(25-01-11) Eel is in critically endangered in Europe and its presence in Andalusia (Spain) has reduced 98% in the last three decades. Besides, fishing 1 kg of young eel means catching more than 65 kg of other species.

    The organization for the preserving the oceans, Oceana, supports the moratorium of ten years for fishing eels in the Guadalquivir river adopted by the regional government. For years, the situation of eel in Andalusia, like in the rest of Europe, is dramatic.

    In particular, in the Estuary of Guadalquivir, where the main Andalusia population lives, the reported catches of young eel have diminish from 40 tones in 1982 to 300 kg in 2008, which represents an alarming reduction of 98%.

    The reasons of this drop are basically the fragmentation of the river corridor, which prevents their migration, and the commercial overexploitation. To this last reason we have to add the fact that fishing young eels in the river has never been ruled and it has been done unsustainably for the species itself and also for the rest of the water community in the area, on which it exerts a strong negative impact.

    The ten years stop approved by the regional government in Andalucía has been recommended by ICES (International Council for the Exploration of the Sea), and supported by experts that have been working in the estuary for over 15 years, to detect results in conservation measures.

MEASURES FOR THEIR RECOVERY ARE FEW

    “Although there are some initiatives to Project the species, they are few the real management measures for their recovery” says Ricardo Aguilar, research director in Oceana. He reminds that “similar problems killed sturgeon in the area, and have made other species like twaite shad, allis shad or sea lamprey are on the verge of extinction.”

    Among the most commonly used capture methods in the estuary the most important is the one used by more than 130 illegal ships in the area. It is a selective fishing method that uses mosquito nets with a mesh less than 1mm, and all species that coexist with eel, many in young stages, are also captured.

    Scientific studies have proved that fishing 1 kg of young eels means that more than 65 kg of other species been caught too, about 500,000 specimens killed.

    Javier López, marine scientist for Oceana, explains that “management measures implemented will not help effectively recover the species, but will help Project one of the most important areas for breeding marine species, many with commercial interest, in Sothern Europe and one of the hot spots of biodiversity and productivity in Andalusia”.

    In the rest of Europe the situation of the species is not very different.  Thus, the alarming reduction of the presence of eels in the European estuaries (2% of its historic presence) has led to catalogue the species in the Red List of the UICN like “Critically Endangered”, and to include it in Annex 2 of CITES, which regulates international trade.

    Other organizations like ICES have warned that the European eel is out of safe biological limits, which compromises its survival.

Text: M. Madina / G. Romero