Metropolis Eel
From Mercuriushaven to Petroleumhaven, fisherman Piet Ruyter took us out on his boat to check his eel traps for eels, crabs and other unexpected catches in the waters behind central station. As one of the last remaining independent fishermen fishing in the Amsterdam waterways he’s really a living Amsterdam icon.
Piet pulls up one of the flag poles that marks his eel traps
The eel population in the lowlands is diminishing drastically. Younger glass eels are caught along the french and spanish coasts before they make it to the northern waters. Piet, however, still has a license to fish. His eel catches are sold to feed a small market demand (namely to be smoked). Still making his own nets by hand, and whittling the flag poles, not to mention the time it takes to check and reset the traps, his fishing method is traditional yet extraordinarily laborious. At such a rate, Amsterdam’s natural eel stock certainly doesn’t risk depletion.
We were priveledged enough to be able to join him on a trip to check his traps. Our main interest was to see if there to see how mitten crabs were crept their way into the traps as ‘bijvangst’. According to Piet there’s a whole secret army of mitten crabs along the murky waterbed of the Amsterdam harbour. Along with the eels, these crabs venture into the traps. Not always a welcome thing as they can cut-claw holes in the precious nets. Piet ended up hauling in 50 or so crabs and a few kilos of eel and a small frenzy of fish.
Hauling in the net
Petroleum harbour, one of the harbours where Piet places his eel traps
A chinese mitten crab!
Eels, crabs and other creatures just caught
Zwarte grondel (Black Goby, Gobius niger) fish. An innocent looking, but actually somewhat ferocious fish (has many little teeth) originally from the Caspian sea and since the last years on the increase in Amsterdam.