African Longfin Eel Anguilla mossambica (Longfin Paling) Info & Photo's
The African Longfin Eel (Anguilla mossambica) was previously known as just the Long-fin Eel or the Long-fin Paling. The African Longfin Eel comes in a few colour variations from Grey to an Olive Brown. They have a jaw that they can hyper-extend, similar to that of a snake and their biting power is very impressive.
African Longfin Eel General Information
The African Longfin Eel can attain lengths of well over 1 meter and reach 6 kilograms in weight. The juvenile Eels enter estuary and river systems, generally at night, and find their way up to the upper reaches of rivers and sometimes enter man made dams/weirs along the way. Once a deep hole is found that suits them, they will stay here until they reach breeding maturity, they will then return to the sea to spawn and breed. They are comfortable in salt and fresh water and are an aquaculture species.
African Longfin Eel Interesting Information
The first African Longfin Eel I caught, was a juvenile close to the Kariega River Mouth and I caught it on a live mullet. It shows how aggressive these fish are as predators, it devoured the entire mullet which was almost as big as the eel. They generally take smaller dead baits but are nocturnal, so night time is the best if you wish to target this Eel.