Radio 4 investigates the decline of the eel

Eels arrive in the Britain having swum an 'exhausting 4,000-mile marathon swim from the Sargasso Sea where they have spawned.For generations, their arrival was greeted with much anticipation by fishermen on the Rivers Severn and Wye where they were caught at night and often used in dishes and delicacies. 

But the eel is in trouble and has been placed on the Red List of Fish to Avoid by the Marine Conservation Society who class it as critically endangered'. (Radio 4)

Helen Mark meets some of the people involved with trying to save the eel including fisherman Richard Cook who is teaching schoolchildren about the importance of fish, rivers and the environment  by giving the children tanks of eels to look after before they are released back into the wild..

Helen also talks to the Marine Conservation Society about the reasons why eels have been be classed as critically endangered and placed on the Red List.  Andrew Kerr of the Sustainable Eel Group discusses a recovery plan to protect and preserve the eel.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b01kblcs

Thursday, 15:00 on BBC Radio 4