Leech

This post has been updated. It was originally published on December 13, 2017. Several years ago, emergency physician Jeremy Joslin found himself overseeing an ultramarathon in the backcountry of Cambodia. Once they’d finished the event, many of the athletes wanted to cool off and noticed an inviting stream nearby. “After a few minutes, the screams started,” says Joslin, who is based at SUNY Upstate Medical University in Syracuse. It was not long before people began hurrying back to camp—along with the multiple leeches that had become attached to their bodies. The next few days were filled with bandage changes and mild bleeding. Leeches sense their prey in a few ways. They are attracted to shadows and disturbances in the water, body heat, and secretions like oil and sweat. Terrestrial leeches, which often perch on foliage while awaiting a meal, also “Anyone that has performed fieldwork in the tropics of Southeast Asia can attest to the aggressiveness of these leeches,” Kvist said in an email. “They need to be able to feed on anything that crosses their path, and they are very active hunters.” Leeches come equipped with two suckers, one of which surrounds their three-jawed mouths. Once a leech fastens onto you, it encourages your blood to keep flowing using anticoagulants in its saliva. Some common aquatic leeches can guzzle nearly 10 times their weight in blood during a single feeding, filling their bellies for a year or more. There are a few situations where leeches might ...

Did you know that some blood-sucking leeches have three jaws in their mouths? Each jaw has a row of fine, sharp teeth. Can you see the fine cuts in the corner photo? The leech made these in the skin of its host by moving its jaws back and forth. Using the muscular outer rim of its mouth, the leech then creates a firm seal around the wound. Now it can suck the blood into its gut. A yummy leech blood meal! • Why doesn't the blood of the host animal clot as the leech is feeding? It's because leech saliva contains anticoagulants, compounds that stop blood from clotting. Humans have long known the value of these anticoagulants and have been using leeches in medicine for over 2000 years. Today, scientists are also studying the anticoagulant of the American Medicinal Leech ( Macrobdella decora) to see if it can be used to treat diseases. • Leeches live in all kinds of environments - in the open ocean, in freshwater, and in humid jungles. To collect leeches for research, scientists travel all over world, including the high mountains of Bolivia and the thick jungles of Madagascar. How do they find leeches? They use themselves as bait! Once the leech is done feeding, it lets go and falls into the collection bag. Image Credits: jaw, Eye of Science / Photo Researchers, Inc.; bite mark, Geoff Tompkinson / Photo Researchers, Inc.; leech feeding on snail, Edward Hendrycks, reproduce courtesy of the Canadian Museum of Nature; leeches before and after blood meal, leeches on foot, American ...

The leech (Hirudinea) is a predator and blood-sucking parasite that is native to almost every continent. This aquatic worm is a member of the Annelida phylum, which means it’s related to the earthworm. Leeches have a bad reputation among humans. We consider them bloodsucking pests and use the term “leech” as an insult. Most of them don’t attack humans, however, and many don’t depend on blood as their main diet. In ancient times, they were used medicinally. Today, doctors use medical leeches to clean delicate tissue during surgery. Have you ever been out hiking in a damp area, or gone fishing in some wetlands, and later that day discovered a leech attached to your lower leg? It would leave more than a couple of folks screaming for help, while others may just shrug it off–then pull it off. So how would you wind up with a leech attached to one of your extremities in the first place? Where do leeches live? Read on to learn more about these intriguing invertebrates, including the answer to that burning question. ©A-Z-Animals.com 5 Amazing Leeches Facts! • They have 10 eyes, but they have poor eyesight. • They can go 6 months without feeding. • Leeches live in every continent except • Some people use them as fishing bait. • Leech therapy is an accepted medical practice. Scientific Name The scientific name, Hirudinea, comes from the word hirudin. ©Martin Pelanek/Shutterstock.com The leech’s • • • • • • • • • • See all of our The scientific name comes from the word hirudin. Hirudi...

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Share on Pinterest peangdao/Getty Images Outdoor activities like swimming and hiking are a great way to stay healthy. But they can also sometimes lead to Finding a leech on your body can be scary, but you don’t need to panic. We’ll give you simple steps that can help you calmly and safely remove a leech without any pain or complications from the bite. Leeches are parasites that belong to the same family of organisms as worms. They can have both male and female reproductive organs, which means they can reproduce sexually, fertilize themselves, or both. There are Many leech species are sanguinivorous, which means that they feed on blood. Once they attach themselves to a human, they’ll begin to suck their blood. Leeches can also expand up to 10 times their size while feeding, allowing them to consume a lot of your blood at one time. Leech vs. tick Ticks are similar to leeches only in that they both can feed on blood. But unlike leeches, ticks belong to the spider family and only attach to the skin. Though most leech bites are external, it’s possible for a leech to attach internally. Neither leeches nor ticks are insects. The basic leech removal steps are: • Locate the head and mouth. A leech’s head is smaller and slimmer than the rest of its body. Look for the narrowest part of the leech to locate its mouth. This is usually the part attached to your skin. • Pull the skin under the leech taut. Use one hand to gently pull your skin under the leech until it’s taut. • Slide a fin...