Local scale, coastal currents influence recruitment to freshwater populations in the European eel Anguilla anguilla : a case study from the Isle of Man

• Published in: Journal of Fish Biology
• Main Authors: Barry, J., Mcharg, K., Dodd, J. A., Adams, C. E.
• Other Authors: Isle of Man Government: Department of Environment, Food and Agriculture
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Wiley 2015
• Subjects: Aquatic Science; Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics; Anguilla anguilla
• Online Access: http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/jfb.12697; https://api.wiley.com/onlinelibrary/tdm/v1/articles/10.1111%2Fjfb.12697; https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/jfb.12697

This study examines juvenile Anguilla anguilla (<30 cm) abundance in five study catchments on the Isle of Man. Preliminary results suggest that juvenile abundance is negatively correlated with increasing coastal current speed at river mouth entry ( P < 0·05). These findings indicate that at least under some circumstances, tidally driven coastal currents may influence recruitment to freshwater habitats; therefore, it is presumed that high coastal current speed at the entry to river mouths may reduce the likelihood of freshwater entry.