5 Deadliest Animals from Avatar, Ranked low to high

From downright adorable to dangerously ferocious, the animals of Avatar run the gamut. But just which hybrid sits at the top of the food chain?

Bending the elements wasn't the only unique fixture in the world of Avatar: The Last Airbender. Perhaps just as exciting is the chimeric animal kingdom spanning the world, threatening the Gaang, lurking in every environment they visit, armed with claws, poison and sometimes even massive size. There's only one spot at the top of the food chain, but these creatures give even the most apex of predators a run for their money.

5. Unagi

When the original series began, the world was still fresh enough to viewers that they had little idea what to expect in terms of threats and what the Gaang should be cautious of. An earlier monster that helped establish what they were up against was the Unagi, found just outside Kyoshi Island ready to spoil Aang's surfing trip with the elephant koi. The elephant koi themselves were gargantuan, and when the Unagi's shadow first loomed from below the surface, it became obvious that their main predator had to be even more so.

If size wasn't enough, the Unagi can project water from its mouth in a powerful jet stream, and it was only through manipulating the creature that Aang managed to use its deadly force for good and douse the flames of the Fire Nation across Kyoshi Island. The sea serpent at that gives Serpent's Pass its name shows that the Unagi may not even be alone in ruling the seas of the Avatar world, yet neither was truly enough of a threat to be called the deadliest.



4. Dragons

Rarely seen in the series and once thought extinct, the dragons are some of the most ancient creatures in Avatar. Although ancient Benders could project flames as a gift from the Fire Lion Turtle, they did not truly harness those flames into the martial art known as firebending until they learned to do so from the dragons. With their graceful dance through the sky, there's obviously quite a lot to learn from their movement, but it's because of their fire that the dragons are so deadly.

Dragons are rarely seen in threatening situations throughout the franchise, so exactly how dangerous they are is a bit vague. An early adventure between Aang and his Fire Nation from Kuzon showed just how scary dragons could be in the days before they were nearly hunted to extinction, and Zuko's dragon Druk even fought the Red Lotus at the North Pole. The Firebender P'Li's ability to dissipate Druk's flames before blasting him out of the sky with her combustion bending is a point against dragons' deadliness, however, even if it's still an awesome scene.

3. Sky Bison

A mount much more involved in combat than dragons are the Air Nomads' sky bison. With Aang's best buddy Appa serving as the primary example, time and again the power and speed of the flying creatures proved invaluable in saving the day. As the original Airbenders, sky bison can release gusts of wind from their mouths and tails and fly with agility that belies their size.

And their size is considerable. Over the course of the original series, Appa flipped tanks, crushed solid stone walls and moved enormous boulders mid-flight. He fought off a swarm of buzzard wasps and threw a boar-q-pine through several trees while defending himself. The biggest knock against the sky bison, however, is that they just don't have the killer instinct. They're just too sweet and cuddly to be truly dangerous.

2. Sand Shark

Aang didn't hog all the fun when it came to being attacked by giant monsters, and in the memorable episode "Long Live the Queen" from The Legend of Korra, Avatar Korra had her own personal Jaws adventure while stranded in the Si Wong Desert. After Korra and Asami avoided being taken into royal custody by bringing an Earth Kingdom airship down from the inside, efforts to repair it was ruined when an enormous sand shark burst from the ground and split the entire ship in half.

Larger than the ship itself, the sand shark is actually one of Avatar's biggest creatures, though you would never guess given its speed. Even while sliding beneath the grainy surface of the desert, the monster managed to outpace Korra's sand-sailer and nearly swallowed her and Asami whole. It was only with a well-timed blast of fire from Korra that the pair managed to escape. If anybody hopes to hunt the creature down in the future, they're going to need a bigger sand-sailer.

1. Shirshu

Size isn't everything, of course, and the shirshu takes the top spot for Avatar's deadliest animal for a variety of reasons. The most well-known example of the species is Nyla, the bounty hunter June's personal pet, mount and sidekick on her missions across the world hunting down anyone unfortunate enough to have a price on their head. Said to be able to smell a rat from a continent away, the scent-sighted monstrosity could tear through metal with its jaws and paralyze quarry with a flick of its whiplike tongue.

Super senses, amazing speed, vicious strength and a toxic tongue? That alone would be enough to top the list, but the Kyoshi novels shed even more light on the shirshu's history that makes them even scarier. In the time before Kyoshi, they were used by Earth Kings to execute political enemies, and against Kyoshi herself one burrows as quickly as it runs and sees defeat only at the hands of a small bandit army. You'd never guess that a cross between a wolf, a mole and a giant anteater could prove to be quite so ferocious, and yet this eyeless monster continues to haunt the nightmares of fans everywhere.