THE EEL-PARE 47 



in huge numbers, overcoming difficulties that seem at 

 first sight insuperable. They often " swarm " up the sides 

 of falls ; they may get up drain-pipes into ponds ; they 

 not infrequently make excursions into the damp grass of 

 meadowland. Perhaps no animal exhausts the possibilities 

 of habitat so thoroughly as the eel it has experience of 

 the deep sea, the open sea, the shore, the river, the pond, 

 and even the solid earth ! 



They may remain in ponds for many years, growing 

 steadily larger year after year, for, like many other fishes, 

 they have no definite limit of growth. There is a record 

 of an eel that was kept in captivity " for upwards of forty 

 years, growing to a length of 4^- ft., being already of large 

 size at the time of its capture." But, however long they 

 may live and thrive in fresh water, they do not breed there. 



Two or three rare cases are known of female eels taken 

 from fresh water which had well developed ovaries or 

 roes, but no evidence of spawning has ever been forth- 

 coming. Furthermore, the eels which are caught going 

 down the rivers to the sea in autumn are not in a ripe con- 

 dition, though it is probable that they very soon become 

 so under the stimulus of their old environment. 



In the ordinary course of events, the females become 

 almost mature " silver " eels in seven or eight years (7-12 

 years) ; we have seen big individuals, approaching a yard 

 in length, descending the Dee at Aberdeen. The males 

 put on " silver" at an earlier age, usually about four and 

 a half years (four and a half to seven), and they are several 

 inches smaller than the females. The maximum dimensions 

 are 19 in. and 39 in. respectively. 



The fact is, then, that as the eels approach maturity 

 they become restless and seek the sea, if they, may attain 

 unto it. For, in some cases, the pond which was with 

 difficulty reached by an elver, is not more easily left by 



