In the middle of the day, when most animals hide from the heat, Saharan silver ants (Cataglyphis bombycina) emerge, sprinting across the sand like liquid metal. They are the fastest ants in the world, reaching speeds of 0.855 meters per second (about 2.8 feet per second), which is around 108 times their body length every second. For comparison, Usain Bolt, the eight-time Olympic gold medalist and world-record sprinter, covers about five body lengths per second at his peak. That means the silver ant moves over twenty times faster than him relative to size.

At full speed, all six legs leave the ground at once in a gallop-like stride. This allows them to stay airborne for part of each step, helping them move quickly across loose, hot sand.