Eels' helping hand for epic 4,000-mile trip

DEDICATED eel lanes are being created in two British rivers to help them on their 4,000-mile transatlantic journey from the Sargasso Sea.

- By Ben Mitchell

So-called "fish passes" are being installed at artificial structures such as dams and weirs so European eels can swim around them.

And "eel brushes" – strips of bristles – have been added at some sites, too, to help them manoeuvre upstream.

The scheme by the South Downs National Park Authority in its Rother and Ems rivers is being carried out in conjunction with the Western Sussex Rivers Trust.