Rather than teeth, humpback whales have 270 to 400 nail-like strands called baleen plates. In photos: A rare albino Risso's dolphin Deep blue sea: Winning underwater photographs In photos: Tracking humpback whales in the South Pacific Ocean No one gobbled up by a humpback could end up in the beast's stomach, but the creature's 4 ton (3.8 metric tons) tongue could easily crush a person. Despite being one of the largest whale species - growing up to 60 feet (18 m) long, and weighing an impressive 40 tons (36 metric tons) -the school bus-size giants predominantly dine on tiny sea creatures such as small fish, krill and plankton, meaning their throats are usually only 4 to 8 inches (10 to 20 centimeters) wide. Getting swallowed by any marine creature is hardly going to make anyone's day, but Packard was somewhat fortunate that he was grabbed by a baleen whale. Astonishingly, Packard survived the biblical encounter with no greater injury than a dislocated knee. Packard was hauled back onto his fishing boat by his topside crew mate, who had been anxiously surveying the water's surface for signs of bubbles from Packard's oxygen respirator. I couldn't believe … I'm here to tell it." "I just got thrown in the air and landed in the water," he said. But then the whale, clearly keen to remove its unwelcome, and inedible, guest, surfaced, shook its head and spat him out. He estimated that he remained trapped inside the mouth of the leviathan for 30 seconds, and he was still able to breathe through his scuba respirator. "And I thought to myself 'OK, this is it - I'm finally - I'm gonna die.'" Packard's thoughts turned to his wife and his two sons, ages 12 and 15. and he's trying to swallow me,'" Packard told WBZ-TV News. "Then I realized, 'Oh my God, I'm in a whale's mouth. The issue was addressed on a June 2010 episode of the BBC podcast program Naked Scientists by marine biologist Helen Scales, who said even on the off chance that you dodge the whale’s teeth and digestive system, there isn’t enough breathable air inside it to support life.At first he thought he had been attacked by a shark, as great whites frequent the area, but he soon realized he couldn't feel any teeth. While it is conceivable toothed whales like a sperm whale could physically swallow a human being, prolonged survival is extremely unlikely.
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(The veracity of that story is questionable as well.) It was reiterated at the turn of the 20th century with the story of James Bartley, a sailor who was supposedly swallowed by a sperm whale and retrieved alive after the animal allegedly died of constipation. The story is usually interpreted as a fable as opposed to historical fact. The story is lifted from the Old Testament biblical tale of Jonah, who was swallowed by a whale which then spat him out. Other than Spirit Science, the yarn has been picked up by web sites with names like and Ways of Healthy Life 365. It seems many were not sufficiently warned. At the bottom of the article, the following disclaimer appears: “This story is a spoof and you are suitably warned.” The story appears to have started circulating this year when on 4 April 2016 in the New Delhi-based publication The Indian Express posted it in a section dedicated to viral stories.
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The man pictured is actually named “Mike” and the picture was taken from a 2015 YouTube video in which Mike demonstrates turning his swim trunks into a flotation device. The article features the image of shirtless man that is claimed to be the fisherman, Luigi Marquez - but it isn’t.
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It originated earlier this year on an Indian publication’s web site that labeled it a spoof story. On 2 September 2016, the faux-spirituality web site Spirit Science reported that a Spanish fisherman named Luigi Marquez was swallowed by a whale and resided in its belly for three days before being “flushed out” safely, enabling him to return to his daily life.Īccording to Spirit Science, the story was written by the web site The Hearty Soul, which appears to be a clickbait web site dedicated to so-called natural health remedies (with titles like “10 Plants That Attract Positive Energy and Instantly Make You Happier”).