Meet the Animals with the Largest Horns in the World

Animals have horns for a variety of reasons. From being used for defense against other animals, to fighting off other males of the same species during mating season, designating hierarchy within the species, and even foraging for food, horns for more beyond looks alone.

While many animals have horns, some carry a larger load on their head than others. Among the animals that have the biggest horns of any species, some have grown to such impressive lengths and widths that they have been internationally recognized. These animals have earned a much-deserved spot in the Guinness Book of World Records and, from the looks of things, will not be losing their titles anytime soon.

Addax Antelope

The addax is a critically endangered white antelope that lives in the Sahara Desert. With horns that can reach up to 3.1 feet long, it has some of the longest horns in the animal kingdom. But what truly makes the addax have extraordinary horns is the way they are shaped. This is because, unlike other animals, the addax not only has a wave-like growth to their horns, but it also has spirals that go from the head to the tip of the horns.

Because addax live in the desert, finding water can be challenging. Fortunately, the addax gets the bulk of its water from the plants it eats and has ways to conserve water in its body. How long the addax lives in the wild is not known. But because they are not a fast-moving animal, they make an easy target for lions, leopards, hyenas, jackals, and more. In captivity, the animals, whose horns are not shed during their lifetime, can live up to 14 years of age.

Ankole-Watusi Cattle

Ankole-Watusi cattle are a breed of longhorn African cattle that not only have long horns, but the horns are thick as well. The longhorn cattle are descendants of the Sangra, an ancient cattle breed that has been around since the time of the Egyptians. Consequently, the Ankole-Watusi cattle are well adapted to arid landscapes and are hearty animals that play an important part in the African economy.

With horns that can reach up to eight feet long, they are impressive to look at. But the horns serve multiple purposes. The horns both keep the cattle cool and defend them from predators, such as hyenas, as they graze on grass and plants.

Asian Water Buffalo

With horns that are up to 6.5 feet long, Asian water buffalo are an intimidating animal to look at. But, unlike their wild counterparts, these domestic animals are incredibly docile. While Asian water buffalo are essential in China and India for farming purposes, they need to live in regions with ample water resources. Therefore, Asian water buffalo are often found living in grasslands and forestlands where there is fresh water available.

Asian and wild water buffalo can look similar to one another. However, the Asian water buffalo can be distinguished by its horns that have a tight, crescent-shaped curl. If given access to plenty of grass, aquatic plants, tree leaves, and more, according to Endangered World Animal, Asian water buffalo can live for up to 25 years, given they do not have any natural predators.

Bighorn Sheep

Found in the craggy mountain ranges in the United States, Canada, and Mexico, bighorn sheep received their name for their signature large, curly horns. While the horns do not appear to be as large as those of some other animals, they can grow up to 3.6 feet in length, making them a formidable opponent against predatory animals. Over the years, conservation efforts have been taking place to help protect the bighorn sheep population. Faced with predators such as coyotes, bobcats, wolverines, jaguars, and more, bighorn sheep can defend themselves reasonably well. But with an unknown number of sheep and a declining population, the species needs assistance, not to be put in the position of having to claw back from near extinction.

Big horn sheep enjoy a varied diet. During the summer, the bighorn sheep feed on grasses, flowers, and wild onions. When these plants are not available during the winter, denser vegetation becomes the go-to diet to give the bighorn sheep energy to carry their horns on their heads, which are never shed.

Greater Kudu Antelope

The greater kudu is an antelope with impressive horns. The six-foot horns extend behind the greater kudu in a spiral shape, making the over five-foot-tall antelope appear much larger than it is. This becomes important when defending itself from lions, leopards, and hyenas. With an estimated 300,000 to 350,000 greater kudus in the wild, spread across multiple countries, greater kudus are not considered a species to worry about. However, conservation efforts to make the regions where the antelope lives protected areas have helped the population stabilize.

