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Threadneedle Eel

Nema hortorum

Coastal20 cm · Anchored · wary

Field record

It anchors itself tail-down in a single narrow burrow at the reef's sandy edge, upright and swaying alone rather than in the crowded colonies its cousins keep elsewhere on the flat. Bring the drone in low and it doesn't dart — it simply retracts straight down its own burrow in one smooth pull, like a needle drawn back through cloth. Wait long enough and only the tip resurfaces first, testing the water before the rest follows.

Marginal note:a single stitch in the sand that pulls itself under

Habitat

Depth range0600 m
DiscoveryNot in the water on any given day — tied to a rotating local calendar, present roughly one day in a handful.

Catching it

A Coastal-tier catch needs at least a Fine Mesh Net— anything under that rating can never hold it, whatever the throw. Bought at the Quartermaster’s counter for 90 crystals. A held net inks this entry for good and pays its ledger bonus on the spot.

Ledger bonus on capture+1.5% Yield

Full capture mechanics — sighting vs. capture, the aim ring, why a net below a creature’s tier always bursts — in The Ledger.

Sharing this water

Other species catalogued in Sunlit Reef: