a longfin’s skin forms big, loose, obvious wrinkles when bent.If in doubt, there is a very reliable way to tell the difference (see images on right): living in a high-country river or lake, or a clear, cold, spring-fed stream at any altitude.Shortfin eel skin folds - smaller wrinklesĪnyone who has handled an eel out of water knows that they will not usually stay still long enough to allow you to measure their fins! So some ‘rules of thumb’ can be used to identify them. Longfin eel skin folds - big loose wrinkles What to look for Plant trees along stream banks to create shade (certain trees also provide a food source).Avoid catching them, and if you do, return them to the water unharmed.They are heavily affected by human activities, such as pollution, the building of dams, loss of vegetation near their habitat, and overfishing. Longfin eels, as well as being rare, are less able to cope with changes to their environment than their shorter-finned relative. The shortfin eel is ‘Not Threatened’ and is found in New Zealand, Australia and some Pacific Islands. The longfin eel is ranked as ‘At Risk - Declining’ in the New Zealand Threat Classification System listings (2014). The dorsal fin of a shortfin eel only extends a little further forward than the anal fin.ĭiagram of eels with longfin eel at top and shortfin eel belowĪ third species, the spotted eel ( Anguilla reinhardtii) is an occasional visitor from Australia. On a longfin eel, the dorsal (top) fin extends a lot further forward than the anal (bottom) fin. The two main species of freshwater eel found in New Zealand are the longfin eel ( Anguilla dieffenbachii) and the shortfin eel ( Anguilla australis).
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