Abundance, Habitat Use, and Movement of American Eel in a Recently Restored Watershed.

Turner, Sara¹, Bradford Chase², ¹NOAA Fisheries, GARFO, Gloucester, MA, ²MA DMF, New Bedford, MA

American eel (Anguilla rostrata) is a facultative catadromous species which is assumed to benefit from riverine restoration projects in coastal watersheds, although data are limited. We monitored multiple life stages of American eel in a coastal watershed tributary during and after a major habitat restoration project. Dam removals improve passage, but other environmental variables can influence recruitment and abundance. The abundance of young-of-year and age 1+ eels entering Lake Sabbatia increased in some years, but seem to be limited by streamflow during spring and early summer. Yellow eel abundance in the newly accessible Lake increased, but is strongly related with the environmental conditions within the Lake. Silver eels were documented emigrating the watershed, but data were qualitative due to limitations to thoroughly sampling the full emigration period. This study highlights the complex needs of long-lived, migratory species and some of the environmental conditions that should be considered during restoration project planning and execution.