
Epic Eel Migration Mapped for the First Time - dfc
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/2015/10/151027-american-eel-migration-animal-behavior-oceans-science/#.VjgC5j4N_w8.twitter
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Pinatubo
I was hoping the article would include a map of the migration route.

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nkurz
There's a map in the linked Nature paper:
[http://www.nature.com/ncomms/2015/151027/ncomms9705/fig_tab/...](http://www.nature.com/ncomms/2015/151027/ncomms9705/fig_tab/ncomms9705_F2.html)

It's pretty direct: these particular eels appear to swim north along the shore
to the outlet of the St. Lawrence River, then more or less straight south to
the Sargasso Sea.

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pvaldes
Critically endangered species. Market value of up to $2600 a pound in Japan
since Fukushima. 50% of American eels and more than 80% of European eels
wipped in the last years

Seriously... What where they thinking?. And what will be next? The efficient
rhino poacher's guide and roadmaps?

[http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/american-eel-is-
in...](http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/american-eel-is-in-danger-of-
extinction/)

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nkurz
Maybe I'm wrong, but I don't think you are understanding the issue. These
adult eels spend their lives in the rivers of Atlantic Canada. They come down
the river once in their lives to breed thousands of miles away in the North
Atlantic. The young eels somehow then make their way back to the rivers.

The high prices are for the "glass eels", the juvenile stage. They are caught
with nets in the river as they return. This article is about the path taken by
the adult eels from the river, to the ocean. Knowing the rough path they take
in the ocean is unlikely to help anyone catch more eels.

If you want to catch the eels, you do it in the small river, rather than in
the open ocean. Knowing more about their reproduction helps us understand and
protect eels. Do you have reason to believe this is not the case?

Here's a parallel story about the European Eels:
[http://news.bbc.co.uk/earth/hi/earth_news/newsid_8273000/827...](http://news.bbc.co.uk/earth/hi/earth_news/newsid_8273000/8273877.stm)

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pvaldes
The real money here is not in the glass eels

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idealform01
they all look so happy

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pvaldes
A good notice for pirate fishing

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ch4s3
It was already assumed that American eels breed in the Sargasso Sea. But
that's a pretty big target[0][1]. The glass eels, or baby eels are really only
valuable to eel farmers, you wouldn't eat them.

[0] [http://sustany.org/local/wp-
content/uploads/2013/07/Screen-s...](http://sustany.org/local/wp-
content/uploads/2013/07/Screen-shot-2013-07-14-at-8.48.23-PM.png) [1]
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sargasso_Sea](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sargasso_Sea)

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pvaldes
This is like to say that gold is only valuable for mineral collecting
hobbists.

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Frenchgeek
OK, so now someone has to discover a new eel species and name it 'Epic eel'.

