Science Buddies: "Ask an Expert"

Just curious about a bird and fish struggle I saw, never seen anything like it before!

I recently saw a Great Blue Heron dive and catch quite a large (and colorful!) rainbow trout crosswise in it s bill, you could tell the fish was not happy and fighting hard to prevent becoming the bird’s dinner. It looked like the fish was putting up a real good struggle, but within about 30 seconds the flapping thing was turned face-first and the heron swallowed the entire fish down its long/skinny neck the whole way!! The thing appeared to be wriggling down that long neck! I thought it was over, but once in the stomach you could see the desperate fish kicking much to the discomfort (it appeared) to the bird. We didn t stay much longer, I wonder if that was the end for the fish or if it still had a slim chance of survival??? Hard to imagine it would succumb so easily once down..

Does it stand any slim chance of escaping (biting, the wriggling etc.) such a grim fate or at least damage the bird’s insides with that thrashing?? It must be a some meal for the bird and I wonder if it handles it bones and all as well?!

Hello,

You have a very interesting question! However, this forum is dedicated to helping students and adults (parents and teachers) develop science fair projects. I would suggest conducting a Google search for this question. If it is related to a project, it would be helpful to know more about the project procedures.

For this specific question, the answer would be that yes, there is a chance for survival. Many birds and amphibians do not chew their food like humans do, so there is a slight chance that the fish can survive unharmed once passed through the other end. However, it is likely that it will die from the bird's stomach acid, digestion, or from asphyxiation.

Hope this helped!

Emma