With all of the hurt and devastation being felt around the world right now, it is easy to forget about how these troubling times are being felt by some of God’s simpler creatures. No, not Paris Hilton! I’m talking about eels! One aquarium in Japan has actually been taking notice of its resident eels and noticing that, because of the coronavirus and its effect on audience attendance, the poor things are beginning to forget that humans exist. I mean, would that be the worst thing ever?
Having been closed since early March, the Sumida Aquarium in Tokyo is pleading with people to call in and video-chat with eels, who are actually starting to take notice of the overwhelming absence of people. That aquarium’s remaining staff members will field the calls and then place tablet screens around the eel enclosure to remind them about us people. via Yahoo!
In a bid to reacquaint the eels with humans, the aquarium is setting up five tablets facing the tank housing the delicate creatures, with eel enthusiasts asked to connect through iPhones or iPads via the FaceTime app.
Once the video calls start, people are supposed to show their faces, wave and talk to the eels. But given the tender nature of the animals, callers are asked not to shout.
The “face-showing festival” is scheduled for May 3-5, at the height of Japan’s Golden Week holiday period, when many people usually travel. This Golden Week however, people have been asked to stay at home while the country remains under a state of emergency over the coronavirus.
The aquarium’s plea has attracted plenty of support, under the Japanese hashtag #PleaseRememberHumans.
Apparently, this specific garden eel type has a very sensitive nature, and the aquarium’s lot are beginning to get spooked whenever someone walks by their tank.
“Garden eels, in particular, disappear into the sand and hide every time the keepers pass by,” the aquarium reports.
あ、あれ
水槽に近づくと…#チンアナゴ #休館中に起こった出来事 #水槽に近寄るだけで隠れちゃう #休園中の動物園水族館 pic.twitter.com/QZWNNmcGxe
— すみだ水族館【公式】 (@Sumida_Aquarium) April 3, 2020
水槽に近づくと…
So, any good samaritans out there interested in FaceTimeing with some lonely, slippery snakes, feel free to call in. The aquarium has also asked that, in addition to showing face, virtual visitors also wave and chat with the eels, but don’t yell at their asses! Calls will last a maximum of 5 minutes each. via Lifehacker
If you want to Facetime these eels (and, yes, you’ll need the Facetime app on iOS), the aquarium is asking that you do so during May 3-5, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tokyo time. Because of the time zone difference, those of us in the US will be watching in the evening. So that’s May 2-4, 9 p.m. to 1 a.m. Eastern US time, or 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. Pacific.
Keepers are setting up five screens surrounding the eel tank, so you can call in to any of these five accounts:
helpchin001@gmail.com
helpchin002@gmail.com,
helpchin003@gmail.com
helpchin004@gmail.com
helpchin005@gmail.com
Isn’t that sweet? Eels are lonely and looking for companionship. I’ve been ghosted 8 times this week by some of my Tinder matches, but at least EELS are thinking about me!
Pic: Twitter