Is your eel dead? And by the way, are the tuatara real?
They are two commonly heard questions at Rotorua's Rainbow Springs Nature Park where staff are always quick to reassure concerned visitors to one of the city's most popular tourist attractions.
Yes, the eel is alive
and well - he just likes to sleep upside down - and yes, the tuatara are very real - they just have the ability to sit very still for long periods of time.
The unnamed native long-finned eel, which has lived at the park since 1975, is quite often spotted floating upside down, causing concern among visitors, However, he's as healthy as can be and simply seems to prefer snoozing upside down, according to Rainbow Springs general manager Stewart Brown
He said people regularly asked if the eel was alive.
The eel also hangs around a big long pipe in his water hole. "It gets to do what it likes. It's all part of the fun," Mr Brown said.
While the eel did occasionally move around during the day, it was nocturnal which accounted for people who visited during the day thinking it was dead.
The park's tuatara also regularly raised eyebrows and about once a week visitors asked if they were real. That's despite signage near their enclosure providing information about the native lizards. Mr Brown said the tuatara remained still unless they were eating, something they also did in their natural environment. Tuatara could live for about 150 years so it made perfect sense for them to conserve energy for when they needed it.
