Large leech half a meter long (6 photos)

Leeches are distributed almost throughout the world, and the largest of them is the Amazonian klepsin. She has impressive dimensions and knows how to hide well.







Amazonian clepsin, or as biologists call it Haementeria ghilianii, can reach 45 cm in length and 10 cm in width. Due to its size, it is listed in the Guinness Book of Records. Although it is worth noting that such individuals are rare, usually 30-35 cm.

You can meet her if you go on vacation to the Amazon River basin, as well as to the French department of Guiana or Venezuela, where she hides under stones or leaves that have fallen to the bottom.

The body of this not the most pleasant creature in the world, structurally no different from other species, is divided into two parts, front and back. Both parts have suction cups with which the leech moves and attaches itself to its victim. But it swims with wave-like movements like a snake.

Mouth. Where is her mouth?

Like other species, the mouth of this leech is located in the anterior sucker and is connected to a retractable pharynx. Therefore, it is classified as a species of proboscis, and not jawed leeches, in which the pharynx is static and has moving chitinous jaws.



The proboscis of this leech can protrude up to 15 cm in length, so it can easily pierce the skin and reach large blood vessels from which it can easily suck blood.



Young individuals, as a rule, hunt amphibians, but adults are able to feast on caiman, anaconda and, if they are lucky, a cow or other cattle that came to drink.



Not averse to feasting on human blood; several individuals are capable of drying up a person. Moreover, the victim may not even notice this, since at the moment of the bite a secret is released from the glands that blocks the pain; in some types of leeches it is poisonous and can even immobilize the victim.



The circulatory system of the Amazonian clepsin consists of coelomic canals through which colorless blood flows, and only in jawed species does it have the usual red color due to hemoglobin dissolved in the lymph.

Many people assume that our guest and other leeches do not have eyes, but I want to disappoint you, they do exist, and their number depends on the specific species. Our bloodsucker has only one pair of eyes, while others may have as many as 5 pairs.

How dangerous are leeches besides their size?

Some suggest that the bite of any leech is beneficial. We were convinced of this opinion by the healers of the Middle Ages, who actively used them in the treatment of almost all diseases.

But not all of them are so harmless. For example, the Nile leech cannot bite through the thick skin of domestic animals or humans, and therefore crawls into their bronchi and urinary tract. Which naturally leads to the death of the victim, since the leech, having sucked blood, increases in size and blocks the trachea, after which suffocation occurs. Or it can transmit a disease, such as hirudinosis.



Therefore, only medical types can be used for medicinal purposes, and each country has its own. In Europe they use the species - hirudo medicinalis, in Asia this species is - hirudo ceylonica, in Latin America doctors use - hirudinaria manillen, in the USA they use the species - macrobdella decora.

In addition, after a leech bite, due to the secretion, which, as you remember, is released during the bite, you can bleed, as it prevents clotting. The Amazonian clepsin, like some other species, having eaten well, may not eat for two whole years in the absence of prey. But if a victim appears on the horizon, the Amazonian klepsin will never miss the chance to stick its proboscis into it, even if it is a fish or a snake. The blood in her stomach, due to the secretion that you remember, does not clot for 1.5 months.