the marine iguana blows out salty snot rockets

January 22, 2021 1:41 PM

Do Sharks Sneeze?
posted by spamandkimchi (12 comments total)

Make sure to click through to the Iguana snot rockets.
posted by Joey Michaels at 2:48 PM on January 22, 2021

Pass.
posted by Splunge at 3:02 PM on January 22, 2021

The first thing I thought of was the Octonauts version (creature report!).
posted by mogget at 4:03 PM on January 22, 2021 [3 favorites]

Sassy pants the iguana, I'm your sneezing cousin.
posted by winesong at 4:44 PM on January 22, 2021 [1 favorite]

" To get rid of these items, sharks will cleanse their stomachs by literally vomiting their guts out to rinse out their stomach. Their stomachs are actually outside of their mouths for a moment before they suck it back in free of its contents."

Give a whole new meaning to the phrase "I'm puking my guts out."
posted by kathrynm at 7:35 PM on January 22, 2021

These behaviors could also be a process called gastric eversion.

Sorry what now??!!?

There are only a handful of videos of this happening, and even less where it's clearly visible, this is the best I can find: shark throwing up its own stomach

And possibly even crazier: intestine inversion from cloaca

Favorite thing I've seen all week, fabulous post!!!!
posted by lemonade at 7:43 PM on January 22, 2021 [1 favorite]

Here's Why You Should Never Hold in a Sneeze, Esquire, 1/16/2018. Fair warning to the squeamish.

Related — Among the things all Dads should tell small children (or gullible adults): “If you don’t close your eyes when you sneeze, you’ll blow your eyeballs out.”
posted by cenoxo at 8:16 PM on January 22, 2021

Thanks, spamandkimchi, I've had that Prince song stick in my head all evening. "This is what it sounds like / when sharks sneeze."
posted by Harvey Kilobit at 9:48 PM on January 22, 2021

Lacking Kleenex technology, marine iguanas often get hit with their own snot rockets. You’ll often see a white crust of salt on their heads and snouts. It’s almost like the make up Kiss wears, but made with showers of salty nose goo. Take one look at them and you can see they rock that salty style with pride

Weird that language that I would find condescending if aimed at kids seems fine when it's not.
posted by ChurchHatesTucker at 9:54 PM on January 22, 2021

Should sharks wear masks?
posted by grog at 7:21 AM on January 23, 2021

No, but bats definitely should. Selfish bastards.
posted by ChurchHatesTucker at 9:38 AM on January 23, 2021

Comforted to know that sneeze body language - halt, lift head, pause, seize- is universal all the way to sharks, too.
posted by FirstMateKate at 10:29 AM on January 23, 2021