In the dangerous natural world, animals have developed all sorts of ways to escape predators. One of the most bizarre and striking defensive strategies is the ability to inflate one’s own body. By suddenly making themselves larger, these animals appear harder to swallow or more intimidating to the attacker. Meet 7 masters of this inflatable defense technique.
1. The pufferfish: Champion of inflation
Pufferfish (family Tetraodontidae) are the absolute experts at inflating. When threatened, they rapidly gulp down large amounts of water (or air, if above water), causing their extremely elastic stomach to expand enormously. Their body transforms into an almost perfect, taut ball, often covered with spines that now stand erect.
This makes it virtually impossible for a predator to swallow the pufferfish. Additionally, many pufferfish are also highly toxic (containing tetrodotoxin), making them a doubly dangerous meal.
2. The porcupinefish: Inflation plus spines
Porcupinefish (family Diodontidae) closely resemble pufferfish and use a similar strategy. They too can quickly inflate their bodies with water or air. The main difference is that porcupinefish have long, sharp spines covering their entire body (similar to a porcupine or hedgehog), which lie flat when the fish is relaxed.
When the fish inflates, these impressive spines become fully erect, creating an extremely difficult-to-handle, spiky ball that deters almost any predator.
3. The horned lizard squirts blood and inflates
Horned lizards (genus Phrynosoma), also called horny toads, are lizards from North America known for their bizarre defense mechanisms. Besides squirting blood from their eye sockets (another bizarre tactic!), they can also significantly inflate their bodies with air.
By filling their lungs with air, they swell up, becoming wider and flatter. This makes it much harder for predators, such as snakes, to get their jaws around the lizard and swallow it. The spines on their body also help with this.
4. Some frogs inflate to look bigger
Several species of frogs, like the Bushveld rain frog (Breviceps adspersus), can inflate their bodies when threatened. They gulp air, causing their body to swell into an almost round ball.
This serves multiple purposes: it makes them harder for predators like snakes to grab and swallow. It can also help the frog wedge itself into a burrow or crevice, preventing it from being pulled out. Furthermore, inflating makes them look larger and possibly more intimidating.
5. The thorny catfish extends its spines
While not strictly ‘inflating’ by swallowing air or water, thorny catfish (family Doradidae) have a similarly effective defense. These South American fish have rows of bony plates along their bodies and, more importantly, very strong and sharp spines in their dorsal and pectoral fins.</p
When threatened or attacked, they can rapidly extend and lock these fin spines. This makes them extremely difficult and painful to swallow for predatory fish or birds. They effectively get stuck in the attacker’s throat.
The ability to inflate oneself or drastically change shape is a remarkable survival strategy. Whether by swallowing water, gulping air, extending spines, or even a fatal explosion, these animals show that appearing larger or harder to handle can be an effective way to keep predators at bay. It’s a dramatic but often successful method to avoid becoming someone’s next meal.
