以每秒體長來算，誰是世界上跑的最快的動物？

When you think of fast animals, it's probably something like cheetahs, or greyhounds. But when measuring in body lengths per second, the arthropod world is unmatched. And now we have a new record-holder - the fastest speed ever measured in an ant.

當(dāng)你想到跑得快的動物時，你可能會想到獵豹或灰狗之類的動物。但以每秒體長來衡量的話，節(jié)肢動物可謂是當(dāng)仁不讓。現(xiàn)在我們有了一個新的記錄保持者——有史以來最快的螞蟻。

The winner is the Saharan silver ant (Cataglyphis bombycina), and the speed is 855 millimetres (33.66 inches) per second.

獲勝者是撒哈拉銀蟻(Cataghisis bombycina)，速度為每秒855毫米(33.66英寸)。

That may not sound like much to you, but that's 108 times the insect's body length per second. Even the cheetah can only manage 16 body lengths per second. Usain Bolt's top speed is 6.2; if he could travel at Saharan silver ant speeds, his top running speed would be around 800 kilometres per hour.

這聽起來可能不算什么，但這是這只昆蟲每秒身長的108倍。即使是獵豹也只能控制每秒16個身長。尤塞恩·博爾特的最高速度是6.2;如果他能以撒哈拉銀蟻的速度旅行，他的最高跑步速度將在每小時800公里左右。

For running speed (flying speeds get even more intense), this puts the ant third, behind the Californian coastal mite (Paratarsotomus macropalpis) at 322 body lengths per second, and the Australian tiger beetle (Cicindela eburneola) at 170 body lengths per second.

就奔跑速度而言(飛行速度的世界競爭會變得更加激烈)，螞蟻排在第三位，僅次于加利福尼亞海岸螨(巨形翼手螨)每秒322個體長，澳大利亞虎甲蟲(學(xué)名為Cicindela eburneola)每秒170個體長。

These tiny ants are amazing. In the Sahara desert, where most creatures avoid going out in the middle of the day to avoid blistering temperatures over 50 degrees Celsius, the Saharan silver ant has evolved a number of adaptations to do just that.

這些小螞蟻真了不起。在撒哈拉沙漠，大多數(shù)生物為了躲避超過50攝氏度的高溫而避免在中午外出，撒哈拉銀蟻卻已經(jīng)進化出了相應(yīng)的適應(yīng)能力。

They have longer legs than other ants, to keep their bodies farther from the scorching sand. Their bodies produce heat shock proteins not in response to heat, but before even leaving the nest, for maximum heat resistance.

它們的腿比其他螞蟻長，以便它們的身體遠離灼熱的沙子。它們的身體產(chǎn)生熱休克蛋白，而不是對熱量的反應(yīng)，這樣在離開巢穴之前，就可以達到最大的耐熱性。