Could a whale really swallow a person whole?
Maybe but one professor talks about another animal that has
Science News examined the question posed by the upcoming movie "Whalefall" — could a whale really swallow a person whole?
The survival thriller based on the novel by Daniel Kraus will be released Oct. 16. It examines the thalassophobia-inducing question of what happens to a diver who inadvertently gets swallowed by a hunting sperm whale.
UC Professor Bruce Jayne studies the gape of snakes such as this python to determine its largest potential prey. Studies have found that nonnative Burmese pythons are decimating native wildlife populations in Florida. Jayne says some snakes are capable of swallowing people whole but those cases are extremely rare. Photo/Bruce Jayne
Biologists told Science News that an adult diver technically could fit down the gullet of a sperm whale. Unlike most large baleen whales that feed on tiny krill, enormous sperm whales actually do have a large enough throat to accommodate prey like giant squid or a hapless diver.
But scientists told Science News that there has been no documented case of a whale eating a person. In fact, when it comes to the food chain, only one animal has been documented to swallow a person whole, according to University of Cincinnati Professor Bruce Jayne.
Jayne told Science News that only the reticulated python has consumed an adult human whole.
He studies the gape of snakes in his biology lab to determine the maximum size of potential prey. Many snakes, including pythons and anacondas, have flexible jaws and stretchy skin that allow them to swallow prey much larger than their heads.
Still, it's very rare for people to be on a snake's menu, Jayne told Science News.
“Humans are very difficult for snakes to swallow,” he said. “Just because an animal has the physiological capacity to do something doesn’t necessarily mean that they will.”
Featured image at top: The movie "Whalefall" asks what would happen if a diver were swallowed by a sperm whale. Photo/Ventura Romero
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