Some animals can live for a great number of years, and others can survive in harsh conditions. Yet some animals aren’t destined to live a very long life at all: here are the 20 animals with the shortest lifespans, with the shortest coming last!
Giant Sunda Rat
The giant sunda rat has one of the shortest lifespans, living for around two years. It also has the shortest lifespan of any mammal found worldwide. They have a better chance of survival if kept in captivity, but even then, they would only manage for a few years.
The Mosquito Fish
The Mosquito Fish found in the southeast of the U.S. only lives for around one and a half years, usually reaching maturity around four months. During that very short life, these tiny fish help to keep mosquito populations down by feeding on them as well as their larvae.
Wolf Spider
Another animal that doesn’t have a very long lifespan (and many arachnophobes might be happy about that) is the wolf spider, which only lives around one year. Britannica reveals that the wolf spider gets its name from its ability to hunt and pounce on its prey.
Shrew
The shrew has an average lifespan of around one year, during which time it uses its exceptional sense of smell and hearing to search for food. Their incredibly short lifespan also means that they need to eat every few hours to stay alive, thanks to their high metabolic rate.
The Paedophryne Amarvensis Frog
This particular species of frog has the shortest lifespan of any frog in the world, living only one year. This frog gives birth to live young instead of tadpoles (it is short on time, after all), and its small lifespan is due to being easy prey for scorpions.
Labord’s Chameleon
Surviving for only 4 to 12 months, the Laboard’s Chameleon has an even worse end of the deal by only spending a few months as a fully grown lizard. The majority of their very short lives are spent as an embryo, and they then live out only a few months fully grown.
Caribbean Dwarf Octopus
Also known as a pygmy octopus, this sea creature, naturally found in the Atlantic Ocean, will only live 8-10 months. According to NBC News, growing to a size no bigger than a pencil eraser, this species is very good at hiding to evade predators.
The Worker Bee
Not only does the worker bee have an exceptionally short life, it spends it in the service of others, namely, its queen and her hive. The worker bee only lives for 6-8 weeks during the summer or four to six months in the winter. During this time it will process nectar, make honey, and help to raise the next generation in its stead.
Dragonfly
Another animal – or, rather, insect – with an extremely short lifespan is the dragonfly, living only for 6 months. Once the dragonfly has developed from a larva and risen to outside the water’s surface, it’s only capable of surviving for a few months as an adult.
African Turquoise Killifish
The African Turquoise Killifish is another marine animal with an exceptionally short lifespan, living only for 4 months. It also has the added time pressure of needing to mature and lay eggs before the water in its natural African habitat completely dries up.
Sign Eviota Fish
The Sign Eviota fish has one of the shortest known lifespans of fish at around 3 months, and half of that is spent as larvae. Their very short lives can be attributed to the amount of predators – though it’s not through lack of trying, with females laying hundreds of eggs at once.
The Fruit Fly
The small, winged flies that are always buzzing around the fruit bowl can only do so for around 30 days before they die, most commonly in the hottest months. Despite their short lifespan, they do try to produce offspring very quickly, able to lay up to 500 eggs.
Housefly
The common housefly can manage to survive anything from 15 to 30 days, which is still too long for most of us who have one! It takes around 24 hours for a housefly egg to hatch, and the larvae must then develop for several more days before becoming an adult fly.
Drone Ant
Thanks to its wings and larger body, the drone ant is different from the common ant. While its life purpose is to produce offspring, it has a very short lifespan of around 3 weeks. However, a queen drone ant has a significantly higher lifespan of 12 months.
American Copper Butterfly
Some butterflies have much longer lifespans than the American Copper Butterfly, which sadly only manages to survive around 14-21 days. They’re most notable for their bright orange wings, and being one of the fastest species of butterfly means they can live their short lives to the fullest.
The Indianmeal Moth
The Indianmeal moth, found worldwide, can only survive for 1-2 weeks, although very stubborn ones can manage longer. The Natural History Museum informs us that this moth is also a common house pest around dried food, so its short lifespan might not entirely be a bad thing.
The Mosquito
Often cited as the most dangerous animal in the world, thanks to its capability of spreading diseases, the mosquito is only able to live up to two weeks at a push – thankfully. But it will try to bite as many people and animals as possible during those 7-14 days!
Luna Moth
The Luna Moth is another animal with one of the shortest lifespans, at only a week. Its only reason for living is to reproduce, and once that’s accomplished, it dies soon after. If it doesn’t reproduce as much as possible during that week, the species could risk extinction.
Gastrotrich
The gastrotrich, a tiny, microscopic animal similar to a worm, can be found in freshwater—but only for 3 days, which is its very short expectancy. Their tiny lifespan means that they waste no time developing very quickly into adults and have a particularly quick reproduction cycle.
The Mayfly
Topping the list of animals with the shortest lifespan, the mayfly takes the crown: females live for only 5 minutes, while males can live for up to 48 hours. While all mayflies have the same short lifespan, they can actually vary in size, according to the National Wildlife Federation.
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