New Zealand longfin eel
Anguilla dieffenbachii
- Usual depth2–500 m
- Water temperature8–15 °C
- Best monthsNovember
- How commonOccasional
About this species
The New Zealand longfin eel is a species of freshwater eel that is endemic to New Zealand. It is the largest freshwater eel in New Zealand and the only endemic species – the other eels found in New Zealand are the native shortfin eel, also found in Australia, and the naturally introduced Australian longfin eel. Longfin eels are long-lived, migrating to an unknown site in the tropical Pacific Ocean to breed at the end of their lives. They are good climbers as juveniles and so are found in streams and lakes a long way inland. An important traditional food source for Māori, longfin eel numbers are declining and they are classified as endangered, but over one hundred tonnes are still commercially fished each year.
Text from the Wikipedia article “New Zealand longfin eel”, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Read the article
Where and when
Where it has been recorded
Worldwide
Loading the map
Best months
Worldwide (open data)
- January: 0 records
- February: 1 records
- March: 0 records
- April: 0 records
- May: 0 records
- June: 0 records
- July: 0 records
- August: 1 records
- September: 0 records
- October: 0 records
- November: 2 records
- December: 0 records
Depth and water temperature
Depth
Mostly recorded at 2–500 m · Deepest record: 530 m
Water temperature
Recorded in surface water of 8–15 °C
Names and classification
- English
- New Zealand longfin eel, Longfin eel, Longfinned Eel
Names in 2 more languages
- German
- Neuseeländischer Langflossenaal
- French
- Anguille de Nouvelle-Zélande
Other scientific names: Anguilla dieffenbachi
Similar species
- Australian shortfinned eel
Anguilla australis
- Australian Longfin Eel
Anguilla reinhardtii
Black fin eelAnguilla bicolor
Giant mottled eelAnguilla marmorata
- Japanese eel
Anguilla japonica
- African longfin eel
Anguilla mossambica
Sources and credits
Names and taxonomy: WoRMS (CC BY 4.0) and the GBIF Backbone (CC BY 4.0). Photos: iNaturalist observers, each under the licence shown (CC0, CC BY or CC BY-SA).
- Depth, temperature, months and maps: records from OBIS and GBIF under CC0 or CC BY.
- Descriptions: Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA, each linked to its article.
- Conservation status as published by GBIF (IUCN Red List).
- 394 open-data records from 1962 to 2019.
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