In 1957, the Natural History Museum in London declared the River Thames biologically ‘dead’. He described it as a «stinky sewer.» During World War II, constant bombing completely destroyed the Victorian sewer system that had kept the water flowing clean. For this reason and being in the middle of a big city, the river began to flood with pollution that finally ended all life. But nowadays The River Thames has gone through a revival process, little by little the fauna begins to return and now it has surprisingly been the home of poisonous sharks.
Life flourishes again in the River Thames
Nature always finds ways to recover when left alone. The River Thames is one more example of natural resilience and is now a much more interesting ecosystem than previously thought. Seahorses, eels and seal populations have been found that swim through its waters. And recently added to this list a few venomous shark species.
These amazing creatures now inhabit the river that was once destined for extinction. These are two species of sharks known as dogfish and caellain addition to a species of fish about 60 centimeters long called Dogfish. This last species can be found in deeper waters and it has the great peculiarity of being covered by poisonous thorns. In front of its two dorsal fins are these spines that secrete a type of poison that can cause pain and swelling in humans.
The dogfish For its part, it feeds mainly on fish and crustaceans, measuring up to 1.8 meters in length. And although they are impressive specimens, no attacks on humans have been recorded, sharks simply live in the tranquility of the reborn River Thames.
The last of this list of sharks, some poisonous, that have been discovered in the River Thames, is the falls. Species that is also commonly known as toothed musola, can measure up to 1.2 meters in length and weigh about 11 kilograms. Their diet is also mainly based on smaller fish, small mollusks and crustaceans.
Danger in the face of climate change
Although the River Thames seems to have gradually recovered its rich biodiversity, it now faces another challenge; climate change. in the last few months a death has been observed in the fauna that inhabits itso scientists warn about the need to keep the area monitored to know the state of the death and its reasons with greater security.
Thames River
Climate change is known to have been unusually warming bodies of water around the world. The River Thames has also been experiencing increased temperatures which appear to be rising 0.2°C annually. This rise in temperature coupled with the increase in water level at a rate of 4 millimeters per year, can cause the return to life of the river to be undermined.
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