Eel Information And Facts.
Scientific Name: Anguilla Anguilla
Maximum Weight: 20lb (9kg)
Maximum Length: 1M (100cm)
Average Weight Caught: 12oz (340g)
Life Span: 25 Years
Eels are unmistakable as a fish they are a snake with fins. Those fins are distinctive as the anal and dorsal fins cover the tail. The eels nose is long and it has a protruding lower jaw full of small teeth. The eel does have scales but these are so small and deep in the eels skin that they are not visible.
British Record: 11lb 2oz (1978)
Scottish Record:
Irish Lake:
Irish River:
Welsh Record: 6lb 5oz (1978)
River Derwent Yorkshire
Eels upto 2lb
River Severn
Eels upto 3lb
River Wear
Eels upto 5lb
Abberton Resevoir
Eels upto 1lb
Gailey Resevoir Cannock
Eels upto 6lb
Its young are prized as food gold and are just as rare these days they are snake like covered in slime and are tremendous fighters so as sport they are more than fun and when smoked eels are just beautiful.
THE LIFE CYCLE OF THE EEL.
The eel migrates. Before it does this the age of sexual maturity of the eel is marked by a changing of colour from yellow to silver while in fresh water. Its head becomes pointed and it stops feeding. However before it stops feeding it has already laid down the fat it needs to survive the migration. And finally its eyes enlarge this is to help it when it is in the ocean. This migration can last an epic three years. The eel heads for the Atlantic where it spawns the Sargasso Sea it is thought. Spawning eels have not been caught as it is thought they go to deep water to spawn and then they die. The young hatch and are carried by the gulf stream to Europe where it changes from a leaf shaped larva to a tiny elver which makes its way into many European waters.
EEL FEEDING HABITS.
Finding your eel is a matter of food as it is with other species of fish. However the eel will eat anything and everything it can find. At night they come to the surface to feed on insects. It is also a keen scavenger so nothing is safe from the eel. It has a keen sense of smell and also very good eyesight. However it looks for food mainly by the sense of smell so the longer you leave your bait in the water the likelyhood at some point in time you will get yourself an eel. It is a remarkable fish and one that should be enjoyed.
The Eel Vital Statistics.
Knowing Your Eel.
Eel Records.
Top Eel Waters.