Blue whale Balaenoptera musculus
The largest animal known ever to have existed — confirmed lengths of up to about 30 m. [source]
Blue whales may weigh up to roughly 190–200 tonnes. [source]
Record-breakers
Superlatives attract exaggeration like fleeces attract burrs. These are the figures our sources actually support — where a famous number is shaky, we say so.
Peregrine falcon Falco peregrinus
Famous for its hunting stoop: speeds over 320 km/h are widely claimed, though radar has reliably clocked about 184 km/h. [source]
Cheetah Acinonyx jubatus
The fastest land animal, sprinting at roughly 93–104 km/h. [source]
The oft-quoted 114 km/h cheetah figure is regarded as unreliable. [source]
Greenland shark Somniosus microcephalus
The longest-lived vertebrate known: at least 272 years, possibly far more. [source]
The oldest Greenland shark studied was estimated at 392 ± 120 years. [source]
Ocean quahog Arctica islandica
One clam, nicknamed “Ming”, was 507 years old. [source]
Arctic tern Sterna paradisaea
Makes the longest regular migration of any animal, chasing two summers a year. [source]
Arctic terns from Iceland and Greenland fly around 70,900 km a year; one Farne Islands bird covered 96,000 km. [source]
Snowy (wandering) albatross Diomedea exulans
Has the largest wingspan of any living bird, up to about 3.7 m. [source]
Bee hummingbird Mellisuga helenae
The smallest bird in the world; females weigh about 2.6 g. [source]
Common ostrich Struthio camelus
The largest living bird, laying the largest eggs of any living land animal. [source]
Ostriches can run at about 70 km/h. [source]
African bush elephant Loxodonta africana
The largest living land animal. [source]
Giraffe Giraffa camelopardalis
The tallest living land animal. Its long neck comes from lengthened vertebrae — each over 28 cm — not extra ones. [source]
Komodo dragon Varanus komodoensis
The largest living lizard: up to about 3 m long. [source]
Emperor penguin Aptenodytes forsteri
The tallest and heaviest penguin, recorded diving to 535 m. [source]
Common swift Apus apus
Young non-breeding swifts can stay airborne for up to ten months at a stretch. [source]
Naked mole-rat Heterocephalus glaber
A eusocial mammal with a queen, like a bee colony — and the longest-lived rodent known. [source]
Naked mole-rats can live more than 37 years. [source]
Galápagos tortoise Chelonoidis niger
The largest living tortoise, weighing up to 417 kg. [source]