How do eels grow?

Eels grow through a complex life cycle that includes several distinct stages. They begin as eggs laid in the ocean, hatching into larvae called leptocephali, which drift with ocean currents for several months. As they migrate towards freshwater or coastal environments, they transform into glass eels, then into elvers, and finally into adult eels. Throughout this process, they undergo significant physical changes, adapting to their environments until they reach maturity, at which point they return to the ocean to spawn.