Australian huntsman spider named world's fastest

The Australian huntsman spider has been crowned the world's fastest arachnid, shattering previous records with a top speed of nearly 3.6 meters per second. This discovery, stemming from a new laboratory study, dethrones the Moroccan flic-flac spider, previously thought to be the fastest at approximately 1.7 meters per second.

Researchers from Germany's University of Greifswald and Imperial College London collaborated on the study, which involved measuring the maximum sustainable running speed of 236 individual spiders across 162 species. The spiders were sourced from various regions, including the UK, Australia, North America, and southern Europe, with some also acquired from pet stores.

To conduct the tests, each spider was placed on A4 and A3 paper with grid lines. Their movements were recorded by cameras to analyze their running biomechanics. The papers were secured on plastic or metal surfaces, and the experimental area's walls were coated with liquid paraffin to prevent any climbing species from escaping.

The study revealed a general correlation between a spider's body mass and its running speed, with larger spiders typically being faster. However, significant variations existed among species of similar weight. For instance, one spider could be up to 28 times faster than another of comparable mass. The researchers also noted that while larger spiders tend to be faster, excessively large abdominal weight can become a limiting factor. Leg length was also identified as a key factor, with relatively longer legs contributing to higher speeds. In some cases, like the tiny orange goblin spider, its speed relative to its size was so remarkable that one researcher described it as appearing to "practically teleport."