Occurrence of the European eel in lakes in the northern part of its distribution area is limited to low-altitude coastal areas, likely due to topographical conditions
Peer reviewed, Journal article
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Sammendrag
With the decline of the European eel, protection measures in all parts of the eel’s distribution
area may be increasingly important. Norway has a vast coastline (58°–71°N), but the
distribution of eel has been largely unknown. We analysed data from questionnaires on fish
distribution, covering 30 575 Norwegian lakes. Eels were recorded in 1773 lakes. The distribution
was largely restricted to low altitude lakes in coastal areas (95% of the lakes with
eels were situated below 295 m a.s.l., and within 87 kilometres from the sea). The occurrence
of eels decreased towards the north, and only 5% of the lakes with eel were located
north of 64.5°N. The northernmost lakes with eel were at 70.6°N, in the Barents Region.
The degree to which man-made migration barriers restrict the distribution of the European
eel in Norwegian freshwater should be further researched and data on the eel life history
and densities are also largely missing.