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American Eel
Anguilla rostrata
Status
Native to
both Newfoundland and Labrador.
Range
Occur along the east coast of North America. In Newfoundland, they can
be found in almost all lakes and rivers that flow to the sea. In
Labrador, their range stretches as far north as the Lake Melville area.
Habitat
Found in both fresh and salt water. Eels spend their immature
lives in fresh water and, upon reaching
sexual maturity, move to the sea, eventually to spawn in salt water. In
spring the young migrate from the ocean to fresh water.
Food
American
Eels are voracious predators. Feeding at night, they will eat a variety
of fish species, as well as insect larvae.
Appearance
Slender,
snakelike body with a small, pointed head; yellow to olive-brown above
and pale to white below.
Breeding Biology
Very little
is known of eels’ spawning habits or where they go in the ocean.
However, they are believed to spawn in the southwest portion of the
Atlantic Ocean near the Sargasso Sea. Eel larvae have been found
floating in this region.
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