- Feb 5, 2002
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Running under the lights of a seemingly endless corridor of neon-lit advertising boards through a dense urban area of 2.7 million inhabitants, the Dotonbori River, was described as having the water quality of a “toilet bowl.”
Yet this icon of urban Japan hides a slithery secret—a surprisingly robust population of one of the country’s most beloved fish—the Anguilla japonica or Japanese eel.
Last year, the Mainichi—the oldest English daily paper in Japan, partnered with the Research Institute of Environment, Agriculture and Fisheries in the Osaka Prefecture to conduct a study on the population of eels in the Dotonbori River.
They fished up 11 individuals, which was the first time eels had ever been caught in the river under scientific observation. Three now reside at Osaka Biodiversity Research Center to help educate Osakans on the Umi no sachi or “treasures of the sea” that reside in their river.
“The institute says the study confirmed that crabs and other creatures the eels feed on also live in the river, making it a full-fledged ecosystem,” the Mainichi reports.
DNA analysis on some of the captured eels showed they probably migrated into the river from the seas surrounding Osaka.
During the extensive economic development in the post-war period, the Dotonbori was filled with pollution, but saw improvements during the 1980s after the introduction of sluice gates.
The river flows through the Minami Entertainment District, the very heart of urban life in Osaka. In fact, the eels were caught just a quarter-mile from the Ebisu Bridge, a popular tourist spot and the customary location for late-night celebrations following victories by the Osaka baseball team, the Hanshin Tigers.
Continued below.
www.goodnewsnetwork.org
Yet this icon of urban Japan hides a slithery secret—a surprisingly robust population of one of the country’s most beloved fish—the Anguilla japonica or Japanese eel.
Last year, the Mainichi—the oldest English daily paper in Japan, partnered with the Research Institute of Environment, Agriculture and Fisheries in the Osaka Prefecture to conduct a study on the population of eels in the Dotonbori River.
They fished up 11 individuals, which was the first time eels had ever been caught in the river under scientific observation. Three now reside at Osaka Biodiversity Research Center to help educate Osakans on the Umi no sachi or “treasures of the sea” that reside in their river.
“The institute says the study confirmed that crabs and other creatures the eels feed on also live in the river, making it a full-fledged ecosystem,” the Mainichi reports.
DNA analysis on some of the captured eels showed they probably migrated into the river from the seas surrounding Osaka.
During the extensive economic development in the post-war period, the Dotonbori was filled with pollution, but saw improvements during the 1980s after the introduction of sluice gates.
The river flows through the Minami Entertainment District, the very heart of urban life in Osaka. In fact, the eels were caught just a quarter-mile from the Ebisu Bridge, a popular tourist spot and the customary location for late-night celebrations following victories by the Osaka baseball team, the Hanshin Tigers.
Continued below.
Japanese Eels Found Living in Polluted River are Shining Example of Resilience
The institute says the study confirmed that crabs and other creatures the eels feed on also live in the river, making it a whole ecosystem.
www.goodnewsnetwork.org
