country information

Common names: [No common name]
Occurrence:
Salinity:
Abundance: | Ref:
Importance: | Ref:
Aquaculture: | Ref:
Regulations: | Ref:
Uses: no uses
Comments:
National Checklist:
Country Information:
National Fisheries Authority:
Occurrences: Occurrences Point map
National Database:

Classification / Names

Actinopterygii (ray-finned fishes) > Anguilliformes (Eels and morays) > Anguillidae (Freshwater eels)
Common names | Synonyms | Catalog of Fishes (gen., sp.) | ITIS | CoL

Common names from other countries

Anguille d'Australie, Anguila australiana, Shortfin eel, ... more

Main reference

Allen, G.R. 1989. (Ref. 5259)
References | Biblio | Coordinator | Collaborators

Size / Weight / Age

Max length : 130 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 40637); 106.5 cm TL (female); common length : 45.0 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 9258); common length :65 cm TL (female); max. published weight: 7.5 kg (Ref. 40637); max. reported age: 32 years (Ref. 6390)

Environment

Marine; freshwater; brackish; benthopelagic; catadromous (Ref. 9258); depth range 0 - 3000 m (Ref. 86942)

Climate / Range

Subtropical, preferred ?; 18°S - 47°S, 140°E - 168°E

Distribution

Southwest Pacific: east coast of Australia and New Zealand, extending north to New Caledonia. Museum records from Fiji and Tahiti are doubtful. Australian and New Zealand forms sometimes recognized as subspecies. Most easily confused with Anguilla obscura and the surest way of distinguishing them is to count the vertebrae. Reported from Western and American Samoa (Ref. 592).
Countries | FAO areas | Ecosystems | Occurrences | Introductions

Occur in streams, lakes and swamps. More likely inhabits slow flowing streams or still waters (Ref. 26509). Feed on fishes, crustaceans, mollusks, worms, aquatic plants, and terrestrial and aquatic insects. This species does not breed outside its Pacific spawning ground. Migrates to the sea to breed (Ref. 9258). Maximum length for female eel taken from Ref. 6390. Migrating females in Lake Ellesmere (Canterbury, New Zealand) were reported to be in the range of 48.3 to 102.4 cm, larger than for males 33.8 to 55.4 cm (Ref. 44724). Despite its slimy appearance, its flesh is of excellent quality, considered a delicacy in many countries; meat suitable for smoking (Ref. 33839).

IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 115185)

Not Evaluated

Threat to humans

Harmless

Human uses

Fisheries: commercial; aquaculture: commercial; gamefish: yes

More information

Countries
FAO areas
Ecosystems
Occurrences
Introductions
Stocks
Ecology
Diet
Food items
Food consumption
Ration

Common names
Synonyms
Metabolism
Predators
Ecotoxicology
Reproduction
Maturity
Spawning
Fecundity
Eggs
Egg development

Age/Size
Growth
Length-weight
Length-length
Length-frequencies
Morphometrics
Morphology
Larvae
Larval dynamics
Recruitment
Abundance

References
Aquaculture
Aquaculture profile
Strains
Genetics
Allele frequencies
Heritability
Diseases
Processing
Mass conversion

Collaborators
Pictures
Stamps, Coins
Sounds
Ciguatera
Speed
Swim. type
Gill area
Otoliths
Brains
Vision

Tools

Special reports

Check for Aquarium maintenance | Check for Species Fact Sheets | Check for Aquaculture Fact Sheets

Download XML

Summary page | Point data | Common names | Photos

Internet sources

Estimates of some properties based on models

Phylogenetic diversity index (Ref. 82805)
PD₅₀ = 0.5000 many relatives (e.g. carps) 0.5 - 2.0 few relatives (e.g. lungfishes)

Trophic Level (Ref. 69278)
4.3 ±0.5 se; Based on diet studies.

Resilience (Ref. 69278)
Low, minimum population doubling time 4.5 - 14 years (tm=8-30; Fec=3,000,000)

Vulnerability (Ref. 59153)
Very high vulnerability (78 of 100)

Price category (Ref. 80766)
Unknown

Anguilla australis Richardson, 1841