The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation April 6, announced its 14th annual eel monitoring program has begun. All along the Hudson River estuary, volunteers will be donning waders and venturing into tributary streams in the coming days to participate in the department's ongoing research on migrating juvenile American eels, DEC Commissioner Basil Seggos said. The project was initiated by the Hudson River Estuary Program and Hudson River National Estuarine Research Reserve to gather data for multi-state management plans for eel conservation. Eel collection takes place at most sites daily from early April through mid-May. Since the project began, volunteers have caught, counted and released more than one million juvenile eels into upstream habitats, according to a DEC press release. The glass eels will be monitored at 10 sites on the Hudson River from New York Harbor to the Capital Region, following strict COVID-19 safety protocols to prevent the community spread of the coronavirus. All sampling is conducted outdoors, with masks and physical distancing required. "New York is home to significant habitat that is critical to the life-cycle of many migratory fish species," said Seggos. "The Hudson River Eel Project is an excellent way to connect students and local residents with nature while gathering data that can be valuable for the future study of this species and its role in our ecosystem." Read more at dec [dot] ny [dot] gov.