10 Amazing Animals With Big Heads And Small Bodies

This post provides a list of incredible animals with the biggest heads-to-body ratio. These creatures may seem a little out of proportion, but their adaptations are great. However, In no time, here are the 10 animals with large heads, and small bodies:

1. Basking Shark
2. Bowhead Whale
3. Deep Sea Angler
4. Goblin Shark
5. Hammerhead Shark
6. Hippopotamus
7. Mantis Shrimp
8. Pufferfish
9. Shrews
10. Sperm Whale

Let’s get to it.

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1. Basking Shark

The basking sharks have relatively small heads compared to their huge bodies. Their heads are conical in shape, and the gill slits extend around the top and bottom of the head.

This anatomical feature, combined with their unique feeding method, allows them to filter plankton from the water.
While their heads may appear modest in size, their enormous mouths, which can stretch wide open, play a crucial role in their filter-feeding strategy.

The head may not be large in an absolute sense, but it is certainly well-designed to accommodate their massive feeding apparatus.

The most remarkable aspect of the basking shark’s head-to-body ratio is that, despite their imposing size and the need for a substantial amount of plankton to sustain them.

They’ve grown to have relatively smaller heads compared to some other filter-feeding animals. This mirrors their adaptation to a somewhat passive lifestyle, where energy conservation and feeding are essential.

2.  Bowhead Whale

Bowhead whale (Balaena mysticetus) belongs to the baleen whale family and is the only living member of the Balaena genus.

These giants are the undisputed rulers of the Arctic and subarctic waters which makes them the sole baleen whales that call it home.

They’re known for their signature, triangular skull, which they use as a battering ram to break through thick Arctic ice allowing them access to their underwater world.

However, bowhead whales have the largest mouths of any animal, representing almost a third of their entire body length.

Imagine having a mouth that could engulf a small car. Their baleen plates, used for filter-feeding, can grow up to 4 meters (13 feet) in length.

Also, Bowhead whales are one of the longest-lived mammals on Earth, with some individuals living for over 200 years.

Despite their incredible characteristics, bowhead whales faced a grim history as early targets for whaling. Their populations plummeted which led to protective measures. Today, while their numbers are on the mend, many are still considered endangered or vulnerable.

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3.  Deep Sea Angler

Scientists call it Krøyer’s deep sea anglerfish, and it’s part of a family of fish known as sea devils. These anglerfish live in the deepest parts of the ocean, where it’s pitch black, and the pressure is incredibly high.

They can be found anywhere from the surface down to 4,400 meters below, but they prefer a zone between 400 to 2,000 meters deep.

The female anglerfish can grow up to about 77 centimeters long, which is roughly the size of a skateboard. But the males are tiny, only about 16 centimeters long, which is smaller than a ruler. And get this, the males attach themselves to the females like a backpack, forming a unique partnership.

4.  Goblin Shark

These deep-sea dwellers, sometimes called living fossils, have an extraordinary head-to-body contrast that’s impossible to ignore.

Goblin sharks are famous for their bizarrely elongated, and flat snouts. When they decide it’s time for dinner, they unleash their jaws that contain prominent, nail-like teeth.

This allows them to snap up prey in a moment. Despite their head-turning head, their body remains relatively small, usually growing to around 3 to 4 meters (10 to 13 feet) when mature.

However, these creatures can surprise you with their size, as some individuals have been measured at 6 meters (about 20 feet).

They prefer the deep and dark depths of the ocean, lurking around upper continental slopes, submarine canyons, and seamounts.

You’ll find them at depths of over 100 meters (about 330 feet), with some fearless researchers suggesting they might venture as deep as 1,300 meters (about 4,270 feet) on occasion. Their big head is more than just a curiosity; it’s an essential tool for survival.

The long snout is covered with special sensors called ampullae of Lorenzini, which help them detect the faint electric fields produced by nearby prey. When a tasty morsel is spotted, they can extend their jaws to catch it.

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5.  Hammerhead Shark

These are hammerhead sharks, and they belong to a family known as Sphyrnidae. What marks these creatures differently is their head, which is flattened and stretched out into a T-shape.

One of the amazing attributes of these sharks is the placement of their eyes at the ends of this T-shaped structure, with their small mouths positioned right in the center and underneath. It’s as if they’re wearing goggles on either side of their head.

This peculiar head structure does various purposes, including improving their sensory perception, maneuverability, and even how they handle their prey.

Hammerheads aren’t picky about their whereabouts; you can find them in warm waters along coastlines and continental shelves all around the world.

During the day, some species prefer to swim together in large schools, a behavior not common among most sharks. However, when the sun sets, they transform into solitary hunters.

