumb sloths.  

So by nature, sloths are really slow-moving creatures; the only time they move a little faster is when they have to pee in the shrubs. 

7. Koala

Although most of you may find koalas very cute, though not cuddly, they are often categorized as one of the dumbest animals in the world.  

They rank low in the animal intelligence ranking because of their limited cognitive abilities. Moreover, they have a fondness for eucalyptus leaves, which are mildly toxic and are also low in nutrients.  

With their small and smooth brains, they struggle to solve basic problem-solving skills and fail to recognize their all-time favorite eucalyptus leaves when they are not attached to the branches. They depend a lot on the familiar patterns. 

To conserve energy, they sleep around 20 hours daily, which limits their adaptability. Their dependency on one single, poor-nutritious food source and minimal responsiveness towards environmental changes make them vulnerable outside their known forest.

8. Kakapo

There is no doubt that the Kakapo made it in this list as the dumbest animals in the world. These are large birds and basically ground-dwellers since they can’t fly. The kakapo doesn’t care at all about their own life since they will stand still in front of danger.  

They won’t just stand but actually freeze in one place without even blinking; they would just wait for death to happen. Animals usually have a fight or flight reaction in front of danger, but for the kakapo, it’s more like welcoming death with open arms.

9. Norwegian Lemmings

As the saying goes, “large things come in small packages,” the Norwegian lemmings think they are the same. Growing only as tall as 6 ft, these rodents tend to attack animals much bigger than them. Such as big cats, birds of prey, and also big dogs like bullmastiffs. 

10. Killdeer

Here is another bird that shows a quite dumb reaction in daily life, making themselves easy prey for the predators. These birds run around while screaming to alert the predators of their whereabouts. 

Their calling and screaming draw a lot of attention to themselves than needed. And when they are faced with danger, they run towards it again, screaming, rather than going in the opposite direction. 

11. Cane Toads

The reason why we categorized Cane toads as dumb is that they don’t know how to recognize their predators from their mates. These species of toads are known to hump everything in their sight, like lizards, mice, and salamanders. 

They won’t even leave the poor snakes alone, they will hump them as well; if that’s not dumb, I don’t know what is.  If they have to, they will even hump a poor female runaway toad as well. 

12. Flamingo

The flamingoes are beautiful and majestic creatures and one of the most stunningly beautiful birds in the world. But in the wild, they are the example of  “beauty with no brains.” 

These flamingoes are called dumb because although having two perfectly fine legs, they tend not to use them both and just use 50% of the legs at a time. But that is not the only reason they are tagged as dumb. 

Flamingoes tend to hunt for fish and other underwater creatures by putting their head inside the water and in an upside-down manner. Their beak is flipped backward when they hunt for food. 

13. Northern Fulmar Chicks

These northern fulmar chicks are often called dumb because of the weird defense mechanism that they use to scare off predators. Being great gliders even during the storm, these birds should be tough, but their defense mechanism is projectile vomiting at their predators.

Their vomit contains an acidic and oily substance that the predators can’t get off themselves. And if the predator is a bird, they are not able to fly off with that oily substance on them. 

14. Slow Loris

There are not many solid reasons why slow loris are known as dumb animals. But it is common for animals to think of their own safety when they are in a vulnerable state; that is what is lacking in a slow loris. 

Since they are nocturnal animals, they sleep the whole day, but that’s not the problem. The problem is they sleep the whole day in plain sight, making it easier for predators to attack them. No wonder they are slowly becoming endangered. 

15. Secretary Birds

The only reason why a secretary bird is tagged as a dumb bird is because of its unusual physical shape and size. The bird has unusually long legs for a bird that can fly.  

They have the legs of a stork and the head of an eagle, looking like a mixture of many different birds. The secretary birds are just the dumbest-looking animals. 

16. Giraffes:

Even though Giraffes are labeled as one of the dumbest creations of nature, they are smarter than you can think. They communicate through their grunts and moans at a frequency that humans often overlook. 

Moreover, they communicate with one another through touch and eyes. Even though they have an impressive stature, they are not known for their intellectual prowess. In comparison to their towering body, their brain are relatively small. 

This limited brain size restricts them from performing complex problem-solving tasks. Their social structure is also an indicator of their limited cognitive abilities.  

Among the vast vegetation, they have a fondness for consuming acacia leaves. This is an indication of their poor decision-making skills and shows their lack of adaptability.  

17. Komodo Dragon:

Although Komodo dragons do look like they have appeared straight out of a sci-fi movie yet, based on their looks, it is assumed that these creatures are just dumb. Komodo dragons are a part of the lizard family – in fact, the largest family member, and can be mostly found in Indonesia. 

In the whole animal kingdom, these animals have the dirtiest mouths. In reality, they can actually deliver enough bacteria and E Coli to kill others with a single bite. In a single meal, these creatures can eat upto 80 percent of their total body weight. 

They are so dumb that they do not know when to actually stop eating – plus, the additional weight can actually slow these dumb animals down tremendously. 

They Are Special In Their Own Way

There you go, that was our list of dumbest animals in the world, but are these animals really dumb, or are we dumb not to understand them?  

Statistically, there are more dumb and stupid humans than animals, so you can choose which is the dumber species. So if you think the article was fun and informative, then give us a like and comment down below.