The animal kingdom contains so much more than just iconic lions, lone wolves, and our beloved silly cats. Planet Earth is home to millions of different species that make us excited and immediately inspire us to learn everything about them. But while charismatic and cuddly creatures get all the hype, some critters are unfortunate enough to have a bad rep as dangerous, frightening, or even disgusting. So let's balance out the scales a little bit, shall we?
Some nature enthusiasts pay attention to these underappreciated rarities and are ready to share their discoveries with everyone online. So when user sqnyq reached out to Ask Reddit with a very fine question, "Which animal do you think deserves more love and recognition than it gets?", people wasted no time in typing out their answers.
To celebrate their efforts and show some admiration for these overly misunderstood creatures, we have gone through the thread and handpicked some of the best responses it had to offer. So scroll down and enjoy learning more about these species as much as we did. Share your own takes with us in the comments, and be sure to check out our previous feature on weird animal facts right over here!

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#21 Silent Ocean Glider

Sharks, they do get recognition but most of it is negative. Sharks are 👌👌
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#24 Snack Time Secrets

Rats. They are incredibly smart, sweet, and social animals who *did not cause the black plague*. One reason why they are often used for experiments (lab rats) is because they are so socially similar to us humans. [Rat Park]
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#25 Quietly Chewing Through Life

Beavers. Beavers are incredibly hard workers. Capable of the same level of decision making and precision that goes into our construction of dams or homes or chopping down trees. There ears can sense the slight trickle of water indicating a leak. In a story linked below the arrival of settlers in the 1800’s wiped out beavers in one area effectively destroying the ecosystems that the beaver dams had created and wildlife depended on. The loss of beavers was still so profound that HUMANS started to make their own beaver dams!! Then like the born workers they are, a few beavers must have heard through the grapevine and took over what humans were doing with far more than their teeth and bare hands. They work so hard. Their work ethic is better than any humans. They are always on call. No nights off. Now, I truly admire the team work and socialist structure of most any colonies, but beavers can build dams that transform its environment and create their own mini ecosystem. They are incredibly important and considered a keystone species. The largest beaver dam is half a mile long and started in the 70’s and is located in Canada. That’s generations of beavers dedicated to the “family business” of continuing this huge dam. They of course continue to MAINTAIN a dam a half mile long. Made of just sticks and trees and mud and whatever other tricks they have. I have the utmost respect for their abilities and contributions to their environments! Seeing videos blowing up their incredibly hard work makes me sad. I get it, someone’s poor garden is flooded and we can’t stand for that. Or someone’s property is filling with water and they have the right to not want it to. But, it just seems so horrible to destroy something so incredibly built and with such hard work and dedication and brain power that we need to blow it up to take it down. For the record, I get that beavers can cost millions in damages to property and some support trapping when their numbers get high or they become a problem. But, I just truly hope animals have the capacity to just laugh at a species who’s numbers are growing faster than the environment can handle or support, whom quickly destroy and invade their homes before they take over and are everywhere, who cost thousands and thousands of years of growth and strength and survival in trees every year with their destruction, that species having the NERVE to point to others as needing help being controlled. Calling others destructive or a nuisance. The best part is saying with a straight face how another species population is growing too fast and too large and needs to be culled and controlled. I know, I’m human. But even if it’s just us, it still feels hypocritical to say. BEAVERS ARE AMAZING (Just don’t think about the rodent thing)
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#26 Silent Watchers in the Grass

Hyenas. For hundreds of reasons. Disney did them dirty.
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#27 Ocean’s Gentle Giant

Beluga Whale. ITS FOREHEAD IS SO CUTE. And it looks absolutely adorable coated with blubber all around
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#29 Three’s a Comedy Crowd

Dogs for sure, they get all the love and recognition and they still deserve more.
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#31 Perched and Pensive

Vultures are natures sanitizer. By eating the carrion, they prevent the spread of diseases. Their stomach acid destroys any pathogens and they also have a very stout immune system and their urine and defecations "cleans" the area of the carcass.
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#32 Strutting Without a Care

Pigeons!! We domesticated them for communication but now that we don’t need them they’re considered ugly and gross. But they don’t fear humans which is why they’ll come up to us. Poor things.
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#33 Silent Watcher Moves

Reptiles generally. A lot of people think of reptiles and are disgusted. They either think of slimey snakes or agressive dragons. Don't get me wrong, they aren't always cute and cuddly, but there's so many snakes in rescues that never get a home because of the stigma. I don't think an exotic pet is right for everyone by any means, in fact I think it should be more regulated so that you have to put some thought into having one, but they really can be affectionate with the right owner and time.
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#34 Bamboo Buffet Bliss

Okay so I know a lot of people hate pandas for them eating bamboo even tho they’re designed to eat meat, but it’s not because they’re stupid. They lost their taste for meat. A gene they had which “motivated” them to hunt and eat meat somehow disappeared. It’s not like they can control that. And people also say they don’t mate on their own. Well god made female pandas go in heat for only three flippin days out of an entire flippin year. That’s it. Since their population numbers are so low, what are the chances a male and a female are going to see each other in that time frame
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#35 Colorful Conversations

Parrots Parrots are awesome
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#36 Big Beak Energy

The shoebill bird. I know most people won’t think so, but I think that it’s the cutest animal I’ve ever seen
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#37 Strutting in Style

The Cacomistle or the Maned Wolf, both are really cool animals!
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#38 Unexpected Ocean Unicorn

Narwhal Unicorn of the Ocean.
SusieTheHomemaker, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:%D0%9D%D0%B0%D1%80%D0%B2%D0%B0%D0%BB_%D0%B2_%D1%80%D0%BE%D1%81%D1%81%D0%B8%D0%B9%D1%81%D0%BA%D0%BE%D0%B9_%D0%90%D1%80%D0%BA%D1%82%D0%B8%D0%BA%D0%B5.jpg
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#40 Silent Strength Stands Tall

Gorillas. They're cool. But I don't hear people saying they're thier favorite animal much
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