Yogyakarta –
Environmentalists in Australia were surprised by the emergence bloodsucking animal. But this is believed to be a good sign, you know how come that?
An unexpected event occurred to conservationists from the National Parks Limestone Coast. They found a scary-looking eel with a row of large white teeth swimming in a river at Australia South.
As quoted from News.com Australia, Monday (10/7/2023) fish blood-sucking eels or often called Lampreys were seen in the Ewens Ponds area. This is a popular swimming and snorkeling spot located 25 kilometers south of Mount Gambier.
Although Lamprey’s appearance looks terrible, the experts are very happy about the discovery. This means that it can be said that river water in South Australia is classified as healthy.
Detikers need to know, that actually terrible animal start their life in fresh water, after which they can start migrating to sea. In their next life, they may spend their adult lives latching on to other fish species and sucking their blood.
It doesn’t stop there, they will later return to fresh water to reproduce and complete their life cycle. Claira Harding, a conservation ecologist from the Limestone Coast National Parks, expressed her excitement about the find.
At that time the Lamprey could be observed directly during fish tracking activities. This very rare opportunity, made him immediately document it through photos.
“I’ve never seen them during the day and I’ve only ever seen them when we’re tracking, surveying and netting fish,” he said via ABC as quoted on news.com.au.
“To see one just swimming around, we grabbed our phones quickly to take photos as evidence,” he added.
In addition, the team from the National Parks Limestone Coast saw the rare species while sitting and watching until it disappeared from their sight. Because according to them, it is not a species that can be seen every day.
Unfortunately, the Lamprey population has been in decline over the years. But conservationists are not standing still, recently they have been carrying out a gradual restoration.
The presence of Lampreys in the area signifies favorable conditions. How not, the eel is basically very sensitive to water quality. Therefore it really needs a high flow of water and also a stable temperature to be successful for laying eggs.
The presence of Lamprey sightings in fresh water is a concern for swimmers. But Harding clarified that the Lamprey seen at Ewens Ponds was an adult fish that was likely migrating from seawater via Eight Mile Creek to reproduce in fresh water.
When reproducing, the eggs produced by Lampreys will hatch into larvae. Then the larva will spend about four years in the muddy sediments of fresh water bodies. After that, they will undergo metamorphosis and will turn into adults. For the next life, the species returns to the sea to attach to the host fish.
Despite the intimidating appearance of the teeth and jawless mouth, the Lamprey poses no danger to humans. Even the Lamprey can be described as a very interesting creature.
Later the adult Lamprey will return to the freshwater ecosystem and stop eating completely. In addition, they will depend on the fat in their bodies until they lay their eggs and eventually die.
*This article was written by Windi Yusnita, a participant in the Merdeka Campus Certified Internship Program at detikcom.
Watch Video “Hii! Ancient Blood-sucking Eel Appears Again”
(fay/fay)
2023-07-10 06:50:08
#Hiiii #Bloodsucking #Eels #Australia
