The European eel is critically endangered following catastrophic population collapse. The welfare of individual eels is affected by multiple human pressures including barriers, pollution, and overfishing.
Individual eels face multiple welfare challenges across their extraordinarily long lifespan of up to 85 years. Turbine passage causes direct physical trauma; parasitic infection causes chronic respiratory impairment; pollution accumulates in tissues causing sublethal toxicity. The population collapse itself reflects a welfare emergency at population scale, with millions of eels failing to complete their life cycle. Restoring river connectivity, improving eel passes, reducing pollution, and ending commercial exploitation are all necessary components of addressing eel welfare. Supporting river restoration is a high-impact action for both eel welfare and freshwater ecosystem health.