lautnusantara.com Just like other fish for consumption, eel cultivation does not require special techniques, but there are several criteria needed to support eel growth. Eel cultivation is also quite profitable because it has not been done too much and has a fairly large market potential, especially the international market.

Getting to Know the Characteristics of Eels

Eel or in Latin called  Anguilla  sp. is a type of fish with a slender and elongated body like an eel. This fish is classified as a fish with a very high protein content so you can use it as an alternative to salmon or other types of fish for consumption.

In addition, eels also have high economic value, so that eel cultivation has the potential to provide great profits. The demand for eels from abroad can reach 500,000 tons each year from East Asian countries such as Japan, Taiwan, South Korea, and China.

The high demand can be caused by the protein contained in eels which is quite high, which is around 16% and has a high vitamin A content. The price of  consumption eel  in Indonesia averages Rp150,000 to Rp250,000 per kg. This is certainly an attraction in itself because of the high profits that can be earned.

At a glance, eels have characteristics similar to eels. The difference lies in the pectoral fins, dorsal fins, anal fins, and caudal fins. Eels have pectoral fins located behind the gill cover and the three fins, namely the dorsal fin, anal fin, and caudal fin, are connected to each other.

Unlike eels that require mud as a breeding ground, eels do not require special conditions to grow, even in their natural habitat, eels can grow in 2 types of water, namely fresh water and sea water. Usually when eels are adults and are about to mate, they will swim to deep sea waters where this event is called ruaya.

Ruaya is the term for migration carried out by eels from shallow waters to deeper sea waters or oceans. The purpose of ruaya is to mate and lay eggs where after mating, the mother eel will die. In one egg-laying period, a female eel can produce up to 13 million eggs that will hatch within 5 days.

After 100-200 days, eel seeds will migrate to waters with low salt content, namely fresh water. Usually eel seeds will gather at river mouths that have a salt content of between 1-2 ppt. The event of seed migration from sea water to fresh water often occurs during the rainy season because the salt content in river mouths is lower.

Read Also : The Gourami Fish: King of Freshwater Fish

Eel Fish Character

Before deciding to run an eel cultivation, you need to know things related to the character of the eel so that you can run the business and make the right decisions. Here are the characteristics of the eel that distinguish it from other farmed fish:

1. Carnivore

Eel is a type of fish that only preys on smaller animals or is called a carnivore. Eel food is very diverse ranging from insects, worms, snails, to small fish. This is because eels require a fairly large amount of protein, namely 50-55% in the starter phase and 45-50% in the grower phase.

2. Nocturnal

Eels are only active at night until sunrise. During the day, eels tend to be passive and often hide. Therefore, you need to pay attention to the feeding time to suit the eel's true nature. Feed can be given after sunset at 18.00-19.00 or can be adjusted to the conditions around the pond.

3. Requires high oxygen

The movement of glass eels from deep waters to shallow waters is due to the high oxygen requirement. Although eels can live in places with low oxygen levels, you still need to provide enough oxygen for the growth of eels. This aims to ensure that the growth of eels is not hampered.

Types of Eel Fish

Eels can grow in almost all regions of Indonesia from Aceh to Papua. The types of  eels  are also very diverse, currently there are 18 types of eels recorded worldwide, 6 of which are found in Indonesia. The following are the types of eels found in Indonesia:

1. Bicolor Eel

The bicolor naming is based on the eel's body which has 2 different colors, namely dark gray on the top and white on the bottom. This type of eel is widely spread on the island of Sumatra from Aceh to Lampung.

Some bicolor eels can also be found in Kalimantan and Java but only in small numbers in their natural habitat. This species is the most common species found in Indonesia.

Read Also : These 5 Types of Freshwater Fish Can Be Consumed

2. Marmorata Eel

Marmorata eels are more often found in the waters of Eastern Indonesia starting from Sulawesi, Kalimantan, Ambon, and Papua. The number of glass eels or Marmota eel seeds in the wild is less and harder to find compared to the Bicolor glass eel.

3. Celebensis Eel

Just like its name, the Celebensis Eel is found mostly on the island of Sulawesi. This type of eel does not have any particular physical characteristics that distinguish it from other eels.

4. Pacifica Eel

Apart from Celebensis, in Sulawesi there is also a type of Pacifica eel which is spread across several regions of Sulawesi and Kalimantan.

5. Borneo Eel

The distribution of Borneoensis eels is only focused on the waters of Kalimantan and is not found on other islands in Indonesia.

6. Australian Eel

The distribution of the Australian eel is wider than other eels because it is spread from the Arafuru waters in Papua to the waters of Northern Australia.

If you intereset our SWEETLIP SKINLESS TIGER, THREADFIN BREAM FILLET BUTTERFLY, TOMATO COD WHOLE GILLED GUTTED please do not hesitate to contact us through email and/or whatsapp.