Fastest spin on Earth? For animals that rely on legs, scientists say one spider takes gold

There’s no sneaking by this spider. New research from the University of California Merced and the California Academy of Sciences shows that individuals from the spider family Selenopidae—commonly known as flattie spiders—can sense prey approaching from any direction and whip around in one-eighth of a second to strike. High-speed footage reveals that a swift flex of their long legs helps the hunters accomplish this feat, deemed the fastest leg-driven turn of any animal on the planet. Findings are published today in the Journal of Experimental Biology.