158 A NATURAL HISTORY OF THE SEAS 



because it is the longest is that of the Eel {Anguilla vulgaris)^ 

 which makes its way from its nursery in the West Indian 

 waters to the opposite sides of the Atlantic. The Eel 

 in fact reverses the Salmon's progamme, breeding in the 

 sea and resorting to fresh-waters for food and growth. 

 For centuries the complete life history of the Eel 

 and its origin was a mystery and the subject for much 



2." i^year 



3" 3 rd year 



<- .«.. »» J^m - *">?!!« 



Development of Eel 



speculation, and it is only as the result of careful research 

 in recent years that the mystery has been solved. Pliny 

 and Aristotle believed that Eels originated from mud at 

 the bottom of the sea and that they had no sex ; whilst 

 other curious beliefs were that the fish originated from 

 horse hairs dropped from the animals' tails when wading 

 in the water, from maydew, from the gills of other fishes 

 and from aquatic beetles. 



It was not until the year 1904 that Dr. Johannes 



