The idea of a creature enduring a significant fall without injury often sparks curiosity. This question delves into the surprising resilience found in the natural world, prompting exploration of the underlying scientific principles that allow such survival.
The Remarkable Cat
The cat is the creature most frequently associated with surviving high falls. Their agility and balance contribute to the belief that they almost always land on their feet. This has led to the popular saying about them having “nine lives.” Their ability to endure considerable drops has been observed in numerous instances.
Physics of Falling
Small creatures survive falls from great heights due to terminal velocity. As an object falls, it accelerates due to gravity but experiences increasing air resistance. Eventually, air resistance balances gravity, causing the object to fall at a constant speed, its terminal velocity.
An object’s terminal velocity is influenced by its mass, cross-sectional area, and shape. Smaller, lighter objects with a larger surface area relative to their mass experience greater air resistance and reach a lower terminal velocity. This means they hit the ground at a significantly slower speed compared to larger, heavier objects. For instance, a falling cat’s terminal velocity is approximately 60 miles per hour (around 100 km/h), about half that of a human.
Feline Adaptations for Survival
Cats possess adaptations that make them adept at surviving falls. Their innate “righting reflex” allows them to orient their bodies mid-air to land on their feet. This reflex is triggered by their acute sense of balance, facilitated by the vestibular apparatus in their inner ear.
Their highly flexible spine, composed of numerous mobile vertebrae and lacking a functional clavicle (collarbone), enables them to twist rapidly during a fall. As they fall, cats can bend in the middle, rotating their front and back halves independently to align themselves. They also instinctively spread their limbs and arch their backs, increasing their surface area to act like a parachute. This further reduces their terminal velocity and distributes the impact force across their bodies.
Limits to the Fall
Despite their remarkable adaptations, cats are not immune to injury from falls. Injuries are possible, even with reports of survival from over 30 stories. Factors such as the height of the fall, the landing surface, and the cat’s age and health all influence the outcome.
Studies indicate that cats falling from lower heights, specifically less than five to seven stories, can sometimes sustain more severe injuries because they may not have enough time to fully execute their righting reflex or reach terminal velocity. Cats that fall from greater heights, beyond about five to seven stories, often reach terminal velocity and may relax their bodies, potentially leading to less severe injuries than those from intermediate heights.
Common injuries include broken bones, internal injuries like punctured lungs, and joint or ligament damage. A 90% survival rate for cats treated after falls from two to 32 stories has been reported.