![]() ![]() Eel fish can inhabit many types of habitat including oceans, rivers, lakes, and smaller bodies of water. It is possible for them to inhabit a small or large range because each species has its own unique distribution. The population of all 800 species worldwide is unknown. ©Vladimir Wrangel/ Eel Distribution, Population, and Habitat The term does not refer to a fish species but the larval stage referring to the fish’s life stage after hatching up to adulthood ![]() The larvae are called glass eels, so named due to their transparency. These fish have no pelvic fins and many lack pectoral fins. They are also characterized by strong jaws and small, sharp teeth. However, all have long snakelike or wormlike bodies that end in a modified tail fin that is really the fusion of the dorsal and anal fins. For example, wolf eels are a species of wolffish that differs from true species with their paired gill slits and pectoral fins, while the lamprey has a toothed, funnel-shaped mouth. Eel Appearanceĭifferent species vary in appearance by their length, color, mouth, and fins. The conger and muraena have powerful jaws with sharp teeth strong enough to drag people, while several shocks from an electric eel can cause respiratory or heart failure in people with underlying heart issues. Conger, electric, fire, and muraena are the most dangerous species. There are over 800 species, including snake-like fish and true eels. Lampreys are jawless fish of the class Hyperoartia, order Petromyzontiformes, and superclass Cyclostomata. Morays are of the family Muraenidae however, the ribbon eel is sometimes classed in its own family Rhinomuraenidae. The scientific name of the ribbon eel, also known as the leaf-nosed moray or bernis, is Rhinomuraena quaesita. The wolf eel‘s scientific name is Anarrhichthys ocellatus. It is also an air-breather and, unlike true species, lives in freshwater. The electric eel is not a true eel but a knifefish, related to carp and catfish, and a member of the order Gymnotiformes and the genus Electrophorus. Only members of the order Anguilliformes are true eels. They are also Teleosts, or members of the infraclass Teleostei, which contains 96% of all currently existing fish species.Ĭonger or true eels (Conger conger) are members of the family Congridae which includes both congers and garden eels. ![]() They are further classed from the Phylum Chordata into the Actinopterygii Class. There are 19 families, 111 genera, and approximately 800 species. Onejaws have no upper jaw but unusually large mouths, and none of the 15 species exceed 7 inches in length.Īnguilliforms include freshwater as well as saltwater fish such as marine morays.The gulper ( pelican) has an incredibly large mouth resembling a pelican’s pouch.The largest eel ever recorded was a European conger that reportedly reached 350 pounds!.The slender giant moray is the longest species at 13 feet.A few freshwater species have become endangered due to human over-consumption. The eel fish can be anywhere from a few inches to 13 feet or more in length. They are ray-finned fishes of the order Anguilliformes, with the term “eel” referring to snake-like fish such as electric, ribbon, wolf eels, lampreys, and morays along with true eels for a total of 800 species. Although these fish are very snakelike in appearance, they are actually fish. The most dangerous eel species is the conger. The body of an eel has a slimy coating, hence the phrase, “Slippery as an eel.” ![]()
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