TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The Ministry of Agriculture’s Fisheries Agency announced an eight-month ban on eel fry fishing beginning on Friday (March 1).
Violators of the ban will be subject to a fine between NT$30,000 (US$947) and NT$150,000. Dwindling stocks of eel fry, along with seasonal factors, have led to the ban, per UDN.
Eel fry are young eels that are transparent or glass-like in appearance and less than five centimeters in length. Eel fry is typically caught at night with nets and headlamps in coastal areas and later transported to fish farms for cultivation into adult eels.
Taiwan to enact an 8-month ban on eel fry fishing. (Fisheries Agency image)
The Fisheries Agency said eel fry in Taiwanese waters typically peaks between November and December, and later, decreases month by month. Fishing for wild eel fry is only allowed during this season and is prohibited when stocks are low to conserve the species.
The Fisheries Agency also instructed 15 municipalities to enact a complete ban on the catching of adult eels in the lower reaches of rivers and river basins. This will allow adult eels to return to the sea to spawn.
The Fisheries Agency said stocks of eel fry swimming in Taiwan's coastal waters are not only negatively affected by climate change but also by changes in ocean currents. Without more conservation efforts as well as scientific monitoring, the sustainability of eel stocks could be in jeopardy.
Considerable international concern has been paid to the conservation of the Japanese eel according to the Fisheries Agency. Aside from bans on fishing for adult eels and an eight-month ban on eel fry fishing, measures have been taken to improve their environment such as improving water quality.
In December, the Fisheries Agency and local NGOs released 4,500 Japanese eels into the Lanyang River in Yilan County to increase the wild population. This release also increased the probability of more eel fry in the waters around Taiwan.