This sounds fake.
Swallowed by a frog, 90% of Regimbartia attenuata beetles crawl out the cloaca alive within six hours.
Sometimes the prey leaves by the emergency exit.
The part that checks out ↘
It really happened.
In controlled trials, adult Regimbartia attenuata beetles swallowed by several frog species often survived by moving through the gut and exiting the rear end alive. About nine in ten made it out within six hours, sometimes in minutes. Follow‑up work showed the escape is active: when researchers immobilized the beetles’ legs, they could not leave.
Being eaten isn’t always the end of the story. A predator’s gut can become a one‑way gauntlet that some prey actively run—and beat.
No folklore. Actual sources.
- 1 Active escape of prey from predator vent via the digestive tract.
Five frog species; 90% excreted within 6 h (0.1–6.0 h); beetles alive; active escape claim.
pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
- 2 An insect species can actively escape from the vents of predators via the digestive system
Summarizes the findings: ~93.3% excreted within ~6 h, alive; behavior observed across several frog species.
kobe-u.ac.jp
- 3 Effects of Predator Species and Size on Prey Escape Success Through the Digestive Tract
States adult R. attenuata use their legs to move through the digestive tract; leg immobilization prevents escape; all surviving beetles escaped within 7 h.
onlinelibrary.wiley.com
- 4 Water beetles can live on after being eaten and excreted by a frog
Reports >90% survival; fastest passage ~6 minutes; notes leg‑immobilization prevented escape (supports active movement).
sciencenews.org