The world’s fastest ant has been discovered, a desert-living creature which “gallops” over the scorching sand faster, relative to its body size, than a cheetah.

The Saharan silver ant hits speeds approaching one metre per second as it emerges at the height of the midday heat to scavenge on corpses, scientists have found.

A team of German researchers analysed insects found near the remote Douz area of Tunisia.

Their readings revealed the ant can move at 108 times its own body length per second, putting the species among the world’s most nimble animals.

A cheetah, the fastest land animal with a top speed of around 30 metres per second, covers a mere 23 times its own body length per second.

The scientists at the University of Ulm said the Saharan silver ant’s speed is particularly remarkable given it has relatively short legs, between 4.3 and 6.8mm.

The limbs move back and forth dizzyingly quickly, however, swinging 1,300 mm per second, with all six feet off the ground most of the time, in a movement similar to a horse’s gallop.

Each foot only contacted the ground for as little as 7 milliseconds before initiating the next stride.

The researchers located a nest and connected an aluminium channel to the entrance, placing a feeder at the end to lure the ants out.