Student Article

House of the Dragon, the prequel to the TV show Game of Thrones, features giant, fire-breathing dragons. But could animals like this really exist? Evolutionary biologist Henry Gee suggests it's possible!

Real creatures with fiery tricks

The bombardier beetle is an example of an animal that can create hot, toxic liquid to defend itself. The beetle synthesizes hydrogen peroxide and hydroquinone, producing benzoquinone. This liquid is squirted into the eyes of predators. Gee proposes that producing fire is similar.

The science behind fire-breathing

One theory is that a dragon could biologically synthesize ether, a substance that ignites spontaneously when ejected into the air. Ether is made by warming alcohol with sulphuric acid. If a dragon squirts ether from its mouth, it could burst into flames. The dragon's skin would need to be fireproof, possibly containing borax, a fire-retardant material.

But there are some problems

There are challenges with this idea. The dragon would need special glands to prevent poisoning itself and avoid buildup of insoluble sulfates. However, Gee believes there is no biological reason why creatures couldn't evolve to breathe fire.

Could a dragon also fly?

Even if fire-breathing worked, flying might not. Dragons in the show are huge — but so were some ancient flying reptiles like pterodactyls. They could glide, but big flapping flight is hard. Gee thinks dragons might just be too heavy to take off.

© Stephen Kelly / Our Media