We often hear about records being broken by human athletes, whether in team or individual competition.  There are also records and extremes in the world of non-human animals.  The fastest animal in the world, for example, is the peregrine falcon, a crow-sized bird of prey with a diving speed of more than 200 miles per hour.  As we learned in a recent religious education event at BBUUC, the fastest land animal in the world is the cheetah, which reaches top speeds of about 70 miles per hour.  Most sources identify the black marlin as the fastest animal in water, swimming at speeds up to 80 miles per hour.

There may be less interest in the slowest animal in the world, but that distinction apparently goes to the three-toed sloth, clocked at 3/100 of a mile per hour.  These sloths move so slowly that algae grow on their fur, a useful adaptive feature for beings who spend much of their time sleeping in the treetops.

The largest animal in the world is the blue whale, which can grow to over 100 feet and weigh over 200 tons.  The blue whale’s heart is the size of a small car.

The smallest animal identified to date is the myxozoa, an invertebrate related to the jellyfish.  These tiny beings are one-celled, even at maturity.  A fully grown myxozoa is approximately 1/100 the size of a grain of sand.  But the title of smallest animal is probably the record most likely to be shattered in future years, because tiny animals can only be seen under the microscope.  There could well be some even smaller creatures whom we have simply never seen.  So someday the tiny myxozoa may lose its title.  Let’s stay tuned!