Anguilla anguilla ( Linnaeus, 1758 )

Saad, Adib, Çiçek, Erdoğan, Esmaeili, Hamid Reza, Fricke, Ronald, Sungur, Sevil & Eagderi, Soheil, 2023, Freshwater fishes of Syria: a revised and updated annotated checklist- 2023, Zootaxa 5350 (1), pp. 1-62 : 9

Anguilla anguilla ( Linnaeus, 1758) [N]—European eel; Hanklis

Taxonomy. Original description: Muraena anguilla Linnaeus, 1758: 245 [Europe, Mediterranean Sea, Baltic Sea, northeastern Atlantic (original: “in Europa; maxima in lacu Cornachio Ferrariensi”); localities include Sweden; England; Belgium; Germany; Poland; France; Ferrara and Rome, Italy; Lesbos Island, Greece; Syria; no types known].—Syrian synonyms: Anguilla vulgaris Shaw, 1803 .—Revisions: Ege (1939: 90).— Illustration: Kottelat & Freyhof (2007: 62, fig.).

Status in Syria. First record from Syria by Pellegrin (1911: 109) as Anguilla vulgaris ; confirmed by Gruvel (1931); Beckman (1962: 46); Saad et al. (2006); Barakat et al. (2020).—Syrian material: MCZ, MNHN, MSL.

Distribution and habitat. Distribution in Syria: Mediterraean watersheds.—Distribution in River Basin: 4-Orontes, 6-Coastal.—General distribution: Western Atlantic: larvae in Sargasso Sea and Gulf Stream; eastern Atlantic, Baltic Sea, North Sea, White Sea, Mediterranean Sea, Sea of Marmara, Black Sea: European seas and adjacent watersheds, spawning and larval migration routes to and from the western Atlantic. Introduced in the Caspian Sea basin.—Distribution in Ecoregion: 436-Coastal Levant, 437-Orontes.—Habitat: This species is catadromous and found in a range of habitats, from small streams to large rivers and lakes, and in estuaries, lagoons, and coastal waters. It also occupies open ocean areas during migrations, but it is rarely observed in this habitat. Under natural conditions, it only occurs in bodies of water that are connected to the sea; it is stocked elsewhere. Freshwater, brackish, marine.

Economic importance. No commercial importance.

Conservation. Conservation status in Syria: Unknown.—IUCN: CR ( IUCN 2023).—Threats: ABS, FIT, HAB, EUT, CON, COM, TOU.—Moderate sensitivity to human activities.—Keystone species.—Decline status: Decreasing.—Moderate priority for conservation action.