The Great White North has been ranked the top destination in the world for wildlife based on its social media popularity.
Canada is the country that has been tagged and viewed the most in wildlife content on Instagram and TikTok, followed by Australia, the United Kingdom, South Africa, and Brazil, according to a new report by adventure tour operator Explore Worldwide.
With over 190,000 Instagram posts tagged with #canadawildlife or #canadianwildlife, local animals made a tremendous splash on social media, including everything from "the humble hooded merganser duck to icy-eyed mountain lions."
Australia followed Canada in second, with over a staggering 150 million views on TikTok videos tagged with #australiawildlife and just shy of 450,000 Instagram posts with the same hashtag. When it comes to the land down under, social media users enjoyed photos of everything from cuddly koalas to "dramatic photos of creepy crawlies such as the peacock spider and the diamond python."
The United Kingdom landed third overall, boasting upwards of a million Instagram posts tagged with #wildlifeinbritain and millions of views on TikTok with the same hashtag. While Britain is home to larger wildlife, people have an affinity for feathered friends on social media, sharing snaps of barn owls, blue tits, kingfishers, and several other unique birds.
South Africa was the world's fourth-most-viewed wildlife destination, with over 14 million total views and posts on TikTok and Instagram for content tagged with #southafricawildlife. On social media, the country's wildlife posts "showcase everything from playful baby lions to serene flamingos."
Brazil rounded out the top five wildlife destinations on social media, with many of the country's Instagram posts showcasing the "stunning wildlife photography of Brazil's birds, including peacocks, macaws, and toucans."
The report's authors add that "leopards also heavily feature in Brazil's social media wildlife content, alongside exotic ocelots, and black lion tamarins."
Most popular animals around the world
While Canadians prefer lions to all other animals, global search data revealed that the king of the jungle doesn't take the lion's share of likes across the globe.
Explore Worldwide found that tigers were the most popular animal in a whopping 44 countries, topping the tables in Mexico, Zimbabwe, and Malta, among others.
The travel company studied global search data for 170 species in over 180 different countries to find out what animals each nationality wants to see the most.
Hippos followed the striped felines in second, with dolphins following in third. Whales placed fourth overall, and gorillas rounded out the top five. The report's authors note that "your best chance of coming across them in the wild is in Uganda, where half of the world's mountain gorilla population can be found."
The report highlights a diverse range of wildlife around the world, with hippos, seals, and elks all featuring in the top ten. Explore's new map reveals the top animal that each country wants to see the most, showing that whilst people in South Korea want to see bears the most, people in Iceland are keen to spot zebras and Argentinians are excited to see wild horses.
