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Serpent Eel
Ophisurus serpens (Linnaeus, 1758)
A Serpent Eel at Clifton Gardens, Sydney, New South Wales, March 1998. Photo © E. Schlögl. View larger image.
A Serpent Eel caught on hook and line at Quarantine Bay, Eden, New South Wales, January 2007. Photo © S. Chenhall.
The Serpent Eel has an extremely elongate body. The long, slender jaws extend posteriorly beyond the eye.
This species has pectoral fins, but lacks scales, pelvic fins and a caudal fin.
It is sandy brown to olive green above and silvery to pale below. The head pores are black.
The Serpent Eel is one of the longest eel species. It can grow to 2.5 m in length.
Serpent Eels burrow in sandy and silty bottoms. Adults live in offshore sediments but young are found in coastal waters and estuaries. Divers most often see just the head protruding from the substrate.
This species is recorded from Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Europe and the Eastern Atlantic. In Australia it is known from marine waters of southern Queensland around the south of the continent and north to the south-west coast of Western Australia.
View a map of the collecting localities of specimens in the Australian Museum Fish Collection.
Further reading
- Edgar, G.J. 1997. Australian Marine Life: the plants and animals of temperate waters. Reed Books. Pp. 544.
- Castle, P.H.J. in Gomon, M.F., Glover, C.J.M. & R.H. Kuiter (Eds). 1994. The Fishes of Australia's South Coast. State Print, Adelaide. Pp. 992.
- Hutchins, B. & R. Swainston. 1986. Sea Fishes of Southern Australia. Complete Field Guide for Anglers and Divers. Swainston Publishing. Pp. 180.
- Kuiter, R.H. 1996. Guide to Sea Fishes of Australia. New Holland. Pp. 433.
- Kuiter, R.H. 2000. Coastal Fishes of South-eastern Australia. Gary Allen. Pp. 437.
