The World's Fastest Land Animal Has A New Name: Meet Paratarsotomus Macropalpis, A Mite Made For Speed

Sorry, Mr. Cheetah, but you've been outrun - by a creature the size of a sesame seed. Paratarsotomus macropalpis, a species of mite that's endemic to Southern California, was recently found to be the world's fastest land animal, researchers announced Sunday. How exactly did something with legs as small as splinters defeat the African savanna's best sprinter?