Anguillidae

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Anguillidae is a family of fishes that contains many of the freshwater eels. There are around 15 or 16 species in this family, all in the genus Anguilla. They are catadromous, meaning they spend their lives in freshwater rivers and return to the ocean to spawn. The young eel larvae, called leptocephali, consume plankton close to shore. They grow larger in size, and in their next growth stage are called glass eels. At this stage they live in tidal estuaries until they reach one year of age, at which they are known as elvers. Elvers travel upstream in freshwater rivers where they grow to adulthood.

Freshwater eels are elongate with tubelike, snake-shaped bodies. They have large, pointed heads and their dorsal fins are usually continuous with their caudal fins and anal fins, to form a fringe lining the posterior end of the body. They have small pectoral fins to help them navigate along river bottoms.

Anguillid eels are important food fish. Eel aquaculture is a fast-growing industry. Important food eel species include longfin eel, Australian long-finned eel, short-finned eel, and Japanese eel.

Species

European eel, Anguilla anguilla
Short-finned eel, Anguilla australis
Anguilla bengalensis, comprising:
* Indian mottled eel, Anguilla bengalensis bengalensis
* African mottled eel, Anguilla bengalensis labiata
Anguilla bicolor, comprising:
* Indonesian shortfin eel, Anguilla bicolor bicolor
* Indian shortfin eel, Anguilla bicolor pacifica
Celebes longfin eel, Anguilla celebesensis
New Zealand longfin eel, Anguilla dieffenbachii Gray, 1842
Highlands longfin eel, Anguilla interioris
Japanese eel, Anguilla japonica
Indonesian longfinned eel Anguilla malgumora
Marbled eel, Anguilla marmorata
Polynesian longfin eel, Anguilla megastoma
African longfin eel, Anguilla mossambica
Mottled eel, Anguilla nebulosa
Pacific shortfin eel, or South Pacific eel Anguilla obscura
Speckled longfin eel, or Australian longfin eel, Anguilla reinhardtii Steindachner, 1867
American eel, Anguilla rostrata

References

["Anguillidae"]. FishBase. Ed. Ranier Froese and Daniel Pauly. January 2006 version. N.p.: FishBase, 2006.

External links

[Australian anguillid aquaculture]

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