Role of Geosmin, a Typical Inland Water Odour, in Guiding Glass Eel Anguilla anguilla (L.) Migration

Abstract

AbstractOdours are one of the most important cues in anadromous migration in fish, but to date the substances responsible for freshwater attractiveness are not well‐known. This is the first report on the behavioural response of a long‐range migrating fish, the eel, induced by geosmin, an odorant produced by actinomycetes, which is widely distributed in freshwater. The high sensitivity of glass eels towards very diluted solutions of geosmin, the avoidance elicited by the unnatural combination of marine salinity and earth smell, and evidence of a strong attraction as the level of salinity is reduced, indicate geosmin to be identified as an important inland water marker involved in the orientation of glass eels towards freshwater.