Fishery-induced selection for slow somatic growth in European eel

• Published in: PLoS ONE
• Main Authors: Bevacqua, Danièle, Capoccioni, Fabrizio, Melià, Paco, Vincenzi, Simone, Pujolar, Jose M., de Leo, Giulio A., Ciccotti, Eleonora
• Other Authors: Unité de recherche Plantes et Systèmes de Culture Horticoles (PSH), Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique (INRA), Università degli studi di Parma = University of Parma (UNIPR), Dipartimento Biol, University of Naples Federico II = Università degli studi di Napoli Federico II, Politecnico di Milano Milan (POLIMI), University of California (UC), Stanford University, Italian Ministry of Research (PRIN project 153) 2006054928
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: HAL CCSD 2012
• Subjects: FRESH-WATER ENVIRONMENTS; ANGUILLA-ANGUILLA L; SEX-DIFFERENTIATION; MORTALITY; LAGOONS; BRACKISH; POPULATION; MATURATION; JUVENILE; TRAITS; [SDV]Life Sciences [q-bio]; [SDE]Environmental Sciences; Anguilla anguilla; European eel
• Online Access: https://hal.inrae.fr/hal-02648857; https://hal.inrae.fr/hal-02648857/document; https://hal.inrae.fr/hal-02648857/file/2012_Bevacqua_Plos%20One_1.pdf; https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0037622

International audience Both theoretical and experimental studies have shown that fishing mortality can induce adaptive responses in body growth rates of fishes in the opposite direction of natural selection. We compared body growth rates in European eel (Anguilla anguilla) from three Mediterranean stocks subject to different fishing pressure. Results are consistent with the hypotheses that i) fast-growing individuals are more likely to survive until sexual maturity than slow-growing ones under natural conditions (no fishing) and ii) fishing can select for slow-growing individuals by removing fast-growing ones. Although the possibility of human-induced evolution seems remote for a panmictic species like such as the European eel, further research is desirable to assess the implications of the intensive exploitation on this critically endangered fish.