Sea dragons: dangerous beauties

2024 Author: Henry Conors | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-02-12 02:47

The amazing and unique world of the underwater kingdom has always aroused interest and excited the imagination of impatient explorers. Indeed, what forms and manifestations of life can not be seen in the thickness of sea waters!

Bottom fish is a dangerous marine life

One of the most interesting specimens of the inhabitants of the seas washing the shores of the European, African, and South American continents is the sea dragon, snake fish or scorpion. Poisonous fish of medium size and weighing about 300 grams has an elongated body shape flattened from the sides, an elongated lower jaw equipped with small but rather sharp teeth, a bright brown-yellow back color with dark intermittent spots and stripes, and a light milky belly.

Sea dragons are in the first row with the most dangerous fish in temperate latitudes. Their name is absolutely consistent with their appearance. The presence of characteristic fins with spikes that have deep grooves, at the base of which there are glands containing poison, gives the fish a very high danger and a dragon appearance. The spikes located on the gill covers and in the first dorsal fin are a formidable weapon that the marinethe dragon launches into action in any danger or on a hunt. The venom of this fish is extremely dangerous and acts like a snake, as its second name, snake fish, reminds of.

Features of behavior

Sea dragons prefer quiet backwaters in shallow bays with muddy or sandy bottoms. Burrowing up to its eyes in soft ground, the fish lies calmly, but jumps out with lightning speed as soon as it sees the approaching prey. The dragon is most active at dusk, it is not visible during the day, and given that he loves the same places as bathers, the danger from meeting him only increases. Even just walking in shallow water, a person runs the risk of getting a portion of poison from the fins if he accidentally steps on a sea dragon.

Lifestyle

In the summer, sea dragons stay within 20 m from sea level, and go to the depths for winter, feeding on fry, small crustaceans, shrimps and crabs. The fish reaches sexual maturity at the age of three. Spawning continues throughout the summer, from June to October. The female dragon during this time is able to sweep up to 73 thousand eggs. On average, its dimensions are from 15 to 20 cm, but there are also giants in their family: specimens 35 - 45 cm long are known.

The sea dragon, the photo of which is presented, has no industrial value, but amateur fishermen often catch this fish, whose meat is very tasty. Catching a dragon, you need to be very careful. Even a dead snake can sting.

Precautions

The poisonous sea dragon can cause serious harm, and to ensure that the rest does not turn into troubles and he alth problems, divers, bathers and tourists should get acquainted with the appearance of these fish and take the necessary precautions:

• should not try to grab a fish with bare hands;
• do not rummage underwater caves, they may hide a sea dragon, the photo of which should first be studied in order to get acquainted with the potential danger;
• walking on the coast at low tide, you need to look under your feet, as these fish do not always have time to leave with water, often remain in wet sand and can be easily stepped on;
• finding a dead dragon, do not touch it with your hands - the poison persists for some time;
• if a fisherman caught a dragon, you should immediately cut off the poisonous spikes.

Injection First Aid

If you still failed to protect yourself from the attack of snake fish, you must, without wasting time, provide the necessary assistance to the victim. A prick of a thorn causes quite painful sensations: the resulting sharp stabbing pains are very painful, a feverish state, accompanied by a rise in temperature, can last from a day to a week. There is an opinion that the poison is destroyed if, immediately after the bite, it is injected with a syringe into the wound with a 5% solution of potassium permanganate. This measure reduces or prevents inflammation and relieves pain, but not always.a first aid kit is at hand.

Experienced fishermen who encounter fin pricks immediately apply a tourniquet above the lesion and suck out the poison by spitting it out. It is advisable to put cold on the injection site and go to the nearest medical institution. Unfortunately, in this case, it is impossible to do without hospitalization. There is no specific antidote for the poison that affects sea dragons. Even morphine does not stop the severe pain, so first aid is very important.

Depending on the depth of the wound and the degree of care provided, it will take a different time to restore he alth: sometimes it takes several days, sometimes more than one month.

Black Sea dragon

An analogue of the famous puffer fish in Russia is one of the eight species of sea dragons that have long and successfully mastered the expanses of the Black Sea, sometimes appearing in

Kerch Strait. It has a low flattened body, with small, tight-fitting scales. The head is decorated with spikes, the most dangerous of which are located on the gills. The two dorsal fins of the dragon, like a magnificent crest, beautiful and dangerous, are at the same time a serious weapon and a visiting card.

Non-industrial, but amazingly tasty, sea dragon is caught by amateur fishermen. The Black Sea keeps large stocks of this amazing sea scorpion - a small owner of a formidable weapon.