For many years, scientists have requested an attention-grabbing query about leeches: Can they leap? Whereas the thought of leaping on leeches could appear to be the stuff of nightmares — I nonetheless cannot neglect these terrifying spiders — scientists have really confirmed that these tiny blood-sucking creatures can really leap after their prey. That is additionally an attention-grabbing discovery and raises extra questions on these long-studied worms.
Now we have anecdotal proof that leeches can leap for hundreds of years. Nevertheless, it wasn’t till researcher Mai Fahmy captured a video of a leech leaping from a leaf that many thought of the issue “confirmed.” This specific conduct is named “looking,” and happens when the leech searches for its subsequent host.
Footage of the leaping leech was posted as a part of A new piece of research Introduced in Biotropica. Fahmy says she spent a number of years accumulating and finding out leeches. It’s nonetheless not clear whether or not all leeches leap or solely sure species, e.g Shtonobdella fallax– Which is proven within the video.
In fact, leaping is not precisely what you anticipate while you first hear about it. Leeches do not actually dart via the air like a basketball participant throwing a slam dunk. As a substitute, they flip round after which launch themselves removed from their present footing.
Typically, this happens from leaves excessive above their subsequent meal, giving them a singular vantage level to seek for their subsequent host. It’s the vertical searching nature of the worms that has led many to consider that it has landed on its host. However, based mostly on the video and this new analysis, it seems that a minimum of some leaping leeches do not merely depend on gravity to do the job.
Fahmi plans to return to Madagascar, the place she took the video, to check leeches in additional depth and study extra in regards to the mysterious worms that performed an vital function in early medical endeavours.
