In August of 2014, Tomas Kiellman of the Swedish fishing village of Brantevick invited some friends over for a crayfish party. His guests requested to see Åle, who was a European eel who had lived in the well on Kiellman's property since prior to the purchase of the real estate by Kiellman's father in 1962. Lamentably, Kiellman discovered the corpse of Åle at the bottom of the well, and it smelt pretty bad.
European eels rarely survive past the age of seven, so it is fairly impressive that Åle was at least 52 upon his demise.
However, what is even more impressive is that Åle was actually at least 155 years old when he died. There is ample evidence that Åle was tossed into the well in 1859 by Samuel Nillson, in accordance with the custom in the 19th century for rural Swedes to keep an eel in their drinking water to eat bugs. There is further documentation that Åle was passed down through the several generations of property owners.
In addition, in 1959, the Swedish press reported Åle's 100th birthday. Throughout the years, Åle has often been the subject of various news stories and even a book.
Scientists have opined, based upon the fact that another eel lived to age 85 in an aquarium and that Åle's cold well was probably an ideal locale to practice longevity, that Åle could well have been around when James Buchanan was President. They are examining Åle's remains at the Freshwater Institute in Stockholm to seek further confirmation of his age. Their findings were expected to be available by August 25, 2014, but I have been unable to ascertain whether or not the report was ever released. Something may be a little fishy.
There is another eel in the well on the Kiellman property. However, it is only 110 years old. As all second-born children are aware, it is the first-born who hogs all of the glory and gets all of the attention. This poor guy has been around for over a century and still doesn't even have a name.
The plight of the second born
ReplyDeleteAin't it the truth.
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