As for their size, hammerheads vary from around 0.9 meters (about 3 feet) to 6 meters (almost 20 feet) in length. They can weigh anywhere from a few pounds to over a thousand pounds, depending on the species.

6.  Hippopotamus

Hippos, often known as the powerful river giants of Africa, have a hefty head that distinguishes them. These colossal creatures possess massive, barrel-shaped torsos and a head that seems larger compared to their overall body size.

Their heads are broad and powerful, housing those famous large canine tusks and wide-opening mouths. It’s this impressive head that gives them a unique appearance. Despite their large heads, hippos have relatively compact bodies.

Fully grown male hippos, or bulls, can weigh around 1,500 kilograms (3,300 pounds), and females, known as cows, are slightly smaller, at 1,300 kilograms (2,900 pounds).

Their tight muscular bodies make them incredibly agile, and capable of running up to 30 kilometers per hour (about 19 miles per hour) over short distances, which is quite surprising considering their size.

However, the big head of hippos harbors tough tusks, which they use for various tasks, including defending their territory and asserting dominance

7.  Mantis Shrimp

Despite their small size, mantis shrimp are great hunters. They typically grow to about 10 centimeters (3.9 inches) in length, but some exceptional individuals can reach up to 38 centimeters (15 inches).

However, their unusual carapace covers only the back part of their head and the first four segments of their thorax. Mantis shrimp come in an array of colors, ranging from various shades of brown to vivid hues.

There are over 520 known species, and they play vital roles as top predators in shallow, tropical, and subtropical marine environments.

But, they remain somewhat mysterious, as many of them spend most of their lives hidden away in burrows and holes.

These little creatures are known by different names, including sea locusts in ancient Assyria, prawn killers in Australia, and the more recent nickname thumb splitters.

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8.  Pufferfish

Pufferfish are tiny fish belonging to the Tetraodontidae family and have nicknames like puffers, balloonfish, and blowfish.

When they’re not puffing up, pufferfish have hidden spines, unlike their close relatives, the porcupinefish, which have large spines on the outside.

Their scientific name, Tetraodontidae, gives a clue about another unique feature, they have four large teeth that are fused into upper and lower plates.

These special teeth are great for crunching through the tough shells of their favorite snacks like crustaceans and mollusks.

However, while they may seem harmless, many pufferfish species are secretly toxic, and some are among the most poisonous vertebrates in the world.

Some pufferfish carry a potent toxin called tetrodotoxin in their insides or sometimes on their skin. This toxin can be deadly for most animals if they eat it.

But in countries like Japan, Korea, and China, specially trained chefs prepare puffer fish as a fancy dish called fugu. They know exactly which parts are safe to eat and how much, turning it into a culinary adventure.

9.  Shrews

Shrews are tiny, mole-like mammals found all over the world, except in places like New Guinea, Australia, and New Zealand.

Don’t confuse them with treeshrews, otter shrews, or elephant shrews, those are different animals. And they’ve got a large head and small body.

Even though they might look a bit like long-nosed mice, shrews aren’t mice at all. They’re actually closer relatives to hedgehogs and moles.

The thing that links them to mice is that both belong to a bigger group called the Boreoeutheria. Shrews have sharp, spike-like teeth, while rodents like mice have front teeth for gnawing.

However, Shrews come in all shapes and sizes, and there are around 385 different species in the shrew family, which makes them the fourth-most diverse mammal family.

Only some rodent families and bats have more species. What’s really interesting is that shrews probably have the largest population of any mammal family.

There could be about 100 billion shrews in the world, which means you might find a few of them in every hectare of forest.

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10. Sperm Whale

The sperm whale, also known as the cachalot, is an amazing creature with a huge head, and a small body. It’s not only the largest-toothed whale but also the biggest-toothed predator in the world.

These whales are unique in their own way, and they belong to a family that includes just three existing species: the sperm whale, the pygmy sperm whale, and the dwarf sperm whale.

Sperm whales are known for their ability to travel all over the world’s oceans. They move around for feeding and breeding.

Female and young male sperm whales like to hang out together in groups, while the big adult males, called bulls, prefer the bachelor life outside of mating season.

The females work together to protect and take care of their young ones. That said, these moms give birth every four to twenty years and raise their babies for more than a decade.

Fully grown male sperm whales can reach a length of about 52 feet, and their heads can be as big as one-third of their bodies.

These whales are also incredible divers, going as deep as 7,382 feet below the water’s surface. They use echolocation and loud vocalizations to communicate underwater. Plus, they’ve got the largest brains on the planet, over five times heavier than a human’s.