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It’s lo-fi Attenborough! Why the internet’s going wild for a ‘fish doorbell’

By Michael Hogan

29 Jun 2023 · 3 min read

informed Summary

  1. An underwater camera at a lock in the Netherlands has been live-streaming fish migration for the past three seasons. The feed allows viewers to ring a virtual doorbell when they spot fish waiting to pass through the lock, notifying the lock keeper to open the gate.

Something fishy is happening in the Netherlands and viewers worldwide are hooked. No, this isn’t the latest voyeuristic reality series from the creators of Big Brother and The Traitors. It’s a charmingly innocent live stream which lets you ring a doorbell on behalf of some frisky fish.

For the past three migration seasons, an online feed has broadcast live footage from an underwater camera at a lock to the west of Utrecht. Every spring, thousands of fish swish through the Netherlands’ fourth-largest city, seeking shallow waters in which to lay their eggs. Some swim all the way to Germany, like piscine Adam Peatys. Slight snag: they often have to wait at the Weerdsluis lock, which seldom opens at this time of year.

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