ASSOCIATED PRESS • March 14, 2024
They’re wriggly, they’re gross and they’re worth more than $2,000 a pound— more than 400 times more than lobster, Maine’s signature seafood. And soon, fishermen might be able to catch thousands of pounds of them for years to come. Baby eels, also called elvers, are likely the most valuable fish in the United States on a per-pound basis — worth orders of magnitude more money at the docks than lobsters, scallops or salmon. That’s because they’re vitally important to the worldwide supply chain for Japanese food. This year’s elver season starts next week.