Amazing animal athletes

Every four years, the world comes together to celebrate human athleticism at the Olympic Games. 

But what about our animal friends? They’ve been honing their skills for millions of years!  

From the swiftest sprinters to the mightiest powerhouses, our conservation Zoo is home to a cast of characters who could give Olympic champions a run for their money.

We’re diving deep into the animal kingdom to unveil the hidden talents of our incredible animals in the ultimate tests of speed, strength, and agility. Let the Zoolympics begin!

Fastest Animals

African wild dog

These pack hunters are incredibly fast. African wild dogs are capable of reaching speeds of up to 40mph for up to an hour, making them able to run one and a half marathons in half the time of the average Olympian.

Humboldt penguin

While they may waddle adorably on land, penguins are absolute speed demons underwater. Humboldt penguins, in particular, can swim at speeds of up to 30 mph, making them four times faster than Olympic swimmers.

Did you know that they also enjoy a spot of diving? Humboldt penguins regularly dive down up to 50m when hunting for food. 

Dive with them at Tottenham Court Road's  immersive Outernet experience this summer

To celebrate the 2012 London Olympics our penguins had a brand new diving board installed at Penguin Beach and had great fun showing off their Tom Daley style diving skill to visitors.

Burrowing Owl 

Not all of the animals at the Zoo are capable of beating Olympic athletes but they like to give it a go! 

A special mention for the Speed category has to go to our burrowing owls - back in 2012, this one trained hard to beat his personal best time at the 100cm sprint during the our 2012 Animal Athletes in Action event.

Strongest Animals

Leafcutter ant

These tiny insects might be small, but they pack a powerful punch! Leafcutter ants can carry almost 50 times their own body weight, which is equivalent to a human carrying two cars!

Madagascar orb weaver

This spider might look delicate, but its silk is incredibly strong. Pound for pound, the Madagascar orb weavers silk is stronger than steel!

Macaw

With their powerful beaks, macaws can crack open nuts and seeds with ease. Their bite force is so strong that they can easily take apart the bars of a welded wrought iron cage!

Western lowland gorilla

The undisputed gold medallists of the animal kingdom, gorillas are incredibly powerful - they can lift up to 10 times their own body weight! A fully grown silverback gorilla could lift 1,810kg, which is 2.8 times more than the current bench press world record of 635kg held by powerlifter Jimmy Kolb.

Most Agile Animals

Northern white-cheeked gibbon

Gibbons are the most agile of all the apes and the undisputed gymnasts of the animal kingdom. With their long arms and incredible flexibility, they can move through the trees using a special form of fast swinging called brachiation. Performing feats that would put Olympic gymnasts to shame, gibbons make daring leaps of up to 10m between branches. 

Sumatran tiger

Despite their size, tigers are incredibly agile. They can jump up to 5 meters vertically - more than twice as high as high jump world record holder Javier Sotomayer’s 2.45m.

Malagasy giant jumping rat

As the name suggests, the Malagasy giant jumping rat is an incredible jumper. It can jump almost 1 meter vertically which is very handy when trying to evade predators. 

Animals with Superhuman Skills

Axolotl

Axolotls have one of the craziest superhero style skills in the animal kingdom! These unique amphibians possess an incredible ability to regenerate lost limbs, organs, and even parts of their brain. 

See them at our brand new habitat

Butterflies

Butterflies have a secret superpower - they can see ultraviolet light! Humans can only see colours in the visible spectrum, but butterflies have special photoreceptor cells in their eyes that allow them to detect UV light. This incredible ability helps them find flowers with the sweetest nectar and identify potential mates.

Komodo dragon

Komodo dragons have an incredible sense of smell that's almost superhuman! They can detect the scent of rotting flesh from miles away. Their forked tongues act like tiny noses, collecting scent particles and delivering them to special organs in their mouths. This amazing ability makes them expert scavengers and deadly hunters.

Giant Salamander

Giant salamanders are truly colossal creatures! Species such as the Chinese giant salamander can grow to be around 1.8m in length, making them the largest amphibians on Earth. Despite its intimidating size, this ancient creature is actually quite gentle and spends most of its time hiding at the bottom of rivers and streams.