@grumpasaurus
I'm no expert, but understand both are factors, along with dams & weirs obstructing migration.
https://www.fishsec.org/eel/

The amount of cocaine in wastewater is also said to be weakening the #eels! https://therevelator.org/eels-cocaine-climate-change/

@meerlala @greenleejw

@meerlala Indeed! I wonder why the rich ceased to enjoy eating #eels in the #19thCentury - snobbery presumably?

& it is shocking how many foods then cheap enough for everyman have become #CriticallyEndangered.

🙏 @greenleejw for your fascinating insights into both history & ecological change - & your usual #GreatAltText!

https://www.zsl.org/what-we-do/projects/european-eel-conservation

#eel #conservation #FoodHistory #EndangeredSpecies @histodons #SaveOurEels

In medieval London, everyone from kings to peasants ate eels. But by the 19th C eels had largely become a street food.

In 1851, London imported 9.8 million live eels per year (mostly from Holland). 70% went to street vendors selling hot buttered eels in poorer parts of the city.
#eels #medieval #history #london

Pics: Riverside procession celebrates endangered eel’s journey
Photos: Luke Shears
#Southampton #bitternepark #localnews #wildlife #eel #eels

Buying redemption w/ eels wasn't just a medieval English thing. Oh, no!

In 1500 the Duke of Ferarra wanted nuns in Florence to pray for him. But that kinda thing ain't free, & to get his prayers the duke had to make regular payments of eels to the sisters.

Soul food, y'all.
#eels #history #medieval

"Eel experts say they are shocked to find no evidence of eels in the Somerset Levels, which once teemed with the critically endangered fish."

#UK #UnitedKingdom #Eels #Animals

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/aug/23/no-evidence-eel-dna-somerset-levels-analysis-water-shows

Most eel-rents were paid in preserved fish (usually cold smoked). There were rents for fresh eels, but these were always for smaller numbers.

For example, in 1100 the priory of Hurley collected an annual rent from a property near Ely of 1500 dried & 40 "fat" (fresh) eels.
#eels #medieval #history

Follow @greenleejw for #GreatAltText as well as #eel #history - one for you @FediFollows?
(*Also to marvel at the historic importance of #eels & lament how few survive nowadays...)
#AltText #SpeciesDecline @histodons

Some dating advice, friends: mind your eel.

The 16th C composer Thomas Whythorne wrote that maids go for looks, but widows have...um...other priorities. To court an experienced woman, he said, you "must not carry quick eels in your codpiece, but show some proof of being stiff." #eels #history #medieval #datingadvice

Friends...it's Friday! So here, for your enjoyment, is a 15th C. marginal fellow is off to have a good time with an amazing eel.

I hope that your weekend plans include fun and amazing things, too! #eels #medieval #history #friday

Procession to celebrate the great eel run; production of eel banners, eel costumes, fancy dress and other “eely-related paraphernalia” encouraged...
https://bitternepark.info/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=12689:procession-to-celebrate-the-great-eel-run&catid=166&Itemid=92
#Southampton #bitternepark #Southampton #localnews #wildlife #fish #eels #river

It's 1677 & you're jonesing for eels. But foreign eels are banned. What to do?

You order out! In Sept 1677, Lord Conway wanted eels "very suddenly" & ordered 3 firkins sent from his Irish estates.

He offered to send back a guitar in payment but his Dublin agent already had 2.
#medieval #history #eels

Today I was listening to "Electro-Shock Blues" by Eels (1998)
#music #listening #Eels

Do you fear you've being cheated? That your barrel of eels isn't all it seems?

Fret not! In 1483, tired of shady salesmen -- especially Dutch & Scottish ones -- Parliament decreed that a barrel of eels must be full, & hold 42 lbs. of fish.

PLUS, all the eels must be edible! #eels #medieval #history #eelscam

I'm having a surprisingly busy day, and am very late today with my eel tweet. But don't worry, friends...I won't leave you eel-less. Please enjoy this wonderful interlinear eel and heron. They make me happy. #eels #heron #medieval #history

Medieval landlords collected eels in rent, but they also sometimes paid them out.

In the 1250s, the Bishop of Ely had 94 tenants in Tydd St. Giles who had to spend several days each year farming him. And on those days the Bishop owed them each some bread, some cheese, & 5 eels.
#eels #medieval #history

London was a great market for eels from the 15th C. onward. Many were imported by the Dutch, but not all.

In the late 19th C. fishermen from the Norfolk Broads sold their eels in Billingsgate each fall, & the profits were enough to carry them through rest of the year if need be. #eels #medieval #history

Because of recent events:

#NowPlaying Eels - I Like Birds 🐦

https://song.link/y/32J5jCP1z9A

#TomsBird #TomsNowPlaying #Eels

In 1544 an English merchant in Calais named Otwell Johnson wrote to his brother John, & asked him to remind their sister to buy some eels in London for Lent.

Which is basically the 16th C. version of texting someone to stop by the store on the way home. #eels #history #medieval

Quite interesting…

The lifecycle and biology of American eel (kataq in Mi'kmaw) and their unique life cycle! Since 1963, the Canadian Wildlife Federation and Environment Canada have been producing top-quality video spots supported by detailed fact sheets, lesson plans and calls to action, all in the name of understanding and protecting Canada's diverse wildlife. #fish #AtlanticCanada #novascotia #eels #canada #usa #nature
https://youtu.be/PusynXYasEg https://mastodon.sdf.org/@gdjp/110831450299364313