Weighing in at a staggering 14,000 pounds, the African elephant is the largest land animal on Earth and a living battering ram wrapped in two-inch-thick hide. Capable of flipping cars and toppling trees on a whim, its intelligence rivals that of primates—complete with mourning rituals and long-term memory. Cross one and it will remember your face forever.

The largest land carnivore on Earth, the polar bear is a 1,500-pound Arctic killing machine perfectly engineered for sub-zero survival. Its paw swipe can decapitate a seal in one motion, and it can smell prey from 20 miles away across frozen tundra. Evolution looked at the grizzly bear and said 'what if we made it bigger, meaner, and gave it a fur coat rated to negative 50?'