Agile flyers, deft hunters or nimble crawlers – speed can be an advantage for small insects in many ways. The diversity of insects therefore includes species among the fastest animals on Earth.
The walking legs of a stick insect
The swimming legs of a backswimmer
Many insects can reach impressive speeds in flight. Dragonflies pursue their prey through the air at up to 50 km/h. Not only that, but they are also real acrobats and capable of flying backwards and hovering on the spot.
Back on the ground, tiger beetles are truly talented sprinters, covering 120 times their body length in just one second. A human would have to run at 800 km/h to beat that speed. In fact, tiger beetles can run faster than they can see! This means they have to stop regularly to avoid bumping into obstacles.
At first glance, mantises might not appear to be among the quickest of insects. The lurking predators regularly sit practically motionless for hours at a time waiting for their prey to approach. However, as soon as it does come within reach, the mantis can strike at lightning speed with its forelegs, snaring its prey in just 50 ms – one of the fastest movements in the whole of the animal kingdom!
