Skip to main content

American Eel

Anguilla rostrata
Well, it's Turkey Day here in the United States, but we've already talked about the two different Turkey species. So why not learn about one of the other critters that made an appearance at the very first Thanksgiving? Yup. Eels.

American Eels are a very common fish that have been commercially harvested for hundreds of years. Though we don't eat them too often in the States, they are still consumed across the pond in Europe. You'll find them in the Atlantic Ocean, though they often spend their early years hanging out in nearby rivers and streams.

American Eels have a complex aging process that contains 6 distinct phases and can take up to 10 years. The whole shebang starts with the external fertilization of the eggs, which are laid out in the middle of the ocean. A single female can release 30 million eggs during spawning! It is assumed that the adults die after spawning, but this is unconfirmed.

The eggs hatch after only a week, and the second life phase begins- Leptocephali. These larval eels are very transparent looking, and spend most of their life phase being carried by the currents towards to coast. This journey can take as long as 12 months! Once there, they shift to yet another phase, the "Glass Eel." At this point they are still transparent, but they look more like eels, having the distinctive elongated bodies (but the lack of skin color still gives them some camouflage).

The final three phases in American Eel life all relate in part to their coloration. Stage 4, "Elver" is where they finally start to gain skin pigmentation. Oftentimes the Elvers will move to freshwater, and will continue to grow there before reaching the fifth, "Yellow" stage. At yellow they finally have a distinct sex, and have more color in their skin. Their final stage, "Silver," is when they are finally considered sexually mature adults and are strong enough to return to the open ocean. They may not return to spawn until they are 25 years old!

Unfortunately, because they have no many life phases, in so many locations, they face a number of conservation threats. Construction of dams and other structures have caused habitat obstruction, and over-fishing and pollution are additional concerns.
IUCN Status : Not Listed
Location : Atlantic Ocean
Size : Length up to 4ft (1.2m)
Classification : Phylum : Chordata -- Class : Actinopterygii -- Order : Anguilliformes
Family : Anguillidae -- Genus : Anguilla -- Species : A. rostrata
Labels:

Comments

  1. Felix LeeNovember 23, 2012 at 11:57 AM

    I wouldn't want to meet an eel when I'm swimming, but this is good to know. I wasn't aware they ate eels in Europe. That's interesting.

    ReplyDelete
  2. RomanaNovember 29, 2012 at 2:11 AM

    Fishing in Dubai Your place is valuable for me. Thanks!…

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Bornean Orangutan

The Bornean Orangutan is one of two extant Orangutan species in the world. It is the third largest primate (after Gorillas) and is the largest primarily tree-dwelling animal in the world. Males are substantially larger than females, and average at around 165lbs. Bornean Orangutans are largely solitary. A handful might live within a small range but they will seldom interact with one another. Males and females only meet up to breed, which happens only once every several years. A young Orangutan will stay with it's mother for about five years, and the females tend to go about eight years between births. That is the longest interim period of any animal! Sadly, the Bornean Orangutans are in a lot of trouble. They need large forests in order to thrive, and deforestation and habitat degradation has left many homeless. They are also hunted for meat and for traditional medicines. Conservation areas are being established to help these guys in the wild, and it is believed that there are a
59 comments
Read more

Four!

For anyone who was counting, yesterday was our birthday-- four years! Four years filled with animals from A to Z, more than 1,100 of them! I can't thank my readers enough, it's been wonderful! And in celebration of that milestone... I'm taking a break. Hopefully not forever, but for a little bit at least. In the mean time I plan on getting a new layout out, along with some updates to some of the older articles. I'll post updates here and on the Facebook page, I'm also brainstorming some new animal-related projects, so keep an eye out! Thanks again for four awesome years!
18 comments
Read more

Halloween Crab

Gecarcinus quadratus The Halloween Crab goes by many names, including the Red Land Crab, Whitespot Crab, and Moon Crab. I personally like Halloween Crab though, since it really reflects the interesting colors. They have black carapaces, orange-red legs, and purple claws! Halloween Crabs live in the Pacific coast mangroves and forests of Central and South America. They actually live in the forests as adults, and return to the ocean in order to reproduce. Did you know that they live as far away as 18 miles (30km)  from water? Not where you normally think Crabs to be! While living in the forest, the Crabs forage nocturnally for different plant matter, including leaves and sapling. They also dig long burrows into the ground for protection. These burrows can measure nearly 5 ft long! Halloween Crabs are sometimes kept in captivity, and can be very tricky pets due to their excellent climbing skills. IUCN Status :  Not Listed Location :   Cent
Post a Comment
Read more