The fastest land animal on Earth

 The fastest land animal on Earth

When asked which creature has the fastest speed on Earth, many people will surely immediately answer it is a leopard. In fact, is there anything faster than the leopard?

The fastest land animal on Earth

The cheetah (Acinonyx joyatus) is undeniably fast. With a top recorded speed of up to 103 km/h, cheetahs easily overtake other agile animals, such as racehorses, to claim the title of fastest land animal in the world.

Explaining this, Professor John Hutchinson specializing in evolutionary biomechanics at Royal Veterinary College London (UK) said: "The combination of leg length, muscle size and stride length brings In addition, a 2017 study model based on 474 species of marine and terrestrial life, from whales to flies, demonstrated that speed is associated with size. Speed ​​increases with size until you reach the optimal level. Beyond that optimal, larger animals will be slower because they need more energy to accelerate."

According to a 2013 study in the journal Nature, cheetahs are just the fastest animals on land over short distances. The reason is that they do not chase prey at high speed over long distances. Their hunting strategy is more about speeding and moving very quickly. In essence, their endurance is limited.

No other land animal can reach the same speed as the cheetah, but in fact scientists discovered the pronghorn antelope (Antilocapra americana) estimated to be able to reach 97 km/h and can maintain a high speed. degree 72 km/h.

When put on a scale that includes marine animals and poultry, the competition really heats up. According to the Guinness Book of World Records, the speed of the peregrine falcon (Falco peregrinus) has been recorded to be more than 322 km/h. In fact, they can reach speeds of up to 563 km / h, although scientists have not officially recorded this speed.

"A lot of flying birds can move more than cheetahs," Hutchinson said.

Under the ocean too, there is an elite list of speed riders. Black sailfish (Istiompax indica) can reach speeds of 129 km/h, swordfish (Xiphias happyius) and sailfish (Istiophorus) can reach speeds of 97 km/h, 109 km/h.

So, while the cheetah deserves its place among the fastest animals on the planet, it makes up an insignificant part of the "speed record".

One reason for that is that the speed of most animals has not been well studied. The speeds of racehorses, cheetahs, greyhounds and camels have been carefully and repeatedly measured. While most other animals' speeds are just observations and estimates.

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