17 Wild Animal Superlatives

The animal kingdom is full of creatures that are capable of incredible feats of speed and strength—but who’s the best of the best? In this list of animal superlatives, we’re covering fastest and biggest animals out there.

But that’s not all—we’ll also be looking at things like who has the strongest schnoz and the longest leap. Read on for those superlatives and more.

1. Longest Animal: The Bootlace Worm
2. Largest Animal Ever: The Blue Whale
3. Largest Land Animal, Strongest Animal, and Strongest Nose: The African Elephant
4. Strongest Creature Gram-for-Gram: The Dung Beetle
5. Fastest Animal on Land: The Cheetah
6. Fastest Animal, Period: The Peregrine Falcon
7. The Most Poisonous: The Golden Poison Dart Frog
8. Most Venomous: Box Jellyfish
9. Loudest Animal in the Sea: Sperm Whale
10. Loudest Animal on Land: Bulldog Bat
11. Oldest Animal (Bivalve): Ming the Quahog
12. Oldest Animal (Invertebrate): Giant Barrel Sponge
13. Oldest Animal (Vertebrate): Greenland Sharks
14. Longest Jump Relative to Body Size (Insect): Froghopper
15. Longest Jump Relative to Body Size (Frog): South African Sharp-Nosed Frog
16. Longest Jump: Red Kangaroo
17. Highest Vertical Jump: Mountain Lion

Longest Animal: The Bootlace Worm

The bootlace worm stretches longer than the largest whales—reaching a maximum length of 190 feet. That’s enough to circle the base of the Leaning Tower of Pisa and still have 30 feet to spare. Despite over-delivering in terms of length, they’re not much thicker than other worms—not counting Shai-Hulud, of course: They measure a few inches wide at most. The ribbon worm species is aquatic, residing in the cool, coastal waters around Northern Europe. If you encounter one on a beach trip, swim the other way: It releases a highly-toxic mucus capable of paralyzing its prey—just in case you needed another reason to keep your distance from a 190-foot worm. 

Largest Animal Ever: The Blue Whale

Though they’re rivaled in length, the blue whale is the undisputed champion when it comes to sheer mass. Not only is it the largest animal on Earth today—it’s the biggest creature that has ever lived. Sometimes weighing over 200 tons, they outclass even the largest dinosaurs that roamed the planet millions of years ago. To put that into perspective, a blue whale’s tongue weighs as much as an elephant, its heart is the size of a small car, and its body spans the length of three school buses.

In an era that has fostered relatively smaller megafauna, how did blue whales evolve to be so huge? The answer lies in their ocean environment. While land mammals are constantly working against gravity, whales can rely on their buoyant surroundings to support their massive frames. All that extra bulk also provides an evolutionary advantage in frigid waters. Big mammals lose body heat less quickly, so whales may have gotten bigger as a survival tactic.

Largest Land Animal, Strongest Animal, and Strongest Nose: The African Elephant

The largest land animal is the African savanna elephant, which weighs up to 7 tons and stands 13 feet tall. Mass may be an advantage in chilly waters, but it can be a liability under the African sun. Elephants have evolved many adaptations to stay cool in hot weather, including their fan-like ears. Blood loses heat as it moves through the animal’s oversized appendages, helping the rest of the body stay cool and comfortable. When their built-in air conditioning system isn’t enough on its own, elephants also like to cool off with their built-in sprinkler—a.k.a. their trunk. In addition to being the largest animal on land, the African elephant is also the strongest animal on Earth. It can lift its own sizable body weight from a lying down position. They also have the strongest noses in the animal kingdom by far. An elephant can easily uproot a tree using the 17 very strong muscles in its flexible trunk.

Strongest Creature Gram-for-Gram: The Dung Beetle

Dung beetles aren’t capable of knocking down trees, but they do excel in a different strength category. They can move objects 1142 times their body weight, making them the world’s strongest creatures pound for pound—or ounce for ounce, in this case. For comparison, that’s like a 200-pound person hauling a Boeing 757 with their bare hands. The unfortunately-named insects are impressive in other ways as well. In addition to acting as their own tractor-trailers, dung beetles have their own built-in GPS. After rolling up a ball of dung, they use the positions of the sun, moon, and Milky Way to navigate it back home.

Fastest Animal on Land: The Cheetah

Cheetahs are often characterized as the speed demons of the animal kingdom. The athletic felines have been clocked at top speeds of 75 miles per hour, making them the fastest creatures on land. 

Even with their natural talents, cheetahs still have to work for their lunch. Antelopes fall a little short of the superlative speed by 20 mph, but they do best the predators when it comes to endurance. That goes to show that sometimes survival on the savanna is a marathon, not a sprint.

