It sounds like the script for a new horror movie. A sixteen year old boy was in the habit of paddling about in the sea to relieve the ache in his feet from playing a hard football game in the afternoon. This was just after sundown and the venue was the bay in the city of Melbourne.
He comments that his feet felt " itchy " but he thought nothing of it, until he emerged from the water and noticed that his feet and lower legs were covered in blood - and he left a bloody trail as he crossed the beach. What was alarming was that this bleeding continued unabated and his family rushed him to hospital.
The medical staff found that he had been bitten by a host of tiny creatures which were evidently carnivores. They ranged in size from half a centimetre to one centimetre long and it appears that their bite injects some sort of anti coagulant into their victim, with the result that the bleeding continues long after biting ceases. It is somewhat similar to the actions of a leech in drawing blood.
The immediate diagnosis was that these were sea lice, but the scientific community has quickly discounted that opinion with the revelation that these are sea fleas. They are common in most Australian waters and the only unusual aspect is that they were present in huge numbers when this unfortunate boy encountered them.
Sea fleas are scavengers which play an important role in cleaning the sea floor. They prey on the carcass of any dead creature that sinks to the ocean bottom and they are particularly prevalent at night, to avoid fish predators. They adapt to both cold and warm water temperatures and no reason could be given for the intensity of their numbers on this particular occasion, beyond the possibility that they might have been feeding on some form of dead animal and the boy disturbed them by passing nearby.
No doubt some people will have visions of the South American Piranha fish that goes into a feeding frenzy when it tastes blood in the water. Vast schools of these fish have been known to reduce an animal as big as a horse to bare bones in a matter of minutes. Humans have been known to swim safely amongst them - provided they have no cuts or injuries that may leak the slightest trace of blood. It is possible that the Melbourne boy may have had a small scratch from his football game that instigated this attack.
The curious may investigate sea fleas by immersing a piece of raw steak in the sea. It will quickly attract some of these little creatures and they will immediately start to devour it. That is not a reason to cease swimming in the ocean, but it is a good reason to avoid entering the water after dark. The wise would also not enter the water at any time that they have any sort of injury that is seeping blood.
No comments:
Post a Comment