isnt the thompson gazelle the second fastest animal?

Answer 1

If we are just talking about land animals, no they are not the second fastest. Pronghorn win the second fastest prize and top out around 60mph. Gazelle and a handful of others top out around 50mph.

Answer 2

That depends on how you define "fastest". A peregrine falcon can hit about 200 mph in a stoop, with gravity helping. A cheetah can run at about 70 mph but only for a short time. Over a three-mile course, the saluki (probably the oldest breed of dog) can outrun any animal. However, if the course involves broken-field running (like running down a rabbit), an afghan might be faster.

Answer 3

The "experts" seem to disagree on this one, but I think I would trust the sources that say pronghorn.

This is the only one I could find that says gazelle:

"Cheetahs are, without a doubt, the fastest creatures in the world on land. (There's probably some wickedly fast creatures in the ocean that we still don't even know about). Why would a cheetah need to be able to run so fast? The only animal that comes in a close second to the Cheetah's amazing speed is its favorite prey, the gazelle." http://www.extremescience.com/Cheetah.htm

Everything else said pronghorn:

"The pronghorn is the second fastest land animal in the world, almost as fast as the cheetah. It is the fastest in the Western Hemisphere." http://www.nwf.org/pronghorn/

#1 - Cheetas, at 71 mph. #2 - Pronghorn, at 61mph. Thomson's Gazelle ties for third with lion and wildebeaet, at 50mph.
http://www.homeworkspot.com/ask/fastestanimals.htm


Of course, they are all slowpokes compared to the fastest bird, the peregrine falcon: "Diving to kill their prey at over 100 miles per hour, peregrine falcons are said to be the fastest birds on earth." http://birding.about.com/od/birdsfalcons/a/aa041297.htm