The animal world is full of surprising habits that, in response to biological and environmental stimuli, make the lives of some animals absolutely astonishing and adventurous. One of these animals is the eel, a snake-shaped fish very common from Iceland to Senegal whose feats are unknown to almost everyone.
Biological traits
First of all you should know that all eels are born in the depths of the Sargasso Sea, east the Gulf of Mexico and the Bermuda Islands. Many of them hatch from their eggs and are carried by the currents to the continental coasts of Europe and North Africa. Once they reach the mouth of a river, the male larvae settle there (preferring brackish water environments). The females, on the other hand, undertake a very long journey, going up rivers and streams until they settle somewhere where they will remain for several years. Then, one autumn, the time will come to swim backwards - now much larger and sexually mature - the same way in order to reach the males and reproduce. How they manage to find them is not clear, and even more surprising is what comes next: the crossing of the ocean so lay their eggs in the Sargasso Sea.
A scheme of eels major routes. Click here if interested in more details
Transformations
These funny fish (not at all skilled swimmers) prepare meticulously for their final journey, which will take them back to the same places where their lives started. They lose their greenish colour and take on a silvery sheen to camouflage themselves, they develop eyes suitable for seeing through ocean darkness, they accumulate reserve fat and their metabolism adapts to survive in salt water. Once the task is completed, the mothers die. While the small larvae begin a new cycle, letting themselves be carried away by the currents and, according to some, settling down in the exact same places where their parents grew up.
What do eels have to do with
this blog?
I think this animal represents a specific type of person, very similar to what I am. He or she is an adventurous migrant. A seemingly aimless wanderer, who will often stop along the way and explore the most diverse environments. But like all migratory animals (including humans), one day the wanderer will wish to return home. Remembering and tracing back the places where he has once set foot, he will return to his origins. I like to think that he loves his "native water" very much and that it is precisely the desire to return to it that drives him throughout his titanic journey. Moreover, he is a deeply instinctive animal, he listens to the changes taking place inside and around him and leaves at the right moment, following the rhythms of life.
Go beyond the surface
From its habits as a shy, nocturnal, solitary animal, suitable for humid and marshy environments, one could deduce that this is a slimy, sad and grumpy "misanthrope" hermit. To make it short, a sort of Gollum from the Lord of the Rings. But that this is not the case, eels can also be joyful and of very good company. It is its biological needs to determine its habits and to outline this superficial portrait, but observe the sinuous dance of an eel in love (if you happen to do so) or more simply continue reading the lines of this blog: It may be that you’ll realize to have something in common with this wandering eel; or it may be that its stories will move some emotions within you or that they will take you far away with your imagination; who knows, it might even happen that you may draw something useful from it in case you’ll decide to put your boots on and hit the road as well.
Author’s note
There are no particular rules concerning the form and the contents of this blog. These are excerpts from a travel diary, written first of all for myself and made public so that they can also be read by eyes other than mine.
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| A drawing of a eel from sealifeart.co.uk |
