With the Paris Olympic Games just around the corner, we have compiled some data on common pests found in the UK and other countries. Looking to find out who are the top athletes in the world of pests!
To illustrate the abilities of these creatures, we have gathered data on common pests and then scaled up the figures to human size to see how they compare!
So who are the true champions of the Pest world, the strongest, fastest, and the most athletic? There really is only one fair way to find out…
The 2024 Pest Olympics — Let the games begin!
100 Metre Sprint
In terms of quick and sustained speed across the ground, the cockroach is reasonably fast at around 3mph (1). Earning itself the bronze medal in our Pest Olympics.
Australian athletes are typically rather good at many Olympic events and it’s no different in the Pest Olympics. Silver goes to the Australian tiger beetle which can run at an impressive 5.5mph or 120 (2) of its own body lengths per second.
Taking the gold medal is one of the fastest pests over a longer distance. The common brown rat and the black rat, which can reach speeds of around 12mph (3) and maintain this average speed for about 30 minutes.
This would put them in the same bracket as the current record holder for marathon. Running at around two hours total time, even without factoring in the difference in size. If a rat was human-sized, it would outpace even the fastest of our athletes in terms of the 100m sprint.
Long Jump
Grasshoppers can be a problem for those in the agricultural industry, especially in dry and arid countries. Although less of an issue in the UK. Some studies suggest they can leap up to 80cm (7), which is a bit like a human jumping the length of a football pitch in one go. Earning itself the Silver medal in our 2024 Pest Olympics.
The long jump event would also certainly be won by the common brown rat which is frequently seen in the UK. They can leap 48 inches (4) through the air to get to where they want.
In human terms, they can jump further than the world record holder for the Men’s Olympic long jump. Held by Bob Beamon since 1968 at 8.9 metres. A rat competitor would jump more than five times its body length and reach just over 10 metres if the sizes were scaled up.
Weightlifting
Aside from being very agile, rats are quite strong and can lift objects heavier than their own body weight. But the chances are they would have to settle for third place in the weightlifting event. As this discipline of the Pest Olympics has some fierce competition.
Ants can lift objects that are an impressive 50 times (5) their own weight. The equivalent to a human weightlifter picking up a Volkswagen Polo.
But, this is not even the biggest feat of strength in the insect world as the mighty Dung Beetle can pull an object that is 1,000 times (6) its own body weight. Although pulling a heavy object isn’t part of the Olympics these days. To give some perspective this would be like a person pulling an object the size of a blue whale, around 115 tonnes.
High Jump
Many people do not realise just how high some pests can jump. Those surfaces you thought may be safe from invaders could provide a perfect landing platform for them.
Fleas, a contender for the high jump, can jump extremely high in relation to their body size, at 200 (8) times their own height. To put this into perspective, this would be like a human athlete jumping over the Eiffel Tower.
But the international gold medal in high jumping would need to go to the meadow froghopper. Albeit not a pest, found in Europe and North America and capable of jumping 414 times (9) its own height.
Stadium Announcer and PA System
Of course, you can’t have an Olympics event without a good PA system and stadium announcer telling the crowd what is happening.
This job would likely fall to the African Cicada, which can produce a sound 106 (10) decibels loud, which is comparable to live rock music coming out of a loudspeaker.
Boxing
Many people have heard the famous Muhammed Ali expression, “Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee”, but does the bee deliver the worst sting or is there another contender for this award?
Bronze Medal – Mosquito. Nickname, “The Assassin”
The mosquito does not pack the heaviest punch, as its actual bite is sometimes undetectable due to the anaesthetic they inject before drawing blood from their victims. The area around the bite may have a swollen lump and feel itchy, rather than causing an intense stinging sensation that you may experience from a wasp or nettle sting.
Silver Medal – Wasp. Nickname, “The Bully”
Wasps can be quite aggressive, especially towards the end of summer and when sugary food and drinks are concerned. Unlike bees, wasps can sting multiple times as they do not lose their stinger or die when stinging.
Did you know? When wasps are in a threatening situation such as their nest being attacked, they release a pheromone that calls up all the soldier wasps in the vicinity who quickly join the fight.
Shock Retirement – Bee. Nickname, “The Pollinator”
Fans of the Pest Olympics had been hoping for an appearance from their old favourite the bee, who was expected to place above the wasp, and take the silver medal.
Bees are generally non-aggressive and will avoid stinging humans where possible. Reporters and other humans should avoid bothering the bee at their home address, however, as they will defend their families ferociously.
The bee is staying out of this year’s Pest Olympics, aware that its next fight could be its last. Typically, bees will sting only once and die afterwards as they cannot retract their stinger. For this reason, they tend to be slightly less gung-ho than wasps.
Gold Medal – Hornet. Nickname, “Dynamite”
The hornet deals the heftiest punch for stinging insects in the UK. The hornet sting is similar to a wasp but more painful. Thankfully hornets are less aggressive than wasps and tend to keep away from people unless their nest is threatened.
World Champion Stinger
We should perhaps be thankful that the all-round world champion of stinging insects is far from our shores. Making appearances on every continent apart from Antarctica and Europe.
The tarantula hawk wasp feeds on actual tarantulas in the wild. Its venom was helpfully tested by entomologist Justin O. Schmidt as part of his Schmidt pain index.
This basically involved allowing stinging insects from around the world to sting Schmidt. So that he could rate the pain on a scale and describe the experience. Somewhere between the paper wasp and the bullet ant sting, which apparently feels like “walking on hot coals with a nail stuck in your heel”, Schmidt was prompted to comment, “Why did I start this list?”
At the top end of the scale, the brave Schmidt subjected himself to the tarantula hawk wasp sting. Which was noted in his journal to feel “shockingly electrifying, like someone has just dropped a running hairdryer into your bubble bath.”
Bed Bugs Not Available?
Many patrons of the Pest Olympics 2024 had hoped to see the old favourite bed bugs. Who are long-distance masters, and able to cover 4 feet (11) per minute only being the size of an apple seed. That may not seem fast, but when scaled to human terms, the speed would equal that of an average adult sprinting.
Fortunately, this pest had a prior engagement and is looking to take part in this year’s Celebrity Hunted! As an adept hitchhiker travelling up and down the country in the unsuspecting contestant’s rucksacks or clothes should be no trouble for them.
Although I am sure after last year’s Rugby World Cup they may yet make a surprise appearance in Paris!
This blog has been put together as a light hearted view on the amazing world of pests, and may not be truly representative. Stats for the numerical feats of insects noted in this blog have been sourced from reputable sources where possible and are detailed below. AI generated images are provided for illustration and decorative purposes only.
(1)pestworld.org, (2)onsecrethunt.com, (3)zoonerdy.com, (4)misfitanimals.com, (5) scienceiq.com, (6) science.org, (7)countryfile.com, (8) smorescience.com, (9) guinnessworldrecords.com, (10) entnemdept.uf, (11) terminix.com