(#2) Crocodile
- Crocodylidae
Though pythons have swallowed crocodiles and alligators, crocs have similar biological mechanisms in place to swallow and digest whole prey. Crocodiles have something that snakes don't to help them gobble up their prey in one fell swoop: gizzard stones. Crocs have gizzard stones in their stomachs to help digest things that are not easily digestible, like bones. This is just part of why they can swallow prey that's up to 23% of their body mass.
Because crocs can eat so much in one meal, they're able to go long periods of time without eating if they must. It's likely that that attribute contributed to the longevity of crocs - they've been around for 80 million years.
(#6) Great Blue Heron
- Ardea herodias
Great blue herons are all over North America, so chances are, you've seen one out in the wild. They look like less cool flamingos, standing peacefully in the water on their skinny legs. Peaceful they are not, however. The great blue heron also swallows its prey whole.
The heron eats fish and other water creatures, and that makes perfect sense. But land creatures are in danger, too. A great blue heron was filmed in someone's yard eating a baby gopher. The heron picks it up and then eventually chokes it down whole. They are not picky eaters, either. They will eat anything from shrimp to frogs to small rodents to your very expensive koi in your backyard pond.
(#10) Shark
- Selachimorpha
Sharks aren't the terrifying killers you probably think they are (a 100-pound shark eats about three pounds of fish per day), mainly because they have slow metabolisms.
Wobbegongs, however, are what probably fuel nightmares. The wobbegong was spotted along the Great Barrier Reef in Australia inhaling another shark. Not chewing... swallowing whole.
If the picture didn't convince you that the wobbegong should not be messed with, don't forget that it has very sharp teeth and very strong jaws, just in case you are too big for it to swallow in one gulp. If the wobbegong snatches you, you are out of luck.
(#5) Monkfish Are Seafloor Dwellers That Also Eat Birds Whole
This handsome fellow eats live birds whole. Let that one sink in for a minute. This bottom-dwelling fish eats birds whole.
How? When seabirds dive down to fish, the monkfish swoops in. Done. If a seabird is not on the menu, the monkfish will wait under the sand until some unfortunate smaller fish swims by and is lured in with the esca, or little filament-like strings, that sprout from between the monkfish's eyes. Once the prey is in place, the monkfish strikes and swallows his meal whole.
(#11) Dinosaur
- Dinosauria
Yes, dinosaurs are extinct (unless Jurassic Park someday becomes a reality). Think for a moment about different kinds of dinosaurs. Take the T-Rex, which has a very large head and rips up its prey. Now, think about a brontosaurus - small head, right? That's not a coincidence.
Researchers have learned that dinosaurs likely didn't chew their food simply because they didn't have time to. A large herbivore, like the brontosaurus, would have to be eating constantly (think about how much an elephant has to eat, and it's a lot smaller than a dinosaur).
Being able to swallow food whole eliminated that problem, because they could consume large quantities of food quickly. The dinosaurs' stomachs and metabolisms would have allowed them to still digest the vast amount of food they ate.
(#1) Snakes
- Serpentes
Anyone who has seen National Geographic has probably seen a snake swallowing something massive. It's possible because snakes don't have jaws, right? Wrong! Snakes don't even have jaws that can dislocate; they have ligaments that can stretch to a pretty decent capacity.
What's truly remarkable is what allows a snake to actually digest whole prey. A group of scientists took X-rays and did some testing while a Burmese python swallowed and digested an alligator. When a snake begins to feed, it kicks off a series of biological reactions: increased heart rate, increased metabolism, increased enzyme activity, and the stomach pH drops. The researchers found that within a week, the alligator had been completely digested.
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Many animals and plants in the world rely on swallowing to feed, and snakes are the most common animal. The scenes in most documentaries are where animals eat after killing their prey, but nature is crueler. If you see a python's belly bulging, it is likely that the prey it just swallowed has not been digested. Some animals can even devour other animals that are as heavy as they are, or even larger.
The attack of some small animals is also very lethal, and their crazy feeding process is even more disgusting. After capture, they will devour the prey in one bite without chewing. The random tool lists 11 scary animals that can devour prey in one bite.
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