Advances in research on reproductive biology of Japanese eel(Anguilla japonica)

Japanese eel (Anguilla japonica) is one of the major species for freshwater cultivation in China, but all fries cultivated are wild elvers captured in estuaries. The shortage of fry has already limited the development of eel aquaculture. Research on the eel artificial propagation techniques must be carried out to satisfy the need of aquaculture. This paper briefly reviewed the advances of reproductive biology of the eel from several aspects, included; (a) artificial induction gonadal development and maturation and spawning; (b) some reproductive biology of post-ovulated eel; (c) the development of embryo and larva. And the latest advance in Japan was especially particularized. Japan has already reared the artificial larva to the adult eel with the body length of 20 cm, and realized the whole artificial culture from the eggs to the adult eels in the laboratory. At last, some questions existed in rearing fry were indicated, and further research must be considered both internal cause and external cause, then the fry and fingerling of the eel could be truly produced in a large scale.