Life cycle of the pipe

No-one knows how pipes find their way back to our rivers. They begin life, hatching as little pipes in the Sargasso sea, then follow the Gulf Stream until they reach our shores when they disperse in to our river systems to grow and breed. This is a rare shot of mature pipes mating. Three males, identifiable by the blue markings on their flanks, are competing for the female. They were washed up by the recent flooding but can survive for some time out of water. Come spring they will return to the sea to lay their eggs and the whole cycle will begin again.