Influence of oceanic factors on Anguilla anguilla (L.) over the twentieth century in coastal habitats of the Skagerrak, southern Norway

The European eel (Anguilla anguilla L.) is distributed all over Europe, but reproduction takes place in the Atlantic Ocean, in the Sargasso Sea. The population has been undergoing a steady decline since the 1980s. The eel is considered as critically endangered on the IUCN (International Union for th...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences
Main Authors: Durif, Caroline M.F., Gjøsæter, Jakob, Vøllestad, Leif Asbjørn
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: Royal Society Publishing 2010
Subjects:
eel
ål
stock development
bestandsutvikling
VDP::Agriculture and fishery disciplines: 900::Fisheries science: 920::Aquaculture: 922
VDP::Agriculture and fishery disciplines: 900::Agriculture disciplines: 910::Livestock breeding
rearing
reproduction: 912
Norway
Anguilla anguilla
European eel
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/11250/108376
https://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2010.1547
Description
Summary:The European eel (Anguilla anguilla L.) is distributed all over Europe, but reproduction takes place in the Atlantic Ocean, in the Sargasso Sea. The population has been undergoing a steady decline since the 1980s. The eel is considered as critically endangered on the IUCN (International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources) Red List of species. The objective of this study was to study the variation in eel abundance over the 20th century and determine which environmental factors are involved in the changes. This was done by analyzing data from the Skagerrak beach seine survey from Norway. This dataset constitutes the longest fishery-independent time series on eels (starting in 1904). Results showed that eel fluctuated according to changes in temperature in the Sargasso Sea and that warm temperatures had a negative effect on the number of eel larvae. The number of eels in the Skagerrak region was also dependant on current circulation in the North Sea.

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