Surprised Eel Historian, PhDさんのイラストまとめ

Freshwater eels aren't native to the US Pacific Coast. All the eels in N. America come from the Sargasso Sea, & swim in waters that empty into the Atlantic or Gulf of Mexico.

There are lots of lampreys on the W. coast. But no native eels.

But they wanted some. Like you do. 2/8

Getting the fish to town wasn't always easy, though. There were pirates, bandits, & unscrupulous folk like Geoffrey Cardun. In 1203 he was found guilty of collecting illegal tolls on people passing through his land, including taking one stick from each eel cart.

The nerve! 3/4

Welp. The UK's returning to older systems of measurement. So how do we count eels now?

As in days of yore! In pre-modern England eels were counted in units called sticks & binds.

1 stick = 25 eels
1 bind = 10 sticks

Demand you new rights, friends. Demand your stick of eels.

Covid: no
Corvids: yes

Bad fish jokes from A Surprise of Eels!

I was looking through some eel pictures (like you do), and thought I'd share some of the eels that my (now) 10 yr old has drawn for me over the years. There are more, but these are some of my favorites.

By now, of course, you know that people in medieval England often paid their rent in eels. But not only eels! Sometimes the eel-rents were due with other things.

In 1206, the village of Dunwich owed the Exchequer not only 5,000 eels per year, but *also* 5 gerfalcons!

@rauchway

Friends! It’s my mother’s birthday! And b/c she lives in Utah it’s a state holiday, with a parade and fireworks.

But what she really *needs* are birthday wishes from eel friends. So take a moment and join me in saying “Happy birthday!” to @TheGrannyCat!

In about 1200, people in England paid 540,000+ eels in rent every year. That's a lot, right?

Yes. But.

Those were *just* the eels for rent. People were catching & eating LOTS more. In 1290, fishermen in the village of Ramsey caught 365,000 eels, above & beyond rent eels. 1/4

It's been a moray kinda day. #MoraySong. So:

When your fireside snack
Has a jaw that you lack...