{"id":2215,"date":"2025-08-21T13:26:00","date_gmt":"2025-08-21T17:26:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/earthmoves.vassarspaces.net\/?p=2215"},"modified":"2025-08-21T11:50:09","modified_gmt":"2025-08-21T15:50:09","slug":"slip-sliding-away","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/earthmoves.vassarspaces.net\/?p=2215","title":{"rendered":"By the Light of the Silvery Moon"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>First published in October, hope you enjoy the story! You can learn more from the <a href=\"https:\/\/earthmoves.vassarspaces.net\/?page_id=2285\">Scenic Secrets<\/a> podcast, also found at Modern Marinade.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The journey is long and dark, over 3000 miles, beginning in the Sargasso Sea. First, the tiny leaf-shaped, transparent larvae drift along the ocean currents towards the east coast of the US; then, they transform into wriggly glass eels only a few inches long, swimming and dashing along, until they enter the mouth of the Hudson River. Thousands (once there were millions) of tiny eel fish swim up the Hudson, a journey that takes several months in the early spring, through cold, dark waters, mostly at night. Many of the eels stop to grow and live for a decade or more in the brackish and then freshwater streams in Poughkeepsie and points north. Once they&#8217;ve grown large enough, as silver eels, urged by a deep evolutionary instinct, they make their way <strong><em>back<\/em><\/strong> to the Sargasso Sea, another 3000 miles or more, to breed, lay eggs and die.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>The Life Cycle of the American Eel<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"685\" height=\"622\" src=\"https:\/\/earthmoves.vassarspaces.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/eel-life-cycle-2.webp\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2221\" style=\"width:374px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/earthmoves.vassarspaces.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/eel-life-cycle-2.webp 685w, https:\/\/earthmoves.vassarspaces.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/eel-life-cycle-2-300x272.webp 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 685px) 100vw, 685px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Image from: <a href=\"https:\/\/susqnha.org\/riverroots-american-eels\/\">https:\/\/susqnha.org\/riverroots-american-eels\/<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p>The American eel begins its life in the Sargasso Sea, which is a region in the Atlantic ocean near Bermuda with boundaries that are swirling currents rather than land. Then, during their time in the Hudson River and its tributaries, eels dwell near the bottom sediments of brackish and freshwaters along the Hudson, eating smaller fish, crustaceans and other bottom feeders. Check out the short video below to learn more about the life of this elusive fish.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"American Eel\" width=\"1140\" height=\"641\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/b5mMbnQz2cI?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><strong>A great 5 min video to learn more about the American eel!<\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>The American eel (<em>Anguila rostrata<\/em>), once treasured by Indigenous groups as a staple food and a gift to mark agreements and treaties, teeters on the brink of extinction from overfishing and struggles to evade dams, turbines, chemical pollution and disease to the point that now fewer than 20% of them remain. And, with the huge popularity of sushi, eel &#8220;farming&#8221; depletes the wild populations even further, with massive harvesting of the tiny glass eels when they arrive in northern freshwaters in the spring. Our insatiable appetite is but the latest form of plunder.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>The Invisible Dangers that Lurk in the Water <\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>As they grow and mature in the Hudson and other rivers and streams in the northern US, the eels marinate in and ingest toxic PCBs and other <em><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-vivid-red-color\">forever<\/mark><\/em> chemicals (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.nrdc.org\/stories\/forever-chemicals-called-pfas-show-your-food-clothes-and-home\">PFAs<\/a>) that settle into the sediments and accumulate in the bodies of the eels&#8217; food. The poisonous chemicals impair eel growth and make it harder for them to successfully mate and lay eggs. The toxins gather and concentrate in their bodies, as they fatten and grow large enough to make the long journey back to the Sargasso Sea. They swim back sickly, only to arrive back in the sea unable to make as many healthy offspring before they die.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>A recent <a href=\"https:\/\/pureportal.inbo.be\/en\/publications\/impact-of-chemical-pollution-on-atlantic-eels-facts-research-need\">report<\/a> by Caude Belpaire, Peter Hodson, Fabien Pierron and Marko Freese, who hail from Belgium, Canada, France and Germany, reported on PCBs, pesticides (like DDT), heavy metals and various PFAs at high levels in waterways in Europe, particularly in waters near urban and industrial areas. And those waterways weren&#8217;t the recipient of huge amounts of toxic waste, like the Hudson River, which is a vast superfund site. We are still awaiting news of whether the levels of PCBs in the eels have declined since the dredging. Given that the levels of poisons in the sediments are still too high, it certain the eels are still living with poison in their flesh. The ever-growing human habitation along the river, with the flow of pesticides and other forever chemicals from runoff from grassy lawns into the river, means new sources of poison constantly enter the waters and settle into the sediments where the eels live their lives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Belpaire and colleagues note that eels that have accumulated toxins in their tissues have a harder time swimming and their eggs are unhealthy, causing a decline in survival of offspring. The large adult silver eels living in the contaminated water can&#8217;t muster adequate energy reserves to successfully make it back to the Sargasso Sea to reproduce.