Short finned eel
Last Modified: 27-5-2021 8:56
© Christopher Cookson License this image
Short finned eels (Anguilla australis), are the commonest of the two native eel species found in New Zealand. They are the most resilient of New Zealand's freshwater fish species, capable of surviving in marginal environments where water quality would not support other fish.
Short finned eels are found throughout New Zealand, and Marlborough is no exception, where they can be found in a number of natural and artificial waterways. With much of what is now Blenheim formerly a flax swamp, the area was an important habitat for eels which provided a major food source for Māori.
This example was observed in an artificial drainage channel that forms an extension to Sutherland Stream in Blenheim. They have also been observed at the Taylor Dam, and in the Taylor River.
Image Date: 4/12/2018
Photographer: Christopher Cookson
Location: Latitude: -41.533436 Longitude: 173.965897