Much like goats, greater kudus are browsers. This means they prefer to eat tree shoots, young bushes, fruits, and succulents over grazing grassland. A diet like this is important in arid regions when water can be scarce, allowing animals like the greater kudu to obtain their water from plants during the drier months.

Markhor

Known as Pakistan’s national animal, the markhor is a large goat with even larger horns. The over five-foot horns are not only necessary for foraging and fighting off other males during mating season, but also for defending against predators such as the lynx, snow leopard, wolves, and brown bears. The markhor is a near-threatened species. This status is a result of overhunting the goats for a trophy status, as well as a decreased habitat. Currently, just over 5,400 wild markhors are roaming through their traditional forests, shrublands, and rocky mountains.

The markhor is not a grazing animal, but a browser instead. Its diet consists of shrubs, fruits, leaves, twigs, and bark. Their diet makes it so that markhors do not need to live near water sources, which are not always readily available in mountainous environments.

Sable Antelope

Sable antelopes may not be the largest of the antelope species, but they still prove to be formidable foes against predators such as lions and hyenas. This is thanks to a muscular physique and horns that grow up to 5.5 feet in length. In addition to using the long black horns to fight off predators, sable antelopes use their horns for status within a herd as well as to fight off other males during mating season.

Unlike other animals that live in Africa, the sable antelope requires a consistent water source to survive. It is also a grazing animal, preferring grass over other food sources. During the dry season, it is not uncommon to see more than one herd of sable antelopes in the same grassland areas.

Siberian Ibex

The Siberian ibex is an exceptionally large goat. At nearly 3.5 feet tall, the sturdy goats appear even larger to predators, such as snow leopards, wolves, brown bears, dholes, and more, with their 4.9-foot spiral horns that curve backward. Siberian ibex lives in rocky mountain regions from Afghanistan to India, Russia, Mongolia, and other locales. It is these craggy areas that the Siberian ibex finds its preferred diet of bushes, trees, flowers, grasses, and fruits. It is perhaps due to their habitat that the Siberian ibex is both a grazer and a browser.

Currently, the status of the Siberian ibex is that of near threatened. Due to overhunting, climate change, and habitat loss, the population is declining. Consequently, conservation efforts have been spurred to stabilize the population.

Texas Longhorn Cattle

After nearly going extinct during the 20th century, Texas longhorn cattle have increased their population to approximately 100,000. While impressive, it is still a far cry from the almost 10 million there between 1867 and 1880. Seeing the necessity to save the species, conservation efforts began in 1927. At that time, very few pure Texas longhorns, with their up to eight-foot horns, existed. Now, the cattle can be found throughout the United States, Canada, and Mexico.

Texas longhorn cattle have proven to be heartier than other species of cattle. Not only are they more efficient at fighting disease, but the cows also eat a more varied diet of grasses, shrubs, and brushes that allow them to survive in different habitats. It is in these habitats that the Texas longhorns’ massive horns and size become advantageous. This is because, despite height and weight, predators such as wild boars, wolves, coyotes, bobcats, and bears have been known to attack. But thanks to the Texas longhorns’ horns and instincts to detect danger, they do well defending themselves from danger.

Wild Water Buffalo

Wild water buffalo are the largest of the bovine species. With up to 10 feet in length from head to tail, the wild water buffalo would be impressive without horns. Factor in another 6.5 feet with the horns, and the wild water buffalo is in a league of its own. Found in marshes, wetlands, tropical forests, and grasslands in regions throughout Asia, the wild water buffalo needs a constant water source. This is because not only do they require drinking water, but also water to wallow in to cool off. It is at these water sources that wild water buffalo are also at their most vulnerable. This is because predators such as lions, crocodiles, wild dogs, and tigers target them.

Currently, there are fewer than 4,000 wild water buffalo left as a result of overhunting, loss of habitat, disease, and lack of genetic diversity. While conservation efforts are working to save the species, to achieve this, all the factors that led to the population decline need to be reversed. It is possible to do so, but without change soon, the wild water buffalo may sadly become another extinct animal, leaving a hole in the environment it once lived in.

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