Leeches Not Cute And Lovable
Leeches Not Cute And Lovable
Leeches are abundant and all around us, yet few will notice them. They are not exactly cute and lovable – indeed they might generate a frisson of terror in some, particularly those who remember Humphrey Bogart being covered in them in ‘The African Queen’. Stories in the press such as the removal of a leech from the nose of a woman in Vietnam (yes, you can watch the procedure online if that takes your fancy!) just add to the anxiety they can generate.
However, unless you are setting off for foreign climes, rest assured that in the UK there is only one species of leech that is believed to suck your blood – more of that later. If you have a garden pond, and particularly if it contains fish, you are likely to have leeches in it, most fairly small. But the Horse Leech is quite common in and around Wenvoe and the photo shows one living in the stream that runs between Clos Llanfair and the new Grange development. Despite their name, they do not attack horses nor any mammals for that matter. They live on small larvae and snails, whilst occasionally moving onto land in search of earthworms. They can be up to 15 cms or 6 inches long, so are easy to spot.
The Medicinal Leech is the largest in Britain and has been used as a health cure for hundreds of years. It was thought they removed bad blood as they were placed on the body and drank their fill – ‘blood-letting’. References to the medicinal use of leeches go back to 200BC with the Greek physician Nicander. Ancient Sanskrit texts also refer to them. The use of leeches has seen something of a resurgence since the 1970s (see hirudotherapy) in association with a variety of treatments such as skin grafts and varicose veins. However the chances of you coming across medicinal leeches in our countryside are remote as they are now limited to possibly no more than 20 isolated sites in Britain and the species is so rare that it has European protected status. So if you are being treated with leeches they will have come from a leech farm, of which one of the main suppliers is Biopharm not that far away in Hendy.