Eel populations are falling, and new protections were defeated. Japan and the US opposed them

SCARBOROUGH, Maine – Eels are the stuff of nightmares — slimy, snakelike creatures that lay millions of eggs before dying so their offspring can return home to rivers and streams. They've existed since the time of the dinosaurs, and some species are more poorly understood than those ancient animals.

Yet they're also valuable seafood fish that are declining all over the world, leading to a new push for restrictions on trade to help stave off extinction.

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Freshwater eels are critically important for the worldwide sushi industry, and some species have declined by more than 90% since the 1980s. The eels have succumbed to a combination of river dams, hydroelectric turbines, pollution, habitat loss, climate change, illegal poaching and overfishing, according to scientists