The Fastest Animals of the Sea

As a Vortex boater, life on the water is all about speed—and for many animals below the surface, the same idea holds true! In today’s blog, we’re highlighting some of the ocean’s fastest-moving animals.

Black marlin

The black marlin is among the fastest fish of the sea, reaching speeds of 80 miles per hour when it wants to—especially to get itself out of tight situations, like unwinding fishing line. This popular game fish isn’t just fast, it can be big, too—the largest one on record weighed more than 1600 pounds!

Shortfin mako shark

The speedy shortfin mako is able to move fast while swimming and springing out of the water, using its velocity to leap high through the air. With a top recorded speed of 46 miles per hour, the shortfin mako is also the fastest shark in the sea.

Flying fish

Have you ever walked by a body of water and heard a quick splash—then turned around to see nothing in the water? You might have been tricked by a flying fish, a species that can “fly” (or, rather, leap) from the water so quick that you can blink and miss it! The flying fish uses its speed, which can reach 43 miles per hour to escape the reach of predators below, and can spring as much as 20 feet into the air by self-propulsion alone.

Pilot whale

Unlike the flying fish, who uses its natural speed to flee away from predators, the pilot whale uses its speed to catch prey like the squid. Sometimes called the cheetah of the sea, the pilot whale can move at around 20 miles per hour—which might not seem quite cheetah-like, until you realize that it’s sustaining that speed for long stretches of time, up to 15 minutes! To make all this even more spectacular, the pilot whale can achieve this speed and stamina even deep into the ocean, at depths like 3000 feet, where its whale relatives often prefer to move slowly and save their breath. It’s not easy moving that fast, especially in such restrictive conditions!

Sailfish

The sailfish is one of the fastest in the sea, moving at nearly 70 miles per hour. Interestingly, the sailfish does not use its sail-shaped fin to aid in swimming—this fin is more of a visual threat to potential predators, making itself look more intimidating. When moving quickly the sailfish can pull its “sail” to its side to move through the water with ease.

Did any of these speeders surprise you? Let us know if you’ve ever seen one in action!