Good news comes again from the Yangtze River Basin! When scientific workers were conducting field inspections in the Fuhe area on the outskirts of the city of Xiaogan, they unexpectedly discovered a mysterious species - the giant catfish. It is reported that this is the area north of the Yangtze River. After a lapse of 10 years, it was found again. Anchovy appears. Previously, scientists had believed that the anchovy north of the Yangtze River had long been partially extinct.
Therefore, although only one anchovy was found in Xiaogan this time, it is still good news. This means that with the implementation of the fishing ban in the Yangtze River, the population of anchovy has also begun to slowly recover in the Yangtze River. .
So, what exactly is "anchovy"? What's the mystery about it?
Anchovy is a migratory bony fish . They look very similar to anchovies. However, unlike anchovy, which is a very ferocious fish, anchovy has a very gentle temperament.
Their bodies are slender, their heads are small, their tail fins are clearly bifurcated, and their ends are very pointed. Their abdomens are silvery white, and a yellow-green vertical band can be seen on both sides of their bodies. Because the color is lighter, they don’t look special. obvious.
In the Yangtze River Basin of my country and major waters in the south, anchovy used to be a very common fish. From April to June every year, they would enter the breeding season. After the small fish hatch, From July to September, they will leave rivers and go to lakes to fatten and overwinter in lakes. Their growth rate is very slow. Generally, the maximum adult weight is only about 2 kilograms. Occasionally, you can see individual anchovy weighing 20 kilograms. , however, such situations are extremely rare.
This time, a catfish was found in Xiaogan. Its body length is about 33cm. This is actually the length of an average catfish, and it was also the most popular catfish that people caught in the past.
It can also be seen from here that although the anchovy is mysterious and endangered now, in the past, their number was also very large. This also means that the endangered anchovy is not because of too many natural enemies, but because of the differences between species. It was eliminated by ecological competition and was instead eaten to extinction by humans. This also led to the belief that it is now rare to see the anchovy, which makes the anchovy become extremely mysterious.
So, how did humans eat the anchovy to extinction?
The older generation of fishermen said that in the middle and late part of the last century, the number of anchovies was still very large, especially in Poyang Lake. In the past, there were swarms of anchovies. However, now, there are only a few in Poyang Lake. But it has been 10 years since we found another anchovy.
Judging from the data, anchovy was once a key economic fish in the Yangtze River Basin of my country in the last century. Because it is delicious and gathers in groups, it is very easy to catch. This also led to the Every year, fishermen catch more than 20 tons of anchovy. Of course, the fishermen at that time never thought that such large-scale fishing would one day cause the anchovy to become a "mysterious species."
Until the end of the 1980s, on the one hand, it was due to man-made fishing, and on the other hand, the water conservancy projects in the Yangtze River Basin also brought a devastating blow to many migratory fishes. Anchovy It's one of them.
After that, the number of anchovies caught every year became less and less. In sharp contrast to a few decades ago, local extinctions also occurred in many places. At this time, people realized that it might never be possible again. No more anchovies to eat.
Of course, not being able to eat the anchovy is not the most important thing. What really makes people worry is that after 2010, the anchovy, along with many other fishes, gradually disappeared from people’s eyes. This also means that , the biological diversity of the Yangtze River Basin has been destroyed along with the disappearance of many species.
Therefore, in the past 10 years or so, many places where there were originally a large number of anchovy have also begun to conduct fishery resource surveys to look for the anchovy. Because anchovy is a social fish, if there is a fish in a place, The reappearance of anchovy in the waters actually means that the local ecological environment is recovering, and the anchovy is also recuperating here.
Therefore, scientists were very excited that the anchovy was once again discovered in the basin north of the Yangtze River. They believed that this sent a good signal and proved that the Yangtze River fishing ban was indeed effective. It is believed that it will last for 10 years. After the fishing ban ends in 2019, it is possible that many species that have disappeared for many years can be found in the Yangtze River.
For example, in addition to the anchovy, many scientists are now looking forward to the reappearance of the "Yangtze River White Sturgeon". Because in 2020, the Yangtze River white sturgeon has been declared extinct. However, because internationally, extinct species have reappeared after 20-30 years in many places. Therefore, our country Scholars also believe that maybe in a few years, the Yangtze River paddlefish will be found again.
After all, many species live in deep water areas. If the number is very rare, it will be extremely difficult to find surviving individuals scattered in the Yangtze River. Therefore, we can only search slowly. , so, friends, in your opinion, is it possible to find multiple extinct species in the Yangtze River? Welcome to leave a message and tell us your opinions!
