Rev Fish Biol Fisheries (2005) 15:367–398 DOI 10.1007/s11160-006-0005-8 R E S E A R C H A RT I C L E The European eel (Anguilla anguilla, Linnaeus), its lifecycle, evolution and reproduction: a literature review Vincent J T van Ginneken Ỉ Gregory E Maes Received: March 2005 / Accepted: January 2006 Ó Springer Science + Business Media B.V 2006 Abstract The European eel (Anguilla anguilla Linnaeus 1758) is a species typical for waters of Western Europe Thanks to early expeditions on the Atlantic Ocean by the Danish biologist Johannes Schmidt who found small (