In November 2020, an American engineer, Sam M. While taking a photo outdoors off the Coast of Delaware, David inadvertently snapped a strange picture.
Davis initially thought that a snake or eel had bitten the neck of the great blue heron, and wanted to see if the "snake" would let go.
But Davis followed all the way, and did not find that the "snake" was loose, but it kept attaching to the big blue heron, and also arched its body. And the big blue heron also landed on the surface of the water with the "snake".
But is this really the case? It wasn't until Davis went home to edit the photos that he suddenly realized that it was not the "snake" that had bitten the great blue heron, but an American eel that had been eaten by the great blue heron, which had emerged from the body of the great blue heron.
If we look closely at the photos, we will find that it is indeed the head of the American eel that has been hanging outside the body of the great blue heron. So how did the American eel emerge from the body of the Great Blue Heron?
There was once a paper on how snake eels burrowed their guts in fish that preyed on them, which might be an inspiration to us, because snake eels belong to the order Eels.
It has been described in the paper that once the snake eel is ingested by a fish, its hard head or tail will pierce the digestive tract of the predator and then burrow into the body cavity, muscle or swim bladder of the predator.
But in general, the snake eel cannot run out, and can only be sealed in the body of the predator like a mummy, and eventually ends up with the predator. Because this situation is particularly similar to roundworm parasitism within the parasite, this situation is also called "pseudo-parasitism".
Let's look at the American eel, which also has a sharp head. Then the great blue heron is likely to be pierced by the sharp head of the American eel, piercing the digestive tract, neck muscles and skin, like a scene where an alien body breaks out of the host's body.
It's just that the American eel is stuck for some reason and can only be hung outside the body.
As for the ending of the American eel and the great blue heron, Davis did not film it, but found a fox on the shore, quietly observing the movement of the strange combination.
When Davis left the shore, the big blue heron was still flying around like a man, and the American eel was still hanging under it.
So what will be the outcome of this strange combination? Will the fox take the opportunity to eat them? If the American eel falls inadvertently, will the Great Blue Heron heal its wounds and continue to live? As for the American eel, if it falls in the right water, it is estimated that there is still a chance of survival, and if it falls in the unsuitable water, it can only be a dead end.
