LENGTH WEIGHT RELATIONSHIPS OF THE EUROPEAN EEL Anguilla anguilla (Linnaeus, 1758) FROM SIX KARST CATCHMENTS OF THE ADRIATIC BASIN, CROATIA

Sa？etak This study presents the first references available for the length–weight relationships(LWRs) of eels from six karstic rivers in Croatia. A total of 380 European eels 13.0–76.0 cm long were collected by electro-fishing from six karst catchments of the Adriatic basin between 2004 and 2007. Eels of34.0 cm in length dominated (over 50%) the catches, while abundance of eel smaller than 15.0 cm was very low. Value b of LWRs remained within the range between 2.5957 and 2.8155, which indicates a negative allometricgrowth. CPUE (g 100 m-1) rapidly declined during the period of sampling, probably due to environmental changes, but also due to global disappearance of this species