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Toxic Up the Food chain<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-9d6595d7 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/clearwater.org\/fishkey\/images\/SunfishBluegillAdult-2x.jpg\" alt=\"\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><a href=\"https:\/\/clearwater.org\/fishkey\/images\/SunfishBluegillAdult.jpg\">Pumpkinseed<\/a> (<em>Lepomis gibbosus<\/em>)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.scenichudson.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Striped-Bass_NYS-DEC-on-Flickr_CC-BY-NC-ND-2.0-1-2048x1536.jpg\" alt=\"\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.scenichudson.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Striped-Bass_NYS-DEC-on-Flickr_CC-BY-NC-ND-2.0-1-scaled.jpg\">Striped bass<\/a> (<em>Morone saxatilis<\/em>)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/assets.hvmag.com\/2019\/01\/KW-Eagle-by-Kevin-Kreischer-1-of-1-8.jpg\" alt=\"\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">American <a href=\"https:\/\/assets.hvmag.com\/2019\/01\/KW-Eagle-by-Kevin-Kreischer-1-of-1-8.jpg\">eagle<\/a> on the Hudson<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>Small fish like the Pumpkinseed fish dine on the tiny glass eels, and the Pumpkinseeds in turn are sustenance for larger fish like striped bass, which are then caught by recreational and commercial fishermen. Larger fish and others dine directly on the teenager elver fish or young adult yellow eels, inadvertently soaking up the toxic chemicals. The poisons move their way up the food chain&#8211; a phenomenon called <strong>bioaccumulation<\/strong>. Then, all those fish suffer harm to <em>their<\/em> growth, behavior and ability to lay eggs. Those fish are food for gulls, osprey, eagles and people, passing along the poisons and the harm. An entire ecosystem sickens.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Dams, turbines, and drag nets, Oh My!<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>On top of the harm from chemical pollution, the eel&#8217;s journey between the Hudson to the Sargasso Sea is riddled with obstacles like dams, industrial turbines, and drag nets. The tributaries that empty from wetlands along the shores are cut off by the building of new condos, factories, roads, strip malls, railroad track repairs. It&#8217;s gotten harder and harder for the eels to make it back to the sea to reproduce.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-9d6595d7 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/clui-files.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/s3fs-public\/styles\/presentation_large\/public\/clui\/presentation\/up%20river%3A%20man-made%20sites%20of%20interest%20on%20the%20hudson%20from%20the%20battery%20to%20troy\/UR_16.jpg?itok=qpyUo61g\" alt=\"\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Landfill and piers in Manhattan- lots of boat\/ferry traffic!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/clui-files.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/s3fs-public\/styles\/presentation_large\/public\/clui\/presentation\/up%20river%3A%20man-made%20sites%20of%20interest%20on%20the%20hudson%20from%20the%20battery%20to%20troy\/UR_23.jpg?itok=jR9tdo0l\" alt=\"\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Engineered roadbeds block eel migration<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/clui-files.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/s3fs-public\/styles\/presentation_large\/public\/clui\/presentation\/up%20river%3A%20man-made%20sites%20of%20interest%20on%20the%20hudson%20from%20the%20battery%20to%20troy\/UR_85.jpg?itok=DszF_Plw\" alt=\"\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A dam across the river<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Oh! But there&#8217;s more&#8230;..ever eat sushi?<\/h2>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"630\" height=\"380\" src=\"https:\/\/earthmoves.vassarspaces.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/sushi-hero-istock-1286622470.webp\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2224\" style=\"width:253px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/earthmoves.vassarspaces.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/sushi-hero-istock-1286622470.webp 630w, https:\/\/earthmoves.vassarspaces.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/sushi-hero-istock-1286622470-300x181.webp 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 630px) 100vw, 630px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p>Most of us have no idea where that yummy sushi roll comes from or the harm caused by the booming eel &#8220;aquaculture&#8221; industry. In fact, the <a href=\"https:\/\/americanunagi.com\/\">major US company<\/a>, based in Maine, gives the impression that they cause no harm to the wild eels. Their web site states that they have &#8220;sustainably sourced eel.