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Oceanic spawning migration of the European eel (Anguilla anguilla)
Aarestrup, K.; Økland, F.; Hansen, M.M.; Righton, D.; Gargan, P.; Castonguay, M.; Bernatchez, L.; Howey, P.; Sparholt, H.; Pedersen, M.I.; McKinley, R.S. (2009). Oceanic spawning migration of the European eel (Anguilla anguilla). Science (Wash.) 325(5948): 1660. https://dx.doi.org/10.1126/science.1178120
In: Science (Washington). American Association for the Advancement of Science: New York, N.Y. ISSN 0036-8075; e-ISSN 1095-9203, more
Peer reviewed article  

Available in  Authors 

Keyword
    Marine/Coastal

Authors  Top 
  • Aarestrup, K.
  • Økland, F.
  • Hansen, M.M.
  • Righton, D.
  • Gargan, P.
  • Castonguay, M.
  • Bernatchez, L.
  • Howey, P.
  • Sparholt, H., more
  • Pedersen, M.I.
  • McKinley, R.S.

Abstract
    European eels (Anguilla anguilla) undertake a ~5000-kilometer (km) spawning migration from Europe to the Sargasso Sea. The larvae are transported back to European waters by the Gulf Stream and North Atlantic Drift. However, details of the spawning migration remain unknown because tracking eels in the Atlantic Ocean has, so far, eluded study. Recent advances in satellite tracking enable investigation of migratory behavior of large ocean-dwelling animals. However, sizes of available tags have precluded tracking smaller animals like European eels. Here, we present information about the swimming direction, depth, and migratory behavior of European eels during spawning migration, based on a miniaturized pop-up satellite archival transmitter. Although the tagging experiment fell short of revealing the full migration to the Sargasso Sea, the data covered the first 1300 km and provided unique insights.

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