European eel [SEP] IUCN conservation status
species' lifespan in the wild has not been determined, captive specimens have lived over 80 years. According to a report in The Local, a specimen lived 155 years in the well of a family home in Brantevik, a fishing village in southern Sweden. 
Conservation status.
The European eel is a critically endangered species. Since the 1970s, the numbers of eels reaching Europe is thought to have declined by around 90% (possibly even 98%). Contributing factors include overfishing, parasites such as "Anguillicola crassus
during the first year, with few individuals surviving to the second breeding season.
Conservation status.
As of 2002, five species were listed by the IUCN as species of special concern: "Macrognathus aral" (the one-stripe spiny eel), "Monopterus boueti" (Liberian swamp eel), "Monopterus indicus" (Bombay swamp eel), and "Ophisternon candidum" (the blind cave eel) have been classified as Data Deficient, meaning that they require more study to determine their conservation status.