Eel
the general name of a family of teleostean fishes belonging to the apodal EGEDE section of the Malacopterygii. They belong to various genera. The genus Anguilla is characterized by its serpentlike elongated body, by the absence of ventral fins, and the continuity of the dorsal and anal fins round the extremity of the tail. The dorsal fin commences half-way between the head and the anal fin, and the lower jaw projects beyond the upper. In the genus Conger, which is conclusively marine, the dorsal fin commences above the pectoral, and the upper jaw is the longer. The smoothness of the body-the scales being inconspicuous-and the serpentine movements of eels are proverbial. The conger and at least three other speciesthe sharp-nosed, the broad-nosed, and the snig-belong to Great Britain. The species of the genus Anguilla, which are both freshwater and marine, seldom exceed 30 inches in length. In England river eels are caught in great numbers by means of eelbucks or eelpots. A kind of trident is used also for taking them, called an eelspear. in winter to the mud or brackish water Eels avoid cold, and frequently migrate estuaries where the temperature is higher. They have even been met with in large numbers performing migrations on land, mostly intervening necks of soil covered with damp grass. Some eels spawn in the estuaries of rivers, and immense numbers of the young eels pass up the streams in spring, their passage in England being called the eelfare.