“So this is all we are, lunch! Goodbye krill world.”
Bill and Will the krill from Happy Feet 2
Krill are basically just fish. In fact, the word ‘krill’ comes from a Norwegian word meaning fish. The Soviet Army ate them for decades in cans like sardines, or tuna, and they’re still feed to fish in fish farms today; everyone knows that big fish eat small fish.
Okay, so krill definitely aren’t fish. Sorry to confuse all of you, but I decided that if I didn’t grossly over simply things, you’d all stop reading immediately… yes, that means you can stop reading now. Stopped? Good.
Antarctic krill are a type of zooplankton that gathers in large swarms of individuals, often at great depths in the ocean. Each grow to about two inches, live “up to six years” according to Wikipedia (wrong!!!!) and can lay about 10,000 eggs… well, the females can.
What does this mean in human terms? Firstly, krill can eat up to 20% of their bodyweight every day- equivalent to roughly two thousand carrot sticks for your average Aussie bloke. And that’s what we’d all be eating, right?
Also, krill can swarm in densities of between 10,000 and 30,000 individuals per cubic metre. For lack of a better comparison, that’s the same as the entire population of Australia fitting into the space of three maths classrooms. Wouldn’t we all love that?
Antarctic krill are so cool (pun intended) they have no need for human analogies. They can undergo reverse puberty, changing from adult forms to children again. They can survive without eating for 200 days- and I bet you can’t guess how to tell when a krill is hungry. You look at how big its eyes are! When unfed, a krill’s body shrinks after moulting, except for its eyes, which remain the same size- so, if you find a krill with oversized cartoon eyes, all it really wants is a trip to KFC.
Do you know what the oldest krill was called? His name was Alan. He was kept by one of the world’s leading krill scientists (yes, there is more than one) in a tank on his desk for nine long years, until he sadly slipped away. Alan was already fully grown when he was caught, making him an estimated eleven years of age at his passing- over five times the previous recorded age of krill in the wild! One day, Alan was having his water changed when suddenly a chance presented itself: he made a desperate dash for freedom, and escaped! Alan was last seen going down a drain…
One last fact I can’t help but mention is how wonderfully good krill is for you- like miraculously good… like unbelievably, mind-bendingly, crazily good. One U.S Patent for an enzyme extracted from krill claims it can cure athletes foot, four skin infections, eye infections, gum infections, HIV, cancer, herpes, eczema, baldness, diarrhea etc. etc. I think you get the point.
The total weight of all krill on earth is double that of humans. Swarms of krill are visible from space. They sustain entire marine ecosystems without which both you and I wouldn’t be here. So maybe- just maybe- you should give them a second thought every once in a while.
Photo source: https://media.spokesman.com/photos/2013/06/29/Krill_rg29.jpg
