The Fastest Animals in the water

Sailfish: 30 to 110 km/h

The Fastest Animals in the water

Sailing fish (Istiophorus) are a group of fish that scientists generally consider to be the fastest fish in the ocean, with a reported top speed of more than 110 kilometers per hour, according to the Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. National (NOAA). However, some experts believe that these large fish are actually much slower. Paolo Domenici, a biologist at the Institute of Biophysics of the Italian National Research Council (IBF), doubts that sailfish and other marine animals swim above 100 km/h. According to Domenici, the widely cited sailfish top speed came from an article in the journal Country Life published in 1941, which is not a scientific journal, making the data questionable.

"Until now, there is no clear measure of the fastest speed of a fish capable of swimming," said Domenici. He and his colleagues used video and tracking tags to measure the frequency of beats in the tails of sailfish - equivalent to the stride length in land animals - to calculate how fast they can move. transfer. “When we measured it, we recorded a top speed of about 8 to 10 meters per second (36 km/h), not much higher than that,” he said.

- Related: 10 fastest land animals

Swordfish: 36 to 100 km/h

The Fastest Animals in the water

The swordfish (Xiphias joyius) is also a candidate for the title of fastest animal, with an estimated top speed of more than 100 km/h. However, this figure comes from Russian research translated into English and published in the early 1960s. According to Domenici, descriptions of how swimming speed is measured are unclear or unreliable.

A 2007 study published in the Journal of the Royal Society found that speeds above 100 km/h can exceed the physical limits of any fish or cetacean (dolphins and marine mammals). whale). The researchers found that bubbles created by animals while swimming can collide with their fins and can cause injury if they move faster than 10 to 15 meters per second, or 36 up to 54 km/h. In other words, these speeds may be the physical limit of animals swimming in water, as they will injure themselves if they move faster.

Domenici thinks the swordfish could still be the fastest fish in the ocean, although likely not able to move faster than 36 km/h. Fish use the head like a sword and the large, elongated body to reduce drag and glide through the water. According to a 2016 study published in the Journal of Experimental Biology, swordfish also secrete oil from the pores on their heads to create a lubricating oil that can reduce drag and increase swimming efficiency. of them.

- Related: 10 fastest land animals

Dall's porpoise: 54 km/h

The Fastest Animals in the water

Dall's porpoise (Phocoenoides dalli) swim at speeds of up to 54 km/h, according to the Whaling and Dolphin Conservation (WDC), a wildlife charity focused on marine mammals. . Most dolphins are shy and avoid boats, but Dall's dolphins actively seek to ride the waves at the bow. The bow wave is created at the front of a boat and propels animals that are riding the waves forward, which can help them swim faster than usual, according to Domenici.

According to NOAA, Dall's porpoise live in the frigid waters of the North Pacific. Killer whales (Orcinus orca), though often referred to as whales, are actually the largest members of the dolphin family, and can also reach speeds of 54 km/h while riding the waves in front of a boat. This is the same rate as the limit in the 2007 study mentioned above, before animals could begin to injure themselves.

- Related: 10 fastest land animals