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People Debate Which Animal Would Reign Supreme If Humans Didn't Exist

Humans have had an undeniably significant impact on our environment and the other species that inhabit the planet with us.

What might happen if humans weren't here to exert that influence, though?

What if we never had?


Reddit user Mompkey asked:

"Which species do you think would be dominant if humans didn't exist?"

Caninae

"Wolves. They can, and have, successfully adapted to most of the various biomes on the planet."

"There's a reason we domesticated them and took them everywhere with us."

-CedarWolf

Giphy

Formicidae

"Ants are and would still be the dominant species."

-mpssss22

Giphy

Procyonidae

"Raccoons"

-ir88d

"2 rules in life:

  1. Everything is garbage
  2. Garbage is delicious"
Giphy

Blattodea

"Cockroaches"

-Chromebasketball

"I would agree, but now I'm wondering if our presence is the reason cockroaches have thrived as well as they have."

-Steverin0724

Giphy

Selachimorpha

"Sharks, they are the dominant species on 3/4 of the Earth's surface already, they have survived mass extinctions and would thrive even more without humans mucking up their habitat."

-Who_Wouldnt_

Giphy

Corvidae

"Corvids particularly Crows."

-Outrageous-Monk-6281

Giphy

Nobody

"Humans are the only species that seek to dominate others. Other animals just want to live in the balance of nature. They're just trying to survive, they don't have time to take over the world."

-Nisa4444

"Pinky and The Brain theme song played in my head."

-itsnick

Giphy

Primates

"Other primates."

-Dimple_From_YA

"We've killed off so many throughout history but of the ones that remains intelligence and versatility would be the key factors. Their food supply and habitat would greatly increase in our absence so with this being said.........primates."

"We are simply the superior primate therefore we are the dominant species. That opposable thumb is a mf when you have a large brain."

-LifeOutside7130

"Gorillas"

-WickedGeisha

Giphy

Brachyura et al.

"Crabs."

-coyoteb0nes

Giphy

Hominidae

"Wouldn't it be just another off shoot of humans like the Neanderthal or heidelbergensis?"

-SnooHesitations8174

Giphy

While we'll probably never know definitively which species would truly thrive without us around, it's still fun to speculate.

Do you have thoughts?

Comment below!

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