• Question: if dragons were real, how would you explain their ability to breath fire?

    Asked by anon-181677 on 19 Jun 2018.
    • Photo: Claire Donald

      Claire Donald answered on 19 Jun 2018:

      This is an easy one!

      Clearly they would grind their teeth together to create a spark and then spew a flammable chemical from special stores in their throat. The chemical would be ignited from the spark and come out its mouth as fire.

      Although maybe I should check with JK Rowling to make sure I have that right …

    • Photo: Liza Selley

      Liza Selley answered on 26 Jun 2018:

      I agree it has to be chemical. Lots of insects hunt or defend themselves by mixing chemicals inside their bodies to produce acid sprays so why not dragons too?

      I don’t think it happens in the throat though, I think it happens in the fire pit which is a specialised organ next to the stomach that can withstand high temperatures. There is an ignition gland which drips highly explosive chemicals into the fire pit. When they react they cause a small explosion that results in a big roar of flames!

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