Species profile
American Eel
Anguilla rostrata
At a glance
American Eel (Anguilla rostrata) is an IUCN Endangered bony-fish species regulated in 20 of 66 jurisdictions tracked by CatchRules across the U.S. and Canada.
The strictest bag limit is 1 (Delaware); the most generous is 50 (New Jersey).
Across 15 jurisdictions with stated minimum sizes, the average minimum is 10.0 in.
Confirmed by 3,369 research-grade iNaturalist observations, with New York, Maryland, and Nova Scotia the top jurisdictions by observation count.
Notable details
- The only catadromous fish in eastern North America — it lives in fresh water but spawns at sea.
- Every American eel hatches in the Sargasso Sea and may travel thousands of miles inland to reach a home stream.
- Can wriggle overland through wet grass to access isolated ponds and streams.
- Females can live over 20 years in freshwater before making their single spawning migration.
- Can grow up to 4 feet long and weigh up to 17 pounds; females grow far larger than males.
Where American Eel are seen
Jurisdictions with rules for American Eel
Background
The American eel is a facultative catadromous eel found on the eastern coast of North America. Freshwater eels are fish belonging to the elopomorph superorder, a group of phylogenetically ancient teleosts. The American eel has a slender, supple, snake-like body that is covered with a mucus layer, which makes the eel appear to be naked and slimy despite the presence of minute scales. A long dorsal…
Background excerpt adapted from Wikipedia's American Eel article (CC BY-SA). Visit Wikipedia for the full entry.
Other bony fish on CatchRules
Photo credit: iNaturalist / Wikipedia. Identification reference only — verify regulations with the issuing wildlife agency before retaining a catch.