E. Baras et al., EVALUATION OF AN EEL-TRAP SAMPLING METHOD FOR THE ASSESSMENT OF MIGRANT YELLOW EELS ANGUILLA-ANGUILLA (L) IN THE RIVER MEUSE, Bulletin francais de la peche et de la pisciculture, (335), 1994, pp. 7-16
A sampling methodology using modified eel traps (100 x 40 cm empty set
) installed in fish passes was evaluated for the assessment of migrato
ry yellow eel Anguilla anguilla stock and population structure in the
Belgian River Meuse in 1993. Up to 248 eels (mean size : 292 mm) were
captured in a single trap immersed overnight. In a standardized contex
t, the size of the sample captured in the trap was highly predictive (
R = 0.998; 24 df) of the number of eels migrating through the fish pas
s. The eel traps were evaluated as non selective towards fish size wit
hin the size range of yellow eels (114 - 614 mm). The delay for checki
ng the eel traps (2 min) fits the purpose of frequent and numerous sam
ples. Applying this ''point migration sampling'' methodology on a larg
e scale would allow a reliable assessment of yellow eel migration dyna
mics in regulated rivers like the River Meuse.