Temporal dynamics of Japanese eel distribution in the Yangtze River basin
Journal
Endangered Species Research
Journal Volume
60
Start Page
esr01504
ISSN
1863-5407
1613-4796
Date Issued
2026-06-18
Author(s)
Abstract
The Japanese eel Anguilla japonica is a commercially valuable aquaculture species in East Asia, but its habitats and wild populations have declined drastically since the 1960s due to rapid urbanization, industrialization, overfishing, pollution, and extensive riverbank modification. The Yangtze River has long been considered the most important habitat of the species, suggesting that distributional shifts in the basin may closely reflect broader population trends. However, no previous study has comprehensively assessed the spatiotemporal dynamics of Japanese eels across the entire Yangtze River basin. In this study, an extensive literature review was conducted to examine changes in eel distribution from 1960 to 2024, revealing a pronounced downstream contraction over time. Estimates of the effective habitat area indicated that potential habitat declined by approximately 82.5% from the pre-construction stage (1960–1989) to the post-construction stage (2004–2024) of the Three Gorges Dam. Environmental DNA (eDNA) surveys showed findings similar to those of the literature review, suggesting that over the past 2 yr, Japanese eels have been primarily distributed from the Yangtze River estuary to the Poyang Lake outlet. Currently, the ongoing 10 yr fishing ban in the Yangtze River, combined with coordinated international conservation and habitat restoration efforts, will be critical for the potential recovery of Japanese eel populations in East Asia. Continued monitoring of distributional changes will also be essential for evaluating progress in resource recovery.
Subjects
Distribution
Effective habitat area
Environmental DNA
Japanese eel
Yangtze River basin
Publisher
Inter-Research Science Center
Type
journal article