10 record holders in the animal world

The sprinter: cheetahs in a sprint can reach up to 120 km/h (75 mph)! This suits their hunting behavior: The day-active big cats sneak up very close to their prey and then attack suddenly. But they lack stamina - if they do not reach antelope after a few hundred meters, for instance, they have to give up.

The endurance runner: pronghorns can maintain speeds of 60 to 70 km/h (37 to 43 mph) over a distance of up to five kilometers. Their bodies have adapted to it. For example, their hearts are about twice as big as that of a domestic sheep. Advantage? Pronghorns can mostly outrun their predators with ease.

The fastest bird: running at 70 km/h is no problem for this bird, and it can easily hold a speed of 50 km/h for half an hour. It has very long legs, strong running muscles and is the only bird with only two toes on each foot. However, the ostrich, despite its large wings, cannot fly. It's simply too heavy.

The highest-flying bird: in 1973 a Rüppell's vulture collided with a plane at 11,200 meters (36,745 feet) in the air - the African raptors can actually fly that high. Most birds fly at a height of about 100 to 2,000 meters. Only migratory birds have to fly as high as 9,000 meters from time to time, such as when they cross the Himalayas.

The high jumper: pumas can, despite their weight of more than 50 kg (110 lbs.), jump on a tree as high as five and a half meters (18 ft.) from a standing start. This is the record for land mammals. Only dolphins can jump higher - seven meters - but they can prepare their jump by picking up speed in the water.

The smallest: most hummingbirds are very tiny. The bee hummingbird is the smallest bird in the world. It only measures six centimeters (about two inches) and is as light as a feather - weighing two grams (0.07 oz.). In flight, they flap their wings 40 to 50 times a second.

The deepest diver: the giant sperm whale is the only mammal that manages to dive as deep as 3,000 meters and stay under water for up to an hour. This is particularly surprising as whales have to reach the water surface to breathe. One of their tricks: when diving only the most vital organs like the heart and brain are supplied with blood.

The endurer: no animal can stand heat better than they can. A body temperature of 45 degrees Celsius (113 Fahrenheit) doesn't bother the oryx much - a human would have long since been dead. The secret: a fine network of veins in the carotid artery, which functions as a blood-air conditioning. In addition, the oryx rarely need to drink - once every few weeks is sufficient.

Best listener: Bats have the finest ears in the animal world. On their forays, the nocturnal animals emit ultrasonic sounds. Their large ears turn towards a sound source and the echo is sucked in as through a funnel. This enables them to catch insects even in complete darkness.

Champion jumping: the little fleas can jump as high as two hundred times their own height, from a standing start. Even better are the meadow froghoppers. These insects can jump up to 400 times their own height.