Why are they draining it in this way? Poor things.
Comment on Blueberry milkshakes
Cheesus@lemmy.world 11 months ago
For those who don’t know, the blue liquid is their blood
dependencyinjection@discuss.tchncs.de 11 months ago
CluckN@lemmy.world 11 months ago
It’s catch and release so they let them go afterwards where they found them. Horseshoe crab blood is an essential biomedical tool that’s saved countless lives.
dependencyinjection@discuss.tchncs.de 11 months ago
What are some example uses for the blood? I’m fascinated.
Thanks for the reply too.
CluckN@lemmy.world 11 months ago
It’s an anticoagulant and can detect the smallest traces of endotoxins in medicine. I’m sure I’m missing some details but there are some great medical journals that detail the process and help explain why it’s $60,000 a gallon.
EvilCartyen@feddit.dk 11 months ago
The blood contains a coagulent which clots in the presence of bacterial toxins. It is extracted and used to ensure that medical equipent and stuff such as vaccines are sterile and safe.
prayer@lemmy.world 11 months ago
The main use is to detect how much endotoxins (proteins that cause our immune system to react) are present in a sample. This is important because we often use bacteria to produce medicine and then remove the bacteria from that medicine. This checks for anything left behind in that process, far more sensitive than any other test or machine can do.
If it wasn’t for horseshoe crab blood, creating medicine that is safe for injection would be a lot harder and potentially more dangerous.
Vorticity@lemmy.world 11 months ago
Alabaster_Mango@lemmy.ca 11 months ago
It’s specifically non-fatal:
Bleeding horseshoe crabs to death is not an acceptable practice in the U.S.
The volume of blood taken is actually quite small, as most of the material in the collection jars is anticoagulant.
It may look uncomfortable to us humans, but keep in mind that horseshoe crabs are not human. What’s normal for the spider is chaos for the fly. Granted, it would be kinda weird to be hoisted from your home by a giant ape and forced into a blood drive. It’s done as gently as possible though.
bstix@feddit.dk 11 months ago
Unfortunately the practice often results in death anyway. 30% die in the process.
It also has unforseen consequences in the food chain, so by all means we should look for alternatives.
Thankfully alternatives already exist .
abraxas@sh.itjust.works 11 months ago
Last I read synthetic LAL was nowhere near scaleable. Bleeding Crabs is very expensive.
cashews_best_nut@lemmy.world 11 months ago
By vegan moral logic they shouldn’t be allowed to accept vaccines.
shalafi@lemmy.world 11 months ago
Still, I was disappointed to find that a large percentage of released crabs die anyway. Can’t find the number, but it’s significant. 1/3rd?
lemmylommy@lemmy.world 11 months ago
Afair estimates put the portion of dead crabs between 10 and 30%. Some might also be unable to reproduce due to the bleeding.
voluble@lemmy.world 11 months ago
Thanks for the link and info.
Not a reply directly to you, but to contrast the dominant view in the thread - what would it matter if even 100% of the crabs died? Sustainability considerations aside - a crab died for my delicious salad, who cares if they die for a life saving vaccine? Who cares if it’s painful and disorienting for the crab, it’s a crab. As humans, why should we prioritize crab life and well-being over our own?
spacecowboy@sh.itjust.works 11 months ago
Because we aren’t special and every time we make a stupid decision like that it has disastrous ripple effects.
Kedly@lemm.ee 11 months ago
Because we HAVE to kill a crab to eat it, we shouldnt be killing or harming other animals unless we “need” to. If theres a way to harvest blood without killing the animal, that is the ethically cleanest option. I do think we should prioritize helping our own species over others, but that doesnt mean ignoring the suffering or harm of other species
ILikeBoobies@lemmy.ca 11 months ago
Highest chance of survival/low stress
Darken@reddthat.com 11 months ago
That’s how blueberry is made Freeze some of this add some structure, let it set, then put it on trees
Emerald@lemmy.world 11 months ago
Because we as a species have decided its okay to torture others for personal gain
erin@lemmy.blahaj.zone 11 months ago
This is a necessary evil to save many many human lives. Alternatives are being worked on, but this isn’t just for money or food, it’s for lifesaving medicine.
Emerald@lemmy.world 11 months ago
At the expense of others, also we have synthetic versions of this now.
menemen@lemmy.world 11 months ago
So this us basically like a blood farm from vampires? Shit, still surprises me what an evil species we really are.
zazaserty@discuss.tchncs.de 11 months ago
I kinda agree with you but when you think about it it’s not that bad. They are released afterwards and we can use that blood to save countless people, like you and me.
ThunderclapSasquatch@startrek.website 11 months ago
Dp you enjoy the widespread availability of injectable medicine? The blood is used to detect impurities in injectable medicine.
FlyingSquid@lemmy.world 11 months ago
Which proves they’re all royalty.
havokdj@lemmy.world 11 months ago
King Crab 🦀
15liam20@lemmy.world 11 months ago
A pint? That’s nearly an armful!
Imgonnatrythis@sh.itjust.works 11 months ago
Obviously didn’t read the meme. It’s a blueberry milkshake. Everyone knows blood isn’t that color.