American Eel HabitatAmerican Eel Rises to Prominence in Ottawa River

American eels in the Ottawa River have risen to prominence because of Ontario's new Endangered Species Act which took effect on June 30, 2008. The new Act provides protection for species and their habitats. The Ottawa River has been chosen as one of four Ontario river systems where recovery strategies will be implemented.

Eels comprised a stunning 50% of all fish biomass before industrial development of the Ottawa River. This availability made the eels accessible to Aboriginal people and early settlers in the watershed. Aboriginal people used the eel in many ways, not just for food. The oil was used for earache relief, sunburn treatment, insect repellent and massage lubricant. Eel skin is very durable so was used to make lacrosse balls and tool and bow grips and to lash objects together. Because the skin shrinks when dried it was applied as headbands for sinus headaches, for setting broken bones and as support hose for wrists and ankles long before modern athletes used tensor bandages. Eel fat was used to waterproof clothing.

American Eel/L'anguille d'AmériqueAmerican eels, which should not be confused with lampreys, grow to more than a metre in length. They start life in the Sargasso Sea near Bermuda but migrate well into the interior of North America's freshwater rivers, climbing out of water to pass rapids and falls. The eels swim upstream to the extremities of various tributaries including the Gatineau River. After about 20 years, when they approach maturity, they must swim back to the Sargasso Sea to spawn. During this downstream migration many are killed by hydroelectric turbines.

Long ago eels were used as the favourite travelling food since they have a higher caloric value than any other fish or animals so were lighter and less bulky to carry. In times of extreme hunger Aboriginal people even sucked on the fringes of buckskin on their clothing which had been covered in eel fat during times of plenty. In modern times the eel population has declined, largely because of mortality at hydroelectric turbines, so the way we as a society treat them now has become a symbol of the way we care for our most endangered species. For that reason the American eel is known as a bellwether species. The American eel, historically important in the Ottawa/Gatineau region long ago, is sure to be in the news again as recovery efforts in modern times rebuild the eel population.

Written by Bill Allen, Heritage One Research