Mysterious species - "Anchovy" appears?
Recently, according to media reports, researchers from Xiaogan City, Hubei Province discovered an extremely rare fish - anchovy during an inspection in a suburban river. It is reported that researchers once believed that the anchovy may have been partially extinct, especially in areas north of the Yangtze River, where it is difficult to see the anchovy. After 10 years, anchovy reappeared in the Yangtze River Basin, which also means that the 10-year fishing ban in the Yangtze River is effective. As soon as the news came out, it also aroused heated discussion on the Internet. Many netizens said: This measure to ban fishing is correct. Do you think it is effective? However, if we want the Yangtze River Basin to completely restore its previous ecological environment, we must continue to adhere to this approach. Seeing this, some people may wonder: Why is it so difficult for us to see anchovy nowadays? And what does the sudden appearance of the anchovy mean?
Before answering the above questions, let’s first understand the anchovy. Anchovy is a type of bony fish. It is slender in shape, with a length between 30 and 60 centimeters. Its abdomen is silvery white, and there is a light yellow and green longitudinal belt on both sides of the body. The tail fin of anchovy is deeply bifurcated, but some otter fish have no forks or even only one tail, so the anchovy is also known as the "one-tailed fish". In addition, anchovy has a migratory habit. From April to June every year, it will swim to river rapids to spawn and reproduce. From July to September, they will swim back to lakes to fatten. Anchovy was once widely distributed in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River, generally feeding on small fish, shrimps and aquatic insects. It was a predator in the Yangtze River.
Why is it so difficult for us to see anchovy now?
According to the discoverer of the anchovy this time, the anchovy is 33 centimeters long and has been preserved and made into a specimen. In fact, there have been reports of anchovy being discovered in other areas in the past two years, but this is the first time that anchovy has been discovered north of the Yangtze River in the past ten years. To a certain extent, it shows that the ban on fishing in the Yangtze River has played a certain role, but it will take a long time for the entire Yangtze River basin ecology to be fully restored. But then again, why is it so difficult for us to see anchovy now?
In the 1970s, anchovy was one of the key economic fish species in the Yangtze River Basin of my country. Anchovy has a high nutritional value and its meat is delicious, so it has become a delicacy on people's tables. In addition, the price of anchovy is higher than other fish, so it was once wildly fished by fishermen. According to data, in the early 1970s, the annual catch of anchovy and other migratory fish reached more than 260,000 tons, but by the 1980s, the catch of these fish dropped to 200,000 tons. However, overfishing is only one reason for the drastic decline in anchovy populations.
On the other hand, the water conservancy construction in the Yangtze River Basin has also brought a devastating blow to migratory fish. Due to the obstruction of migration, migratory fish are facing a difficult survival dilemma. After entering 2010, the annual catch of migratory fish has been less than 100,000 tons, and the anchovy has long disappeared. This also reminds people from the side that the ecology of the Yangtze River has been severely damaged. Therefore, after a combination of multiple investigations, the relevant departments of our country decided to implement a 10-year fishing ban on the Yangtze River. Some people may ask, why does the period of ban on fishing in the Yangtze River last for ten years?
Why does the Yangtze River fishing ban last for ten years?
In this regard, researchers said that in fact, this is not a randomly determined cycle. There are 350 species of fish in the Yangtze River Basin, including silver carp, bighead carp and other migratory fish. The growth cycle of these fish usually takes about 4 years to reproduce. A 10-year ban on fishing in the Yangtze River will at least ensure that these fish species reproduce for more than two generations, which will help restore the overall ecological environment of the Yangtze River basin.
With the emergence of anchovy, this also shows that the measure of banning fishing is correct. So can we find other missing fish? In fact, the reason why the anchovy discovered by scientific researchers this time has aroused heated discussion is that on the one hand, the anchovy has reappeared in front of the public after 10 years, and on the other hand, it proves that the ecological environment of the Yangtze River is gradually recovering, which means that there is You may find other fish species that have been missing for many years.For example, the Yangtze River White Sturgeon, known as the "Tiger in the Water", was declared extinct in 2020. As a unique fish in the Yangtze River Basin of my country, its extinction is definitely a great loss to our country. However, extinct species have appeared in many places abroad, which shows that the Yangtze River paddlefish may reappear in front of people in a few years or decades.
The Yangtze River Basin is an area with very rich biological populations, and the ten-year fishing ban has had significant effects. However, we still need to continue to increase the protection of the Yangtze River ecosystem so that it can return to its previous state. What do you think about this? Welcome to leave a message under the comments to discuss.
