Each year, the publication of the ICES report on the European eel is anticipated across Europe as the moment when the record of the European eel is extended and its condition can once again be examined through the most current and complete data available. The advice brings together national observations from across the eel’s continental range and translates them into a coherent view of the stock, providing the evidence base to inform strategic management by governments, conservationists, and the commercial sector. Amongst the available data, the indices of glass eel recruitment – juvenile eels coming from the ocean into the continental shelf – are the only series considered to cover the whole continent. Other data is of only regional importance, and unfortunately, not all regions are currently represented. Within the dataset of glass eel recruitment, two categories have been defined: the North Sea series refers to the waters east of the United Kingdom, southwest of Norway, and north of Belgium, while the Elsewhere series covers almost the entire remaining continental range. Elsewhere represents about ninety per cent of all recorded glass eel arrivals (with North Sea representing 10%) and provides the principal measure available for the stock’s overall condition.

The graphs we have prepared from the 2025 ICES data present the same information through two contrasting but complementary perspectives. The logarithmic interpretation expands the lower section of the scale and compresses the higher values, making visible the structure of the recent years that might otherwise appear flat. It shows the Elsewhere and North Sea lines moving together through the earlier part of the record, declining through the latter half of the twentieth century, and then forming a stable band from 2011 onwards that extends to the most recent data point in 2025. The form of this section demonstrates that the long period of contraction has ended and that recruitment continues within a consistent range across both series at low level. The linear version restores the sense of scale that defines the historical dimension: recruitment during the 1950s and 1960s dominates the upper part of the figure, while the present appears as a smaller, continuous line near the base. The difference in scale reveals that recruitment now stands at roughly one tenth of its earlier level, and yet still represents tens of millions of glass eels arriving annually.

These trends suggest that the measures introduced through the Eel Regulation and its associated management plans have achieved to end the long-lasting decline, but not the beginning of recovery that was aimed for – further action is required to achieve the minimum protection as agreed in 2007, More action is needed on barrier removal, habitat management, and improved enforcement to crackdown on the illegal trade. This position validates the reasoning of SEG’s Recommendations of 2024, which call for the continuation of existing management plans, the pursuit of the forty per cent survival target, and the proportional reduction of all human pressures. The new data confirms that these recommendations remain relevant and effective, showing that only steadfast implementation over periods of decades produces measurable results.The eel stock now holds its ground under protection and that these Recommendations continue to provide the means through which the population may recover.