A unique initiative to help us better understand and protect freshwater eels has just been launched. Run by the Game and Wildlife Conservation Trust’s (GWCT) fisheries team, the drive involves tagging eels in Dorset’s River Frome to try to discover what triggers their epic 6,000-mile migration to the Sargasso Sea.
The species has declined by 90 per cent since the 1980s and is now classed as ‘critically endangered’. It’s hoped that this new research will reveal the habitats the eels are choosing, as well as when they decide to make their journey from river to sea.
“For a fish that has been around for millions of years and has been so culturally and economically important, we know very little about it,” said Will Beaumont, leading the fieldwork for GWCT.
“We know they are one of the toughest fish species we have, but we still seem to be managing to wipe them out.
“If we want to save them, it is extremely important that we get a better understanding of them so we know how we can stop them from disappearing forever.”
It's already thought that parasites, migration barriers, illegal fishing and water pollution are among the principal factors contributing to their decline.
