European eels are critically endangered due to barriers to migration, overfishing, and parasite infection. Conservation efforts involve handling and translocation that have welfare implications.
Eel welfare during conservation handling requires specific attention. Glass eels and elvers are particularly fragile and vulnerable to handling stress, oxygen depletion, and disease transmission during translocation. Best practice protocols include temperature-matched water, minimal handling time, and high water quality during transport. The extraordinary life history of eels - potentially decades of growth before a single spawning migration - means that welfare impacts on individual eels have significant consequences for population recovery as well as for the individual animal.