Wednesday, September 19, 2018

Crawfish invade Japan !!!!












Male Anchor: Crayfish are devastating. And in many cases, they have already spread so much that they can no longer be contained.   


Female Anchor: One type of crayfish found in Japanese lakes and rivers is gaining attention both as an invader and a culinary delight. NHK's World Yao Xinru reports





Reporter: Lake Akan in Eastern Hokkaido  is a popular tourist destination.  I




Reporter: It's also a large breeding ground for s species known as Signal Crayfish. 



Reporter: Originally from North America, it was introduced in Japan in the 1920s. Over the following decade, Signal Crayfish multiplied so rapidly, that they became a threat to local ecosystems.  




Reporter: Lake Akan is home to a large colony of algae called Marimo.  The green mossy balls are a protected species.   



Reporter: But, unfortunately, they're also on the menu of Signal Crayfish and that's causing concern.  


  


Reporter: In 2006, Japan designated Signal Crayfish as an invasive alien species that needs to be eradicated.  

Reporter: In some areas of Hokkaido they multiply so much that farmers have been using them as fertilizer.  




Reporter: But on Lake Akan Signal Crayfish have become the rising star of the local fishing industry.  Sales have surged by fifty percent over the past year.   



Fisherman / Yuichi Nakai : I don't know why demand is rising so much but we get a lot of orders from Chinese restaurants.  



Reporter: Many of the orders come from the district of Ikebukuro in Tokyo

Reporter: It's known to have a booming Chinese community.  



Reporter: And the Chinese happen to be very fond of crayfish.  This restaurant buys about 40 kilograms from Lake Akan every month.  
























Restaurant customer eating crayfish: Delicious!














Restaurant Owner / Fei Zhentong : Signal Crayfish from Lake Akan is so fresh.













Restaurant Owner: We're selling about twice as much as last year.  Between Monday and Sunday alone we sold 20 kilograms.

Reporter: The Japanese are slowly discovering the culinary merits of Signal Crayfish.














Reporter: One could think that's good news for efforts to eradicate the species.  But authorities see it more as a double edged sword.















Wildlife Division, Nature Conservation Bureau Ministry of the Environment / Yoshiaki Kitahashi : It's alright to eat or sell crayfish to exterminate them. But if people start viewing them  as a sustainable resource they won't be happy once the numbers start dwindling because it will be bad for business.  Another possibility is that people will start moving crayfish to other lakes to create new fishing grounds.  We need to make sure that doesn't happen.

Reporter: Authorities are already observing new cases of invasion across Japan but they have yet to take concrete action. 















Reporter: In the meantime, environmental groups are trying to raise public awareness

















Young boy holding crayfish: I caught this one

Reporter: For the past seven years events like this one [crayfish river cull] have been taking place every summer in the Fukushima Prefecture. 














Reporter: Families are invited to catch, cook, and eat  crayfish on the spot as a way of protecting the ecosystem.  And organizers say it's already making a difference.
















Koji Nagaoka / Director, Urabandai Ecotourism Society: After several years, we're starting to see fireflies again.






[If there IS an inverse correlation between crayfish and firefly populations, that either means the crayfish are eating the fireflies OR the crayfish are outcompeting the fireflies for a common food source - the aforementioned mossy algae balls]


Japanese Hippy / Koji: ...and some species of fish that had almost disappeared are making a comeback.    Now it's quite clear to us that eradicating crayfish allows the environment to replenish itself.


Reporter: Over fishing is leading species to extinction.  But in the case of Signal Crayfish, that's precisely what conservationists are counting on. Yao Xinru NHK World Hokkaido








Male Anchor: Uhm...I used to catch crayfish by the dozens when I was a kid but [suck in breath] I  didn't imagine eating them like that

Female Anchor: Yeah,  me neither, well according to the crew who filmed this it tastes like crab [no, not chicken] I guess you and I should try some Signal Crayfish [laughs]

Male Anchor: One day [meaning never]  


I forgot to add lemon 🍋 and pepper 🌶️ emojis for the below tweet
























From "The Beverly Hillies" "Robin Hood and the Sheriff"  Se6Ep5





Granny: Where are you honey?



Cop 1: Man, those hippies do get into some weird outfits!

Cop 2: I've heard of the flower children, but that one's gone to seed!

Banker Drysdale: That's Granny!  She can identify me! Her family has $60 million in my bank!

Cop 2: [incredulously] Really?

Drysdale: It was $70 million but they spent $10 million on their English castle. 

Cop 2: You're going to like those wet sheets [ I guess something akin to straight jacket for a mental patient]

Granny: [Speaking to Drsydale, mistaking him for Jethro] Jethro! You rascal, you! I'm going to....[realizes her mistake] Mr. Drysdale! 

Drysdale: You see? She's no hippy! She's as normal as I am! 

Cop 2: [condescendingly] Do you want to come with us, granny?

Granny: I can't! I'm going down to the lake to smoke some crawdads! 

Cop 1: Smoke some what?

Granny: [slowly] CRAWDADS! But first, I need a little pot! 


[cops pick up Granny and Drysdale runs away]

Granny: Hey! Put me down!



[Hippies singing and dancing by the lake]


Hippy Leader: Quiet comrades! Quiet! Here comes our glorious leader [speaking of Jethro] He is not empty handed! So, Robin red pants does yon sack contain crawdads?




Jethro: It sure does! Got fifteen of the rascals! Big uns, too! 

Hippy Leader: Cool it, group. Cool it. Guy of Gisborne will be first to set sail on Moon River.

Jethro: Be careful, now. They's grabbers! 

Hippy: Grab me, baby, grab me! [puts hand into sack and gets pinched by crawdad]



Hippy: Yeow! 


Jethro: See? I told ya! 

Hippy: That thing's alive! 

Jethro: Sure!

Hippy: You smoke those?

Jethro: All the time! Gotta match?

Hippy:  You're too far out for us! Come on flower children! Back to squaresville - to Sunset Strip! 

Jethro: Wait! Y'all are my Merry Men! 



Hippy Chick / Stella: We're not that merry, Robby

Jethro: Hey, are you going, too, Stella?

Hippy Chick: Yeah, but you write to me....next time you're flying among the stars....let me know what Spring is like on Jupiter and Mars

[back to cops holding Granny]

Granny: Put me down!


[cops see hippies running in front of them]



Cop 1: Did you see that?

Cop 2: Yeah, must have been 15-20 hippies!

Cop 1: Should we hold onto this one or go after them?

Cop 2: Let's do it the easy way. Let's go get the twenty hippies


More Frank Sinatra "Fly Me to the Moon"






And more The Peppermint Trolley Company hippy singing


Posted by adagioforstrings at 8:34:00 AM
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