AQUARIUM WANTS YOU TO YELL AT THEIR EELS

The Sumida Aquarium in Tokyo, Japan, noticed that its hundreds of tiny spotted garden eels have started acting oddly, such as burrowing into the sand when aquarium workers pass by the tank. They believe it’s because the eels have become unfamiliar with humans, as the aquarium has been closed to visitors since March 1. Up ’til now, the eels had learned to accept the presence of humans because there were so many visitors. Now, their shyness is making the work of aquarium staff difficult, because they cannot check on the health of the creatures. So, the aquarium is launching a three-day “emergency event” starting on May 3, inviting people to call the aquarium’s dedicated account through an iPad or iPhone, and then wave, call out or yell at the eels for five minutes at a time, during two time slots a day.
* And if it doesn’t work, the eels will have to be eaten.
* The poor eels are going to think they’ve been bad.
* Uh … hang some life-size marionettes in front of the tank and have a machine randomly jerk their strings? Dress up some mannequins and have them parade past the tank on conveyor belts? Have a movie screen facing the tank and project crowd scenes?
* Yelling at Eels was the name of my college band.