Adults migrate upstream and inland as far as Minnesota, and may remain in freshwater for as long as 15 years before returning to the ocean to spawn. Adult eels (up to 4 feet in length) live in rivers where they hide in the mud by day and forage at night. Their ability to breathe air allows them to mover overland around dams and other obstructions. A growing aquaculture industry is harvesting elvers to feed and rear in tanks to adult size, and selling adult eels as food fish, fresh or smoked. The flesh is firm and well flavored, and it is considered a delicacy in Europe and Asia. Virginia is a major exporter of American eels.

 
Physical Description: 
Elongate, round anteriorly (snake like)
Dorsal and anal fins long and connected to the tail fin and 
Lacks a pelvic fin  
Head is short, eye medium-sized 
Large with toothed jaws, terminal mouth, tubular nostrils
Thick, tough skin with cycloid scales 
Larvae are transparent, ribbon-like, and planktonic, called leptocephalus  
Next stage is the glass eel which is transparent, cylindrical, and free-swimming  
Next is the elver stage where they darken in color 
Juveniles become fully pigmented  
Mature eels have enlarged eyes   

Similar species: 
Closely related to the European eel Anguilla anguilla.

Mean body size:
Adults are 220-1000 mm total length

Habitat:
Inhabits streams, ponds, lakes, reservoirs, swamps, salt marshes, estuaries, and ocean 
Mostly nocturnal and hide in cover during the day, sometimes burrowing into mud or silt  
Survive drought and low-oxygen conditions by gas exchange occurring across skin and gills

Distribution in VA:
	Found in the Atlantic slope drainage and is native to the New River drainage  

Food Habits:  
	Eat live and recently dead animal matter 
	Also worms, crustaceans, insects, snails, clams, crayfish, and fish  
Feed at night  

Reproductive Habits: 
	Catadromous - migrate to the ocean to spawn  
	American and European eels spawn in the Sargasso Sea
	Peak of spawning is in February  
	Fecundity is 400,000-2,500,000 eggs per female  
	After spawning, adults are not known to return to freshwater 
	Male eels mature early and are restricted to estuaries 
	Females grow larger, live longer, and mature later then males 
Eggs are pelagic and hatch into leptocephalus larvae that drift on the currents for one year, then metamorphose into transparent glass eels, which swim coastward and upriver   

Population Status, Economic, or Ecological Importance: 
	Dams limit upstream migration on the Roanoke, James, Dan, and New Rivers 
	Popular as fish bait in coastal areas  
	Firm, well flavored meat which is a delicacy in Europe and Asia

References:       

Jenkins, R.E and N.M. Burkhead. 1993. Freshwater Fishes of Virginia. American Fisheries Society, Bethesda, Maryland.