When you picture the great outdoors, you might think of green fields, glistening waterfalls and beautiful flowers, so it’s no surprise that getting out in nature is number one of the doctor’s orders for improving our mental health and wellbeing. But the outdoors isn’t always rainbows and butterflies, as you’re about to find out. Nature can also be creepy, gross, and full on terrifying. Don’t believe us? Here are 75 pictures of times nature gave us the serious heebie-jeebies.
1. Wrap around spider, named for its ability to flatten and wrap its body around tree limbs
The worst thing about this spider is that its camouflage game is out of this world- meaning that it’s all too easy to put your hand on one of the little buggers. Where do these spiders live? We wouldn’t hike around any forests where they were rumoured to be living.
2. Spiderbro guarding me from malaria outside my window.
As much as we hate spiders, there’s no denying that their job of catching flies is actually pretty useful. This hard working spider has prevented what appears to be over one hundred flies from zooming through this person’s open window- but the creepy spider web, we’re not a fan of.
3. Seaweed in the waves
Did anyone else know that seaweed could be lifted up with the waves like that? It looks like some creepy, giant sea monster with a hundred tentacles that’s descending on innocent swimmers. We think we’d pass, thanks.
4. Xylaria polymorpha, commonly known as dead man’s fingers, is a saprobic fungus.
At first glance, we thought that the fungus in this picture was actually a Halloween decoration. It’s creepy just how human-like it looks. It’s as if there’s a person buried underground who’s trying to get out.
5. A firefly kept right on flashing after being eaten by a frog.
This is proof that even when an animal gets eaten by another, there’s some part of them that will still remain alive for a little while. Why did we feel an intense urge to try and save the firefly when we saw this? We’re pretty confident that it would be too late at this point.
6. This frog was found all dried up and withered outside the store in the morning… The store manager said, “Let’s try splashing some water on it,” and holy sh*t it came back to life.
In their own way, frogs are actually kind of cute, and since everyone knows they spend most of their time in the water, what harm could come from splashing a bit of water on a frog in need? We’d love to have seen a video of their reactions when this ‘dead’ frog came back to life.
7. The skeleton of a puffer fish is pretty metal.
Hold up… so a puffer fish’s spikes are made out of bone? This is seriously awesome, but also pretty scary. BRB, just adding puffer fishes to our list of what we should be scared of when swimming in the ocean.
8. Damn nature, you’re scary…
Did this plant grow out of a skeleton? Or did the animal die as it was trying to eat the roots of the plant? We’ll never know, and to be honest, we’re not sure we’d want to.
9. Rome yesterday
Are these flies? Birds? Airplanes? Why does this picture have so little context? Whatever it is, it looks like apocalypse is coming.
10. “My mum’s toilet after a recent flood.”
Frogs are kind of cute, but not when there’s 20 of them and they’re all hanging out in your toilet. How are you meant to pee in peace with all the ribbeting going on- not to mention the potential for one jumping onto your bum. We’d rather hold in our pee all day than have to go in this toilet.
11. Snapdragon seed pods look like skulls
This is the second picture we’ve come across where at first glance, we thought we were looking at Halloween decorations. Who needs to go to the store when nature already provides the creepiness? Just go foraging through your local forest and see what you can find.
12. These fish are lit
We don’t know about creepy- we actually think these fish are kind of cool. Imagine having a fish tank full of these and turning out the lights? They would be a great addition for parties.
13. The eyes and teeth of a scallop
Cool to look at, but probably not so cool to step on. Is it weird that we want to touch it? How was this thing born on planet earth? It looks like an alien.
14. “This is a hammerhead bat and is by far the creepiest animal I’ve seen.”
Hold up, we didn’t know bats could be this big. This hammerhead bat has a face as big as a cat’s, and kind of resembles some kind of creepy moose/goat. Imagine being out at night and seeing this thing flying towards you.
15. Gecko eats his own tail
So you’re telling me, that if a gecko was out in the wild and didn’t have anything to eat, he could just eat his own tail to stay alive? That’s…oddly practical. And also super gross.
16. “This is why you Always have to check the toilet in Australia.”
We’ve had frogs in the toilet, and now here’s a great big snake. Australia is the country where you have to live out your life in fear, making sure to check for poisonous spiders in shoes, cockroaches in dark corners, and now snakes in toilets. How do these people sleep at night?
