Thousands of Eels Swept Away by Stream Flooding
"Horrific Scene... Farm Also Suffered Damage"
Thousands of freshwater eels were killed in a mass die-off caused by river flooding in New Zealand. The dead eels were swept all the way to a nearby farm.
According to local media such as Radio New Zealand (RNZ) on the 23rd (local time), thousands of eel carcasses were found on a private farm in the Canterbury region of New Zealand on the 21st. Most of the freshwater eels were already dried up and dead, and the blackened bodies were piled together, covering the area around the farm.
Farm owner Tim Samson told the media, "There was a stream nearby where eels migrate during spawning," explaining the situation at the time, "The stream overflowed into the farm during high tide, causing the mass of eels to be swept in."
Freshwater eels overflowing onto the land due to the flooding of the stream [Image source=Yonhap News]
Samson's farm is crossed by a stream extending from nearby Lake Ellesmere. Every year, freshwater eels use the stream as a passage for spawning, but during high tide, the water level rises and the stream floods into the farm, causing the eels to spill onto the land.
Samson claimed that the flooding was due to "a seawall at the coast having been broken for a year," adding, "The local authorities could have prevented this if they had taken action."
As a result, the farm reportedly suffered significant damage. Samson lamented, "The sight of the eel mass covering the farm was truly horrific," and added, "Seawater came in and damaged the farm. Saltwater almost entered the house."
Samson rescued hundreds of eels rolling on the land by scooping them into buckets and releasing them back into the sea, but it was impossible to save the thousands of eels in the mass. He said, "We should never let living creatures die like this," adding, "It must have been a feast day for the seagulls."
The Canterbury regional government also deployed officials to return the eels to the water's edge, and volunteers helped clean up the eel carcasses on the farm.
A local councilor in charge of the site inspection explained, "This is one of the natural phenomena that occur around this time of year when freshwater eels migrate to the sea," and added, "It happened due to the tides and differences in water levels."
He emphasized, "We will assign dedicated staff in the future to ensure that private properties suffer as little damage as possible."
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