# Animals that can swallow whole humans **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [February 17, 2005, 4:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/animals-that-can-swallow-whole-humans/290484 "2005-02-17T04:24:35Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Engywook](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/bc8723/32.png) [@Engywook](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Engywook)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2005, 4:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/animals-that-can-swallow-whole-humans/290484/1 "2005-02-17T04:24:35Z")
Inspired by [this thread](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=302689): which animals, if any, definitely have a throat large enough to swallow a human whole? I wouldn’t think there’d be too awfully many left… ---
**Author:** ![davenportavenger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/5f8ce5/32.png) [@davenportavenger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/davenportavenger)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2005, 4:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/animals-that-can-swallow-whole-humans/290484/2 "2005-02-17T04:28:50Z")
A blue whale could probably do it, but they’re not predators. I don’t think a killer whale would be big enough, he’d probably have to bite the human into a few pieces before eating him. ---
**Author:** ![OldGuy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/3bc359/32.png) [@OldGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OldGuy)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2005, 6:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/animals-that-can-swallow-whole-humans/290484/3 "2005-02-17T06:09:47Z")
> [@continuity eror](#): > > A blue whale could probably do it, but they’re not predators. I don’t think a killer whale would be big enough, he’d probably have to bite the human into a few pieces before eating him. As I recall a human could not be swallowed by a blue whale. Isn’t it the blue whale that has the boney sieve-like structure in its throat for extracting the tiny shimp it eats? ---
**Author:** ![Ranchoth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ranchoth/32/1066_2.png) [@Ranchoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ranchoth)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2005, 7:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/animals-that-can-swallow-whole-humans/290484/4 "2005-02-17T07:55:52Z")
Boa constrictors and Pythons have, as I remember, been documented eating humans whole. I’ll try to dig up a cite. ---
**Author:** ![Padeye](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/a9a28c/32.png) [@Padeye](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Padeye)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2005, 10:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/animals-that-can-swallow-whole-humans/290484/5 "2005-02-17T10:02:39Z")
> [@OldGuy](#): > > Isn’t it the blue whale that has the boney sieve-like structure in its throat for extracting the tiny shimp it eats? Baleeen is what a blue whale has insetad of teeth. It allows them to open thier mouth, take a mouthfull of seatawater then eject the water through the baleen plates while straining the krill so it can swallow them. I don’t know if one can swallow a human but baleen doesn’t work the way you describe. ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2005, 10:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/animals-that-can-swallow-whole-humans/290484/6 "2005-02-17T10:19:00Z")
A blue whale has baleen in it’s _mouth_, for extracting krill from seawater. It couldn’t possibly swallow a human being whole, its throat is much too small to do so… ---
**Author:** ![Desmostylus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/c57346/32.png) [@Desmostylus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Desmostylus)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2005, 12:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/animals-that-can-swallow-whole-humans/290484/7 "2005-02-17T12:10:42Z")
A sperm whale might be able to do it: > [@](#): > > [Physeter catodon > (sperm whale)](http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/information/Physeter_catodon.html) > > The gullet of Physeter catodon is the largest among cetaceans; it is in fact the only gullet large enough to swallow a human. I’d read the statement “only gullet large enough” as “only _cetacean_ gullet large enough”, I don’t think the author was trying to extend the claim beyond cetaceans. ---
**Author:** ![Ellen\_Cherry](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellen_cherry/32/3600_2.png) [@Ellen\_Cherry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ellen_Cherry)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2005, 1:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/animals-that-can-swallow-whole-humans/290484/8 "2005-02-17T13:24:55Z")
> [@Ranchoth](#): > > Boa constrictors and Pythons have, as I remember, been documented eating humans whole. I’ll try to dig up a cite. If you find one, come over to the other thread and tell us. ---
**Author:** ![badmana](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@badmana](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/badmana)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2005, 3:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/animals-that-can-swallow-whole-humans/290484/9 "2005-02-17T15:04:30Z")
> [@Ellen Cherry](#): > > If you find one, come over to the other thread and tell us. I’ve seen rather distrubing pictures of a child (maybe 14ish?) being found inside a large python. It does happen but I don’t know if a full grown adult could be swallowed. ---
**Author:** ![Spoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2005, 4:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/animals-that-can-swallow-whole-humans/290484/10 "2005-02-17T16:37:00Z")
Grouper swallow their prey whole. Some species grow large enough ([8 feet long, 800 lbs.](http://www.flmnh.ufl.edu/fish/Gallery/Descript/GoliathGrouper/GoliathGrouper.html)) to swallow a small human. [According to this site](http://hometown.aol.com/waiten4thebite/grouper.html), some have tried. (Probably just a fish story.) ---
**Author:** ![Max\_Torque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Max\_Torque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_Torque)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2005, 4:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/animals-that-can-swallow-whole-humans/290484/11 "2005-02-17T16:58:49Z")
What qualifies as “a whole human”? I bet an alligator could swallow a ten-pound baby whole… ---
