According to the Ministry of Fisheries a quota has been imposed on the eel catch, but scientists say commercial fishing of them needs to be stopped altogether before it is too late. Ecologist Mike Joy told that continued commercial fishing will spell the end for the long-finned eel. He also told that with eels, each one of them that is taken out is one that won’t breed, because that’s the last thing they do in their life – go off and spawn.
Spawning sometimes does not happen until the eels are 100 years old – a long time to avoid a fisherman’s net. But the Ministry of Fisheries says it has everything under control. Spokesman Tom Chatterton informed that they have put in place very strong management methods recently. He also told that they’ve reduced catch limits significantly, we’ve put in place a maximum size limit for eels and all these measures are designed to leave more eels in the water.
However, the Ministry says it will take some time for its restrictions to have a positive impact on the eel population.
