INTERESTING AND REMARKABLE FACTS AND FEATURES OF THE SLIME OF THE HAGFISH.

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The Hagfish is a creature which belongs to the family Myxinidae, they are jawless and perhaps the only known animal or creature that does not have possess a vertebral column but yet posseses a skull, they are popular for their unique features.

The Hagfish is notorious for its ability to produce copious amounts of slime for various reasons sometimes it might be for it to serve as a kind of defense mechanism against predators, sometimes it is to serve as a self cleaning mechanism.

The slime of the hagfish is made of a type of protein known as the mucin proteins and fibers they are known to expand rapidly upon contact with water and as such entrapping and suffocating it's attackers, I will be discussing in depth some of the amazing facts, features and functions of the slime of the hagfish.

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IT SERVES AS DEFENSIVE MECHANISM

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The ability of the hagfish slime to serve and play the role of a defensive mechanism is a marvel and one of the ways in which nature paints a clear picture of a wise and loving creator, basically the slime is way of the creator offering the hagfish an effective means of protection against predators such as the sharks or other larger fishes.

Whenever the hagfish feels threatened, it releases slime, the slime serves as a physical barrier, entangling the gills and mouths of whatever predators might be trying to harm it or make a nice meal out of them, making them unable to feed or breath very well, this means that the hagfish survival when it comes to dealing with predators depends on how alert it is to its surroundings and how fast it can release its slime.

Additionally the hagfish slime do not only serve as an effective defense mechanism against predators but also a deterrent, it's sticky and elastic nature allows it affect whatever predator is dumb enough to get hit with it in a long term, reducing their efficiency in swimming and hunting, this means that whatever predator that is hunting in the hagfish habitat is probably not functioning at full capacity.

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POSITIVE ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT

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Another interesting fact about the hagfish slime is that it plays a very important role in positively impacting the sea and it's ecosystem owing to a number of factors, ONE is that as a result of the hagfish slime having the ability to affect the hunting performance and effectiveness of predators, this means that their number of preys over a period of time will likely reduce.

A number TWO factor is that the composition of hagfish slime, I mean it's sticky and elastic nature can be fully utilized by scientist inorder to create an organic and environmental friendly cleaning tool that can trap all sorts of waste and pollutants ranging from minute or little dirt to large crunk of metals, thereby improving the health and cleanliness of marine environment.

A number THREE factor also lies in it's elastic and adhesive or sticky nature of the hagfish slime, allowing it to serve as trap and butcher house for little sea creatures and organisms ranging from the smaller fishes to the plankton and microorganisms and as a result providing for itself and any other predator who is lucky enough to stumble across it a valuable food source.

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IT ALSO SERVE AS A SELF CLEANING MECHANISM

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Another amazing and remarkable fact or feature of the hagfish slime is that it acts as a kind of self cleaning mechanism and anything it is released it sets into motion or action a cleaning process, therefore we can say that it acts as a kind of self cleaning mechanism.

After releasing its slime in response to an imminent threat, the hagfish so as not to get trapped or affected by its own defensive mechanism engage in a kind of unique process which involves tying themselves into knots, by engaging in this process known as slime knotting, the hagfish create friction against their skin, allowing them to remove the slime from their bodies, in the process performing a kind of bath or self cleaning exercise.

This self cleaning process is essential for the hagfish survival seeing as without developing this process of self cleaning the hagfish will be facing potential disadvantages because there is high probability that after releasing a slime it could also be entangled or entrapped by the slime, thereby reducing also its own efficiency and swimming performance.

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CONCLUSION

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In conclusion, the amazing and remarkable features of the hagfish slime gives praise and credit to its creator JEHOVAH whose Almightyness and awe inspiring power is clearly seen and highlighted in the remarkability and uniqueness of his creations.

The slime of the hagfish can have very groundbreaking biomimetic applications in science and in engineering so by studying, researching and understanding the properties and functions of hagfish slime, humans, mainly scientists can take a step closer towards unlocking the valuable insights and mystery hidden in nature.