Leptocephali are classically
described as being willow-leaf shaped. This shape is ideally suited to being
caught in marine currents to be transported over large distances. Climate
change may be having a direct effect on the way the currents or gyres convey
the eels; the currents have been changing in strength and direction which could
mean that the leptocephali are not being delivered to where they can thrive –
they are missing their target; the warming waters may also be affecting
production of the specific plankton, or the detritus from those plankton types,
that the leptocephali feed on.