Blood-Sucking Leeches
I woke up one morning in Danum Valley in the heart of Malaysia’s Sabah on the island of Borneo and noticed blood all over my sheets. I quickly yanked back the covers expecting to find a horse’s head, but, of course, there was not. Yikes, I checked my parts to make sure they were OK and everything seemed fine until I found the source on the side of my torso. Two punctures were caked with blood and they looked like a snake bite. That led to a quick check for a snake, but then I realized that I had no pain, the blood was still having trouble coagulating and this could only have been caused by a BLOOD-SUCKING LEECH!
I had heard stories about leeches from people who had visited Papua New Guinea and they were not stories I enjoyed. When Rod informed us that we needed to buy leech socks after arriving in Kota Kinabalu, all I could think was that I didn’t know they were also here on Borneo… lucky me! We ran into leeches our first hike. They sit on the ground, on the foliage and anywhere else waiting for vibrations of a potential warm-blooded host. As soon as they detect your presence they start to march like an inch worm zeroing in on the prey. It’s more than a bit creepy in the beginning. But with the socks that go over your normal socks and bottom of my pants like gators, they would have to seek an alternative entry to my body. I soon forgot about being surrounded by things that want to suck me dry because the beauty and bounty of the Borneo rainforest took over.
We went for a night drive to find animals – a totally useless activity in a rainforest – and this was my undoing with the leeches. Apparently, they must have dropped down from overhanging foliage and got into my shirt. I went to bed not knowing they had found their target. They probably filled up on my blood – and oh yes, fill they do like balloons. And then I somehow squished the blood out of them plus I continued to bleed because they inject a anesthesia and anti-coagulant when they bite – no pain and no scabbing! The leech or leeches then escaped because squishing them certainly does not kill them leaving me there to bleed to death. Well, not quite. Eventually, a scab does form from the blood. As soon as I washed in the shower, the blood started to pour again and by the end of the day my clothes were stained as if I had been a victim of a shooting. No worries, though, everyone here knows what’s going on and there really is nothing bad or dangerous about the bites.
I was “attacked” one more time when I did not wear my socks after not seeing the leeches at Mt Kinabala. I had been crawling around taking macro shots of bugs and other small stuff. I felt something itch on my leg and then noticed that both legs looked like a bloody mess. This time the leeches were still attached. I pried them off and managed to fling them away (not an easy task). By the end of the day, the blood was still flowing, soaking my pant legs and socks. It took almost 48 hours for the bleeding to completely stop. Apparently, I have some thin blood. One man on the trip had to be extra cautious because he is on blood-thinning medication and the mix of leech and no coagulation would be more than a bloody mess. I have now done leeches. Not a real big deal – weird, icky and messy, but there is a lot worse out there such as the spiders, snakes, lizards and craziest-looking bugs I have ever seen. More to come about the amazingly stupendous rainforest of Borneo…
Tags: Asia, malaysia
vagabondrick
What an experience to be drained like that – Now you have had a Dracula event via leeches.