17. These plants look like tiny hands
We couldn’t imagine anything worse than swimming out in the ocean and feeling one of these tiny hands brush your leg. Apparently, they are the flowers of the kangaroo paw plant. They come in different colours and can be very pretty! We’ll take their word for it.
18. The Clathrus Archeri fungus resembles some pretty metal tentacles sprouting from an alien egg when it blooms.
We have watched too many alien movies which have gutted our minds to point where we refuse to believe it’s a plant! If this thing was in our garden, we would run farm far away, and call the ARMY, NAVY and SWAT team just for good measure.
19. “Currently renovating our floors. Seems everyone has come out of hiding.”
Ahh Australia, home to the dreaded huntsman spider. You know, the one that can grow as big as a human head? If this thing was living in our house, we’d be somewhere around 30,000 miles away from home at this point. It’s the spider’s house now.
20. “All I know is that it needs to burn.”
Worms love water, but not when it’s so deep that they can’t wriggle about doing whatever worm things they normally like to do. These poor guys are actually just trying to survive, but we can’t help feeling grossed out. It just looks so… squishy.
21. “Deer skull after sitting in water for over a year.”
This would actually make a great addition for your mantelpiece, if skulls and bones are your kind of thing. There’s something really impressive-looking about this skull, and the colors are beautiful! Creepy, or just downright cool?
22. The frog that caught a spider.
From the look on this frog’s face, it seems as if the regret of his actions is just beginning to dawn on him. Was this spider poisonous? Possibly. Can it bite? From the size of those legs, we’d assume that it can.
23. A Leopard Seal peering through a veil of plankton
This seal looks as if it belongs in the “Avatar” movies, and this is the first picture that we’ve found more cute than creepy. Apparently, these seals can actually be vicious, and can easily rip mammals like penguins to shreds. How can something be so cute and so terrifying at the same time?
24. Acid spitting ants
What part of evolution came up with this monstrosity? God: “Hey, remember those things we called ants?” Angel: “Uuuhhh, Yeah.” God: “I have new ideas.” Angel: *whimpers* God: “Make them the same, buuut… they can shoot acid!!” Angel:“Here is my letter of resignation.”
25. Articulated cobra skeleton.
All we can think about is that whoever put this thing together, must be having most non-shaking hands in the world. Just imagine if someone made it so that it moved or something. We would keep it as a Halloween decoration.
26. Black Swallower died trying to eat a fish 4 times its size.
As far as gruesome deaths are concerned, this looks like one of the nastiest ways to go. How on earth did this huge fish even get past this animal’s jaws? He definitely just bit off more than he could chew- and we’ve all experienced this feeling at an all you can eat buffet.
27. The statue being swallowed by a tree
If this statue’s nose was painted red and he was given a balloon, we reckon he’d look exactly like Pennywise from the ‘IT’ movies. Just imagine seeing that thing looking out at you? We’d never sleep again.
28. “A lizard eating a cockroach alive at my house porch.”
In this situation, while we don’t envy the lizard for having to eat a live insect, we’d be fully rooting for him to get the job done. Lizards are actually pretty handy for keeping away the unwanted insects- so if you don’t have a resident lizard, why not get yourself one? We’d rather have a house full of lizards than cockroaches.
29. “My dad sent me this photo. Water mocassin? Tennessee.”
Just because snakes aren’t known for their swimming abilities, doesn’t mean that the fish are safe. You know that famous saying, “Give a snake a fish and he’ll eat it. Teach a snake to fish and he’ll become the fishing rod.”
30. “Attack Of Legionary Ants (Also Known As Army Ants Or Marabunta) To A Wasp Honeycomb.”
We don’t know what’s worse: a porch overrun with ants, or a porch full of wasp honeycomb. So with that thought in mind, it’s kind of hard to pick sides here. The best outcome would be mutual annihilation.
31. Chameleon Mummified Alive by the Tropical Sun
We’re kind of sad about this one, as the poor thing was clearly looking for water. He had the right idea, but he mustn’t have been able to get the water running! Just add a walking stick under that outstretched arm and he looks like a grandpa looking out the window.
32. The inside of a Gooses mouth
Well, isn’t this disturbing? Our irrational fear of geese at least seems to be a little more justifiable now. We always knew that they had teeth- but not some on the tongue as well!
33. This snake covered in ticks
This is the one situation where we actually feel sorry for the snake. Just imagine how uncomfortable that must be! Cannot un-see.
34. These New Fish Species Can Survive In Volcanoes And They’re The Stuff Of Nightmares
New? As in “new for this season: fish that can survive in volcanoes”? This world is getting far too advanced.
35. After a weekend storm in New England, a Puffer Fish was found in a tree.
Just imagine walking through the forest and seeing this thing perched up in a tree? You’d think it was some terrifying new species of bird. Bad luck if you are outside and that thing comes flying to your face…
36. The Lamprey Fish
It’s like an elephant’s trunk… but with teeth, and a whole load of other squidgy looking things that we don’t want to think about. Scrolling down, scrolling down, scrolling down.
37. A mother whip spider carrying her babies on her back
Did we want to see this picture today? Absolutely not. We hope you’re as scarred as we are.
38. 5-legged frog that lives in the marsh behind our neighborhood
What in the name of incest caused this to happen? Maybe the marsh is situated pretty close to a nuclear power plant? We’d maybe stay as far away as possible from that marsh…
39. This hornet’s nest looks kind of like a hornet’s head
You gotta give it to hornets, they managed to purchase those lights and install them so well. Jokes aside, we didn’t think we could be any more repulsed by a hornet’s nest until we saw this picture. This is the stuff of nightmares.
40. Dolphin caught a squid, trailing the ink behind it
This is actually a pretty awesome shot, and we somehow want to know what happened next. We never pictured dolphins as predators, but we don’t think this squid has a great fighting chance here.
41. A Jungle Perch With A Surprise
Why… why does the frog look so happy in there? Is this some kind of agreement between him and the fish? Is he paying rent to live in there?
42. Lavafall
Waterfalls are so beautiful, but lavafalls, on the other hand. While there’s undeniably something amazing about this shot, we can’t say that we’ll be rushing there anytime soon. How is everything not on fire?
43. This spider web that looks like a Spider-man mask.
They say Spider Man mask, we say skull- but whatever it is, it sure is creepy. This spider has placed a very clear warning sign to stay away.
44. The Giant Isopod, found in the deep seas and is an example of deep-sea gigantism.
It’s like a cockroach on steroids, and we really wish that we hadn’t seen this picture. How is he TOUCHING it?? With his BARE HANDS!!! This thing can stay in the deep sea.
45. One big spider
If you’re wondering why the frog looks like glass, it’s actually because the spider’s venom has turned his internal organs into kind of a liquid which the spider then drinks as food. Sorry that we had to tell you that.
46. There is a lot of bees on this chair
Does anyone care to take a seat? We’d have walked straight off that balcony, through the front door, called a taxi and gone home for the day. And if this was our home? It belongs to the bees now.
47. Goliath tiger fish- Congo river
What’s even worse about these fish, is that their top jaw is not statically fixed to their head and can move up and down independently. He could easily chomp up a human. So we don’t think we’ll be swimming in a lake or river, ever again.
48. Sweet potato creepily resembles human heart.
Otherwise known as the heart of a couch potato, this sweet potato even looks like it has veins. We would absolutely not eat this thing! Maybe this is a sign that we shouldn’t eat vegetables, at all.
49. The Largest Scar You’ll Ever See
A whale skin is a phenomenal defence mechanism, and it’s amazing that this big guy managed to stay alive after such a hit! We think it must have been a ship’s propeller that caused such damage. Just look at that huge scar!
50. “Close up of moth outside my window.”
Moths are just butterflies of the night, and we actually think this furry little guy is kind of cute. He’s just looking for any potential lamps. “Excuse me sir, do you have a moment to talk about our lord and saviour Behemoth?”
51. “Something took two clean bites out of this poor sea ravioli.”
Who even knew that the ocean was such a dangerous place? Though we’ll admit that “sea ravioli” made us giggle. Anyone know its proper name?
52. When Mozilla Freezes
This picture is both parts sad and amazing. How did the fox get under there? Nature can be cruel sometimes.
53. “Ant on my porch carrying the head of his vanquished enemy.”
Honestly, whenever we see pictures like this, we thank the lord that ants are the size that they are. Just imagine if they were human sized?! No one would be safe.
54. Eels In The Stream At Battle Hill Farm
The poor ducks are looking on like “what on earth is going on here?” and we honestly don’t blame them. Apparently, in places like New Zealand, it’s quite normal for eels to live amongst the ducks in lakes, and people even feed them bread (which they love). We’ll never call our hometown boring again.
