Smaller than a match head, the cat flea can leap a staggering 33-cm in a single jump, equivalent to a high jumper soaring some 400 metres into the air.

With an acceleration of over 20 times that required launching a space rocket, a trigger mechanism releases the resilin, extending the legs in less than a millisecond.

Smaller than a match head, the cat flea can leap a staggering 33-cm in a single ...