Fastest Animal, Period: The Peregrine Falcon

The planet’s overall speed record belongs to the peregrine falcon. The birds are capable of dive-bombing their prey at speeds of over 200 miles per hour. The feat looks more like falling than flying, but that doesn’t make it less impressive than the land speed record. Peregrine falcons have to fold their bodies into the most aerodynamic shape possible to achieve their top speeds. From there they rely on other adaptations like rigid feathers, an extra-large heart, and powerful lungs that are capable of delivering oxygen at race car speeds. 

The Most Poisonous: The Golden Poison Dart Frog

The golden poison frog is adorable, but as its name suggests, it isn’t for petting. Native to the rainforests of Columbia, the bright-yellow amphibian contains enough poison in its 2-inch body to kill 10 people. That makes it probably the most poisonous creature on Earth. 

Most Venomous: Box Jellyfish

The planet’s most venomous organism can be found in the sea. While poisonous animals transmit their toxins through contact or ingestion, venomous ones kill their victims with a bite or sting. The box jellyfish uses the latter delivery method—its tentacles are equipped with roughly 5000 stinging cells each. When these cells sense a certain chemical on its prey’s flesh, they release toxins that assault the skin, heart, and nervous system. The world’s most venomous animal is potentially responsible for dozens if not hundreds of deaths per year, many unreported.

Loudest Animal in the Sea: Sperm Whale

The depths of the ocean get surprisingly loud, especially when there are sperm whales nearby. Their clicking vocalizations reach up to 236 decibels, which is louder than a thunderclap. Decibels measure the pressure or perceived loudness of a sound instead of the straight frequency. The sperm whale’s record-breaking echolocation is boosted by the water, which transfers soundwaves more easily than air. The sound would only reach around 210 decibels on land, which is still loud enough to burst human eardrums. 

Loudest Animal on Land: Bulldog Bat

The loudest animal living outside the water is the bulldog bat native to Latin America. Like whales, they use echolocation to pinpoint their prey, and their calls are powerful. The winged mammals can produce sounds approaching 140 decibels. Despite their exceptional vocal abilities, you wouldn’t be able to hear the bulldog bat even if it was screeching in your face. That’s because the bat’s cries are ultrasonic, meaning they’re too high to register to human ears.

Oldest Animal (Bivalve): Ming the Quahog

The oldest bivalve specimen on record lived through The Protestant Reformation, two World Wars, and the invention of Facebook. Scientists used carbon dating to calculate the age of an ocean quahog called Ming, which was named after the first Chinese dynasty it lived through. When it died in 2006, the clam was estimated to be 507 years old. 

Oldest Animal (Invertebrate): Giant Barrel Sponge

Quahogs aren’t the only marine creatures with impressive longevity. Giant barrel sponges are sometimes called the “redwoods of the reef,” as they can grow 10 feet tall and live to be 2300 years old. 

Oldest Animal (Vertebrate): Greenland Sharks

You can also find old vertebrates in the coldest corners of the ocean. Greenland sharks are thought to be the longest living species with a spine, with the oldest known specimen estimated to have been 392 years old. Life moves at a slower pace for the arctic fish. The first half of their scientific name Somniosus microcephalus literally means “sleep” in reference to their leisurely swimming speed. It also takes them roughly 150 years to reach sexual maturity.

Longest Jump Relative to Body Size (Insect): Froghopper

A froghopper—which is actually a type of insect—can leap 28 inches into the air. That’s especially impressive considering the bugs measure less than half an inch long. They use specialized structures in their legs that flex like archery bows to fling their bodies 100 times their length.

Longest Jump Relative to Body Size (Frog): South African Sharp-Nosed Frog

The South African sharp-nosed frog comes close to that record. In 1975, a member of the species jumped 17 feet and 6 inches, or 90 times its body length. That remains the record for frogs relative to body size. 

Longest Jump: Red Kangaroo

Mammals don’t have the most impressive jumps proportionate to their body size, but they do dominate in overall distance. Red kangaroos are famously talented jumpers, and they can cover 45 feet in one leap. Even when they’re not jumping beyond Olympic-level distances, kangaroos hop everywhere they go. Their spring-like legs and tail make it the most energy-efficient form of transportation for the marsupials. 

Highest Vertical Jump: Mountain Lion

A different mammal holds the world record for highest vertical jump. A mountain lion has been documented bounding 23 feet off the ground—so if you ever come face to face with the big cat, think twice before escaping up a tree. 

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This story was adapted from an episode of The List Show on YouTube. Don’t forget to subscribe for new videos every week.