Who Is the Fastest Living Being in the World?

This is James. He has two passions in life – wildlife and speed. Random, I know, but to each his own. Right now, James is warming up to combine these two passions in one epic challenge. He wants to outrun as many creatures on Earth as he can. How far through the animal kingdom do you think he'll get? Let's find out! Sorry, Jimmy, but the chances don't look good. Humans aren't that fast. Like anyone else, James walks at a humble average of 3 miles per hour. Good news, though – he's already faster than a lot of other land-inhabiting creatures. For example, insects and other bugs are fast only for their tiny sizes. Our competitive friend here can easily outpace almost every single one of them. Really? Even house centipedes? Those little monsters move nightmarishly fast. Eww! Other animals with comparable sizes to humans, like sloths, koalas, and giant tortoises, are also left far behind. Sloths live in places where it's too risky to move fast because predators will see them. So, they move at a sluggish 0.15 miles per hour. And giant tortoises clock out at a max of a third of a mile per hour. But these animals are among the slowest on our planet. So, finally it's time for Jimbo to put on his running shoes. James is really fit, and he's been preparing for this day his whole life. That's why 15 miles per hour is just a jog for him, even though it's the average speed other people run at. Yet, this pace is good enough for us because we can outrun all pesky vermin like rats and mice, as well as all spiders and snakes in the world. The leading competitor here is the 6-line race runner, a great name for a lizard that can show James how he won't keep up. Uh-oh, hurry up, fella! James wants to go for high league levels of animal running. So, he kicks it up to Olympic speeds, 28 miles per hour, the fastest running speed ever recorded for a human being. Animals like elephants, squirrels, and even polar bears are stopping to catch their breath behind our speedy friends' back. This is a strange point where a human can outrun a polar bear. But he won't hold for long against a grizzly bear. Better throw some honey to distract it. Hey, honey, check out that bear. Yeah, that one. This is also the point where slim Jim decides to face the truth. Speed is not humankind's strongest attribute. But intelligence and ingenuity are. With this thought, James jumps on a bike. 40 miles per hour, that's about the top speed he can reach on a bicycle without the help of a motor. It's just enough to escape from all the bears and canines like jackals, dogs, and wolves. But he still can't catch up with a brown hare. They can clock at 48 miles per hour. But hey, at least James wins the race against a simple house cat. What about their big cousins that rule the African grasslands? Lions can run a staggering 50 miles per hour. That's about the same as their favorite food source, the blue wildebeest. Tigers are even faster with a speed of 60 miles per hour. And, of course, the absolute champ of top speeds on this planet, the cheetah. Nothing could be sweeter than a fleeta sprinting cheetah. Yeah, I kinda made that up. Zipping through the prairies at 75 miles per hour. It's crucial for these predators as they chase down extremely fast pronghorn antelopes. These horned creatures can easily beat a lion on a racetrack. To match the speed of a cheetah, James can't keep relying solely on his own body strength and endurance. This time, he hops in a car. Nothing too flashy or fast, a simple sedan that can handle typical highway speeds with no problem. But we humans have come up with some unbeatable land machines. Powerful race cars and even jet cars capable of breaking the sound barrier with a top speed of 765 miles per hour. I guess we technically win the battle on ground. But what if Jimmy Boy challenges some animals from the marine world? Again, there's no way he can do it without one of humanity's fancy inventions. It's much harder for us humans to move underwater as it's denser than air and requires a much more streamlined body shape for speed. With our bulky torsos and lanky arms and legs, we just don't have what it takes. Never mind all the hair covering us. Well buddy, what are you waiting for? Dive in! The maximum speed James can hope to achieve without flippers is just 3 miles per hour. That's barely enough to swim past eels. But he's easily moving past crabs and starfish. Well yeah, duh. These bottom dwellers don't even need to move for most of their lives. Not the mightiest contestants out there. But wait, what's that behind you in the distance? Something triangular sticking up out of the water? Is that a shark? Hurry Jim, put on a diving suit! You better swim for your life! With that wetsuit covering his mammalian hair and those flippers on his feet, James can now swim a lot faster – 8 miles per hour. He's on par with most land animals' swimming skills, and he could out-swim most penguins and sea otters. But those great whites are catching up fast, and it's no wonder – they're moving at 30 miles per hour. They're right at his feet. It's only seconds before they open their wide jaws and…oh, I can't look. James, are you okay? Well, aren't you the sly one. Or lucky. You jumped into that sailboat at the last minute. He's now sailing smooth at 18 miles per hour. Granted, those great whites can swim way faster than that, but only in short bursts. See, they're already tired now. The boat is faster than humpback whales, sea lions, and small fish. But Jimmy Crack Corn is already wanting to up the ante. This time, he hops on a giant cruise liner. Its roaring engines can accelerate this metal hulk up to 35 miles per hour, leaving behind barracudas, dolphins, and octopuses. Yeah, those 8-legged creatures can't swim surprisingly fast at 25 miles per hour. Looks like it's time to take this challenge to a whole nother level. James finds a speedboat and whips around the water at 90 miles per hour. Careful, buddy, don't crash! And congratulations, you're moving way faster than a marlin, which can only go up to 50 miles per hour. Oh yeah, and you've passed the world's fastest fish, the sailfish, which clocks out at 68 miles per hour. The only thing that's left for our champ to conquer is the skies. To talk about human capabilities and flying is not even a joke. Oh, by the way, do you prefer zooming through the water, the skies, or on land in some hot-rod car? Let me know down below. Anyway, right from the get-go, James needs something to lift him up. Looks like he's opted for a jetpack because, well, who wouldn't when given a choice? Up in the sky, poking holes in the clouds at 65 miles per hour, Jimmy Boy is already among the flying record-breakers. All the pigeons, sparrows, and blackbirds are too slow to keep up. He's now flying with falcons, the peregrine falcon to be exact, which can fly horizontally at an average speed of 56 miles per hour, but can bump it up to 69 miles per hour. There are even quicker feathered beings, like the bald eagle, soaring through the air at 75 miles per hour and topping at 99 when it really tries. Some recent studies show that our flying mammal relatives, bats, can reach an astonishing 100 miles per hour and still be beat by the white-throated needle-tails 105 miles per hour. That all would be just enough to ruin James' day for good if not for a small plane he rented for this occasion. Now flying at 124 miles per hour, it seems like nothing can stop him. Yet, it's Jim's old rival, the peregrine falcon, that swoops in to retake the crown. Watching as Jim zooms ahead, the bird only smirks as it dives toward the ground at 240 miles per hour. It must be swooping down for some lunch! Well, it's all over then. Give it up, dude! Just pack your stuff and fly back home on a jumbo jet! He's only cruising, yet the speedometer reads 600 miles per hour. And we have a champion, folks! Not a personal record to be fair, but a victory nonetheless! Maybe one person can't be the fastest being in the world, but humanity can reach speeds that are simply unimaginable for any other living creature. And today, we thank James for proving that! Hey, if you learned something new today, then give this video a like and share it with a friend! And here are some other cool videos I think you'll enjoy. Just click to the left or right, and stay on the Bright Side of life!