Snakes have an extraordinary feeding system. Their lower jaws are not fused rigidly at the front like ours, and their skulls contain highly flexible joints. This allows a large python to stretch its mouth around prey much wider than its head might suggest.
Research into Burmese python gape found that these snakes can occasionally consume prey approaching or even exceeding their own body mass. Scientists have documented Burmese pythons taking deer and alligators, although such events push the anatomical limits of the snake and are not everyday meals.
The result is an animal that can look almost impossibly limited by its narrow head and long body, yet can consume prey that seems completely out of proportion to itself.