&#8221; That&#8217;s not quite true, however, because they harvest 2 million tiny glass eels each year to confine them within growing tanks. According to their website, they purchase &#8220;elvers from licensed Maine eel harvesters&#8221; and then &#8220;raise them in our state-of-the-art aquafarm.&#8221; This isn&#8217;t really farming. It&#8217;s just capture and hold til they&#8217;ve grown big enough to kill for the sushi market. I know I&#8217;ll no longer order the eel on my local sushi restaurant. I really should stop eating sushi altogether&#8230;..but that&#8217;s another story.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>And what about the chemical toxins? If we&#8217;re eating the eel from the Unagi farm, these eels grow up in a controlled environment, not the Hudson river, so their toxin levels are much lower. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">A Growing Community Helping the American Eel<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>We don&#8217;t know much about this shy, nocturnal, fish. Hardly any of us are even aware that they <strong><em>are<\/em><\/strong> fish and not snakes. But there&#8217;s a group dedicated to learning more about these elusive river animals and to saving them from extinction. The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=ZlvMaQemKwU\">Eel Project<\/a> works with local schools like City of Poughkeepsie schools to count and monitor the tiny glass eels when they arrive at the Fallkill Creek and at Norrie Point just a little bit north of Poughkeepsie. A number of dedicated groups of citizens are working to make the Hudson River (and all its inhabitants) healthier and to restore the natural health and beauty, including <a href=\"https:\/\/www.scenichudson.org\/\">Scenic Hudson<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.greenwaylink.org\/\">Friends of the Hudson River<\/a>, and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.clearwater.org\/\">Hudson River Sloop Clearwater<\/a>. They are making a difference!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Sources consulted:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Gansworth, K.L, and Bowser, C.H. (2024) An Anguillid lens: how Eels reconnect people and waterways. Frontiers in Human Dynamics 5: 1270644. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.frontiersin.org\/journals\/human-dynamics\/articles\/10.3389\/fhumd.2023.1270644\/full\">doi: 10.3389\/fhumd.2023.1270644<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Belpaire, C., Hodson, P., Pierron, F. and Freese, M. (2019) Impact of chemical pollution on Atlantic eels: Facts, research needs and implications for management. Curr. Opin. Environ. Sci. Health. 11:26-36. <a href=\"https:\/\/pureportal.inbo.be\/en\/publications\/impact-of-chemical-pollution-on-atlantic-eels-facts-research-need\">doi:org\/10.1016\/j.coesh.2019.06.008<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p>This newsletter is devoted to explaining how biology works and how it is relevant to our daily lives. Most of us stopped learning about biology in high school or even middle school. And the way we learned it was as isolated concepts and vocabulary to memorize. I hope that this newsletter helps you rekindle that love of biology and might even help with better understanding of some of the important biology all around us. Please share this with anyone you think might want to take a look.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-vivid-purple-color\">Thanks for reading!<\/mark><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>First published in October, hope you enjoy the story! You can learn more from the Scenic Secrets podcast, also found at Modern Marinade. The journey is long and dark, over 3000 miles, beginning in the Sargasso Sea. First, the tiny leaf-shaped, transparent larvae drift along the ocean currents towards the east coast of the US;&#8230;<\/p>\n<div class=\"more-link-wrapper\"><a class=\"more-link\" href=\"https:\/\/earthmoves.vassarspaces.net\/?p=2215\"><span class=\"more-text\">Continue reading<\/span><\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2227,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[13],"tags":[20,116,115,34,19,66],"class_list":["post-2215","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-newsletter","tag-chemicals","tag-ecosystem-health","tag-life-in-the-hudson","tag-migration","tag-pesticides","tag-water-quality"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/earthmoves.vassarspaces.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2215","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/earthmoves.vassarspaces.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/earthmoves.vassarspaces.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/earthmoves.vassarspaces.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/earthmoves.vassarspaces.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2215"}],"version-history":[{"count":41,"href":"https:\/\/earthmoves.vassarspaces.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2215\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2941,"href":"https:\/\/earthmoves.vassarspaces.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2215\/revisions\/2941"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/earthmoves.vassarspaces.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/2227"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/earthmoves.vassarspaces.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2215"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/earthmoves.vassarspaces.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2215"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/earthmoves.vassarspaces.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2215"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}