Blunt-nosed snake eel
| Blunt-nosed snake eel | ||||||||||||
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Blunt- nosed snake eel ( Echelus myrus ), illustration |
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| Scientific name | ||||||||||||
| Echelus myrus | ||||||||||||
| ( Linnaeus , 1758) |
The snake eel ( Echelus myrus , Syn .: Muraena myrus ) is a species of fish from the snake eel family (Ophichthidae), which is native to the subtropical and tropical Atlantic and the Mediterranean.
Carl von Linné , the first to describe the species, initially assigned the snake eel to the genus Muraena from the moray family .
features
The snake-nosed snake eel is usually approx. 60 cm, at most up to 100 cm long and, like most eel-like species, is very elongated. Towards the end of the body it is flattened on the sides, the anus lies a little in front of the middle of the body. The snout is almost conical (subconical). In contrast to most other species in the family and to moray eels , however, it still has pectoral fins . The dorsal and anal fin can be folded into a deep fold of skin and are well developed. The dorsal fin begins a little behind the base of the pectoral fin. As is typical of the family, the snake eels lack a tail fin .
The body is grayish, mixed with dark yellow or brownish in color. The color becomes darker towards the back. The side line is unpigmented towards the head. The rear third of the dorsal fin and the anal fin is blackish, the two fins are lighter towards the front.
Lateral line with 49–52 preanal pores (ie immediately in front of the anus), 8 prepectoral (directly in front of the pectoral fins) and without supra-temporal (above and behind the eye) pores. The blunt-nosed snake eel has a total of 149 to 155 vertebrae, 54 to 57 of which are abdominal vertebrae .
distribution
In the eastern Atlantic , the species occurs on the coasts of Europe and Africa from the Biscay to the Congo estuary , as well as in the entire Mediterranean including the Balearic Islands .
habitat
The snub-nosed snake eel inhabits the bottom zone of the shelf . There he buries himself in sand or mud so that only the head protrudes. It can be found at depths of 3 to 550 m, in Haifa and Cyprus the species has been observed at depths of 280 to 1490 m.
Reproduction
The reproduction of the species is not yet known in detail. But before was Algiers that spawn in the months of July to August observed. The eggs have a diameter of 3.3 to 3.7 mm.
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b Fishbase
- ↑ a b c d e J.-C. Hureau (ed.): Fishes of the NE Atlantic and the Mediterranean. In: Marine Species Identification Portal. ( Online )
- ↑ a b c Echelus myrus in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2016.3. Posted by: K. Tighe, 2011. Retrieved March 25, 2017.
Web links
- Blunt-nosed snake eel on Fishbase.org (English)