55. Found out the house we are living in has a bunker below. I managed to squeeze my phone in one of the cracks of the door to take this creepy picture.
At first glance, we thought that this bunker was filled with spiders, but they’re actually camel crickets. Which you wouldn’t think were as bad, until you remember that crickets can jump. Get the heck out of there.
56. Found an icicle held only by a spider’s web
We knew that spider webs were strong- but who knew that they literally had the strength to hold up an icicle? They could use this stuff in bullet-proof vests.
57. Found in Mexico. Battle to the death.
Judging by the snake’s shape, that thing with legs is already halfway in the snake. And that’s something that doesn’t bare thinking about. It’s like a snake version of Alien.
58. Oregon fires next to a golf course.
But… How are these people still continuing to casually play golf? Can’t they see the huge, raging fire behind them They could be “in-golfed” any moment.
59. “My inlaws are in a bit of a froggy situation right now.”
Get a swimming pool, they said… It will be fun, they said. What do you do when a huge group of frogs decide to have a spring break pool party in your back yard?
60. G’day mates, let’s be friendssss!
DEAR GOD . . . We’re pretty sure that thing could open the door by itself! This is Australian, again, isn’t it?
61. A lizard on its final journey
Nature clean-up actually. Pollution free, 100% recycling… This picture is poetic, creepy, and also kind of funny.
62. Something crawled through the keyhole and made a hive in the garage door handle
Thanks to this picture, we now have ‘fear of keyholes’ to add to our list of things that give us the heebie-jeebies. Though one thing’s for sure, these bees have provided extra protection for your house so that no robbers can get in. It’s just a shame that you can’t get in, either.
63. These ants forming a question mark
Who knew that ants could be so philosophical? They want to ants you a question. Looks like they have a quest for you. Okay, we’ll stop now.
64. “Thousands of mosquitos outside of my window at work.”
Stay inside… sleep at your desk… no going home! We would literally be traumatized.
65. Bleeding tree
This tree has red sap that looks like blood, but we could imagine this being quite a shock if you weren’t aware of that. We thought that trees were meant to be beautiful and harmonious? Not resembling something out of a horror movie.
66. So my friend got something in his eye while we were walking home…
Out of all of these pictures, we really wish that we could un-see this one. This is truly the creepiest one. We don’t know how his friend is not freaking out. Maybe he told him “Oh, don’t worry. It’s just a fleck of dust.”
67. This sick washed up gar skeleton I found
Wait, so that’s what an alligator skeleton looks like? We’re both fascinated and kind of terrified at the same time. Who knew their mouths were actually that long?
68. Millions of fire ants floating in flooding from Harvey
Just imagine if you fell into this water?! Pour Gasoline and light them on fire, they are good for nothing!
69. Fireants create a floating island of themselves to ride out the Houston flooding
The interesting thing about this snap, is that a lot of the ants probably died supporting the underwater structure in order to save the bulk of the colony. We wonder if humans would act as selflessly as these ants if came to it? “Row, row, row your tribe, gently down the stream…”
70. This coyote froze solid during the recent winter storm
This might just be nature, but this picture actually made us feel really sad! Poor little guy. Nature can be so brutal.
71. The babirusa: not enough tusks.
How can this creature even eat comfortably with those tusks coming out of its mouth? Apparently, the tusks are only present in the male, and are kept short through its grazing habits. What a weird animal.
72. The Bigfin squid, also known as the long-armed squid.
With a length of 8 meters (26 feet) and a speculated arm-dragging method for trapping and capturing prey, this thing takes the cake as one of the creepier creatures of the deep seas. With all its crazy sh*t, the sea is better left alone.
73. A bright pink millipede that secretes cyanide – a well known deadly poison
This millipede might look pretty- but don’t allow yourself to be deceived by its looks, as this thing is actually deadly! How can something so pretty be so dangerous?
74. Phyllodes imperialis, known as the Pink Underwing Moth. This is its larvae.
We don’t know about you, but we actually think the markings on this thing look kind of cool. Would we want to be anywhere near it? Probably not. But you can’t deny that those are some pretty cool patterns.
75. Archaeidae Spidsnuck, AKA the “Assassin Spider”
Well… that’s a fascinating nope. Just when we thought that spiders couldn’t possibly get any worse, we saw this picture. Abolutely not.
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