**Author:** ![CrankyAsAnOldMan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crankyasanoldman/32/11670_2.png) [@CrankyAsAnOldMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CrankyAsAnOldMan)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2005, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/animals-that-can-swallow-whole-humans/290484/12 "2005-02-17T17:42:18Z")
> [@spoke-](#): > > Grouper swallow their prey whole. Some species grow large enough ([8 feet long, 800 lbs.](http://www.flmnh.ufl.edu/fish/Gallery/Descript/GoliathGrouper/GoliathGrouper.html)) to swallow a small human. [According to this site](http://hometown.aol.com/waiten4thebite/grouper.html), some have tried. (Probably just a fish story.) I believe I saw something at the Texas Aquarium about this. The information placard said that SCUBA divers have reported being swallowed by groupers, though only up to their waists, before being spit back out again. ---
**Author:** ![gytalf2000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/ac91a4/32.png) [@gytalf2000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gytalf2000)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2005, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/animals-that-can-swallow-whole-humans/290484/13 "2005-02-17T17:49:08Z")
I think only a sperm whale could handle a large human body (don’t they swallow giant squids?). A very large great white shark or saltwater crocodile might be able to swallow a small child whole, but I think an adult would take at least two gulps. I don’t think even a tyrannosaur could have taken a whole adult; or am I wrong about this? ---
**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2005, 6:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/animals-that-can-swallow-whole-humans/290484/14 "2005-02-17T18:33:37Z")
There is a creature called Parisas Hiltonus that has been reputed to swallow men whole. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2005, 7:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/animals-that-can-swallow-whole-humans/290484/15 "2005-02-17T19:14:59Z")
> [@](#): > > Boa constrictors and Pythons have, as I remember, been documented eating humans whole. I’ll try to dig up a cite. There’s [S. Silverstein’s famous 1974 monograph](http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0060256672/002-5641701-3046408) on the subject, still considered the definitive treatment in many circles. Other specimens with this capability include the Tarrasque, the purple wurm, and all Huge or larger dragons. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2005, 7:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/animals-that-can-swallow-whole-humans/290484/16 "2005-02-17T19:41:06Z")
Sperm Whales certainly have the capability of swallowing an adult human whole, since squids weighing more than 400 pounds have been found intact in their stomachs. However, a well-known case of a supposed modern-day Jonah has been debunked by Cecil: [Have any real-life Jonahs been swallowed by whales and lived?](http://www.straightdope.com/columns/010914.html), a column that I helped to research. The larger baleen whales, including the Blue Whale, mostly eat small organisms and have much narrower throats. Once reference says they can’t swallow anything much larger than an orange. This would also go for the largest fish, the Whale Shark. > [@Ranchoth](#): > > Boa constrictors and Pythons have, as I remember, been documented eating humans whole. I’ll try to dig up a cite. As I posted in the other thread: > [@](#): > > There would seem to be at least one reasonably authenticated case of a snake eating a nearly adult human, of a Malay boy of fourteen attacked and swallowed on the island of Salebabu in Indonesia. . . .(Cited in _Living Reptiles of the World_ (1957) by Karl Schmidt and Robert Inger, two well known herpetologists. Although this reference does not provide a date, other sources indicate it may have happened in the 1920s.) This was a Reticulated Python. I don’t think Boa constrictors get large enough to have this capability, but Anacondas do. > [@badmana](#): > > I’ve seen rather distrubing pictures of a child (maybe 14ish?) being found inside a large python. It does happen but I don’t know if a full grown adult could be swallowed. This sounds as if it might be the photo debunked by Snopes that is mentioned in the other thread. ---
**Author:** ![RobotGoggles](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e95f7d/32.png) [@RobotGoggles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RobotGoggles)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2014, 1:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/animals-that-can-swallow-whole-humans/290484/17 "2014-01-27T01:24:07Z")
According to Google and other sources, a Blue Whale’s throat is about 9.1 in in diameter in a relaxed state in which the whale is not eating. It is speculated but unknown of the diameter of a Blue Whale’s throat whilst swallowing. The most accepted length is 24 - 26 in. Knowing that, a skinny person who is not seen by the whale (they are gentle) could indeed be swallowed, as they do not have a gag reflex and cannot effectively spew a mass such as a human out of its mouth while in the process of swallowing. This, however has not been documented, and I am told it is best to advise readers not to attempt being ingested by any living thing. ---
**Author:** ![RobotGoggles](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e95f7d/32.png) [@RobotGoggles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RobotGoggles)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2014, 1:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/animals-that-can-swallow-whole-humans/290484/18 "2014-01-27T01:31:25Z")
According to Google and other sources, a Blue Whale’s throat is about 9.1 in in diameter in a relaxed state in which the whale is not eating. It is speculated but unknown of the diameter of a Blue Whale’s throat whilst swallowing. The most accepted length is 24 - 26 in. Knowing that, a skinny person who is not seen by the whale (they are gentle) could indeed be swallowed, as they do not have a gag reflex and cannot effectively spew it out of its mouth while in the process of swallowing. This, however has not been documented, and I am told it is best to advise readers not to attempt being ingested by any living thing. ---
**Author:** ![psychonaut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/psychonaut/32/4655_2.png) [@psychonaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/psychonaut)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2014, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/animals-that-can-swallow-whole-humans/290484/19 "2014-01-28T15:53:38Z")
> [@RobotGoggles](#): > > Knowing that, a skinny person who is not seen by the whale (they are gentle) could indeed be swallowed, as they do not have a gag reflex and cannot effectively spew a mass such as a human out of its mouth while in the process of swallowing. I’d like to know the source of this claim. How on earth would one get access to a living specimen and coax it into testing for a gag reflex? Do they even manufacture tongue depressors large enough for such a test? 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2014, 4:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/animals-that-can-swallow-whole-humans/290484/20 "2014-01-28T16:44:30Z")
How about zombie whales? [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/animals-that-can-swallow-whole-humans/290484.md?page=2)