Creature Feature – European Eel
This week on Creature Feature Friday we take a look at the European Eel.
Taxonomy
Scientific Name: Anguilla anguilla
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Order: Anguilliformes
Family: Anguillidae
Genus: Anguilla
© WWT
European Eel Fact File
Size: Individuals reach 60–80cm in length, but can reach up to 1.5m and they can weigh up to 6.5kg
Distribution: This species is widely distributed within European freshwaters and can be found in a wide variety of freshwater and estuarine habitats. It’s journey to the Sargasso Sea, is one of the most impressive
Diet: At night, European eels emerge to feed on a variety of food sources, depending on their life stage. Their diet can include everything from other fish to molluscs and crustaceans, to insects, worms, and carrion
Behaviour: European eels spend most of their adult lives in freshwater rivers, streams, and estuaries before returning to the open ocean to spawn and lay eggs. As young larvae, baby eels drift around the sea for between seven months and three years.
IUCN Status: Critically Endangered. Top threats include: climate change, diseases and parasites, habitat loss, pollutants, and predation
