New Zealand scientists are hoping tags on ten longfin eels will help them pinpoint where in the Pacfic Ocean they go to spawn.
NIWA freshwater ecologist, Dr Paul Franklin, says the eels spend most of their lives in New Zealand but it is a mystery where exactly the female eels swim to, to begin their life cycle.
Dr Franklin told Jenny Meyer previous research indicates a likely breeding zone is somewhere between Tonga and New Caledonia and he hopes the electronic tags they are attaching to eels this week will show results around Christmas time.
Releasing eels after tagging. Photo: Stu Mackay/ NIWA
