Ophichthidae is a family of fish in the order Anguilliformes, commonly known as the snake eels. The term "Ophichthidae" comes from Greek ophis ("serpent") and ichthys ("fish"). Snake eels are also burrowing eels. They are named for their physical appearance, as they have long, cylindrical, snake-like bodies. This family is found worldwide in tropical to warm temperate waters. They inhabit a wide range of habitats, from coastal shallows and even rivers, to depths below 800 m (2,600 ft). Most species are bottom dwellers, hiding in mud or sand to capture their prey of crustaceans and small fish, but some are pelagic.
Callechelys is a genus of eels in the snake eel family Ophichthidae. It currently contains the following fifteen species:
Callechelys bitaeniata is an eel in the family Ophichthidae. It was described by Wilhelm Peters in 1877. It is a tropical, marine eel which is known from the western Indian Ocean, including Kenya, Mozambique and Seychelles. Males can reach a maximum total length of 82 centimetres.
Callechelys catostoma, the black-striped snake eel or dark band snake eel,) is an eel in the family Ophichthidae. It was described by Johann Gottlob Theaenus Schneider and Johann Reinhold Forster in 1801. It is a tropical, marine eel which is known from the Indo-Pacific, including the Red Sea, East Africa, the Society Islands, the Ryukyu Islands, and Lord Howe Island. It dwells at a depth range of 1–32 metres, and inhabits reefs. It burrows into loose gravel and sand. Males can reach a maximum total length of 85 centimetres (33 in).
Callechelys cliffi, the sandy ridgefin eel, is an eel in the family Ophichthidae. It was described by James Erwin Böhlke and John Carmon Briggs in 1954. It is a marine, tropical eel which is known from the eastern central Pacific Ocean, including Mexico and Panama. It dwells at a depth range of 0 to 30 metres, and inhabits sand sediments. Males can reach a maximum standard length of 45.5 centimetres (17.9 in).
Callechelys eristigma, the spotted ridgefin eel, is an eel in the family Ophichthidae. It was described by John E. McCosker and Richard Heinrich Rosenblatt in 1972. It is a marine, tropical eel which is known from the eastern central Pacific Ocean, including Costa Rica, Mexico, and Panama. It dwells at a depth range of 5 to 25 metres, and inhabits benthic sediments of rock and sand. Males can reach a maximum standard length of 113 centimetres (44 in).
Callechelys guineensis, the shorttail snake eel, is an eel in the family Ophichthidae. It was described by Balthazar Osório in 1893, originally under the genus Ophichthys. It is a marine, tropical eel which is known from the western and eastern Atlantic Ocean, including Florida, USA, Puerto Rico, Venezuela, the Bahamas, Saint Barthélemy, Senegal, Lesser Antilles, and Cape Verde. It dwells at a depth range of 4 to 35 metres, and inhabits the continental shelf, where it forms burrows in sand and mud. Males can reach a maximum total length of 108 centimetres (43 in).
Callechelys leucoptera is an eel in the family Ophichthidae. It was described by Jean Cadenat in 1954. It is a tropical, marine eel which is known from the eastern Atlantic Ocean, including Senegal to Côte d'Ivoire. It is known to dwell at a depth of 45 metres. It inhabits shallow waters where it forms burrows in the sand, which are sometimes exposed during low tide. Males can reach a maximum total length of 73 centimetres, but more commonly reach a TL of 50 centimetres.
Callechelys lutea, the freckled snake eel or yellow-spotted snake eel, is an eel in the family Ophichthidae. It was described by John Otterbein Snyder in 1904.
Callechelys maculatus is an eel in the family Ophichthidae. It was described by Chu Yuan-Ting, Wu Han-Lin and Jin Xin-Bo in 1981. It is a marine, temperate water-dwelling eel which is known from Pingtan Island, China, in the northwestern Pacific Ocean. Males can reach a maximum total length of 33.8 centimetres.
Callechelys muraena, the blotched snake eel, is an eel in the family Ophichthidae. It was described by David Starr Jordan and Barton Warren Evermann in 1887. It is a rare tropical, marine eel which is known from the western and northwestern Atlantic Ocean, including the United States, the Gulf of Mexico, the Yucatan Peninsula, and Canada. It dwells at a depth range of 27–115 metres. Males can reach a maximum total length of 60 centimetres.
Callechelys papulosa, the blistered snake eel, is an eel in the family Ophichthidae. It was described by John E. McCosker in 1998. It is a tropical, marine eel which is known from Papua New Guinea, in the western central Pacific Ocean. It is known to dwell at a depth of 10 metres, and to inhabit regions of sand and grass. Males can reach a maximum total length of 55.1 centimetres.
Callechelys randalli is an eel in the family Ophichthidae. It was described by John E. McCosker in 1998. It is a tropical, marine eel which is known from the Marquesan Islands, in the eastern central Pacific Ocean. It is known to inhabit sand at a depth of 35 metres. Males can reach a maximum total length of 46.4 centimetres.
Callechelys springeri, the ridgefin eel, is an eel in the family Ophichthidae. It was described by Isaac Ginsburg in 1951, originally under the genus Gordiichthys. It is a marine, tropical eel which is known from the eastern Gulf of Mexico, in the western Atlantic Ocean. It dwells at a depth range of 22 to 36 metres. Males can reach a maximum total length of 80.1 centimeters (31.5 in).
The Surf eel is an eel in the family Ophichthidae. It was described by Barton Warren Evermann and Millard Caleb Marsh in 1900, originally under the genus Sphagebranchus. It is a marine, tropical eel which is known from the western and eastern Atlantic Ocean, including Bermuda, the Bahamas, Florida, USA; Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, northern South America, and St. Helena Island. It dwells at a maximum depth of 35 metres (115 ft), most often between 5 and 15 metres, and forms burrows in sand bottoms in surf areas, from which its common name is derived. Males can reach a maximum total length of 45 centimetres (18 in).
The saddled snake-eel is an eel in the family Ophichthidae. It was described by George Tradescant Lay and Edward Turner Bennett in 1839, originally under the genus Ophisurus. It is a marine, tropical eel which is known from the Indo-Pacific and southeastern Atlantic Ocean, including East and South Africa, the Hawaiian Islands, the Marquesan Islands, the Mangaréva islands, Japan, and Australia. It dwells at a depth range of 0 to 70 metres, most often around 0 to 10 metres, and inhabits lagoons and reefs, in which it forms burrows in beds of seagrass and sandy areas. Males can reach a maximum total length of 66 centimetres (2.17 ft).
The goldspotted eel, also known as the goldspotted snake eel or the dark-spotted snake eel, is an eel in the family Ophichthidae. It was described by Charles Alexandre Lesueur in 1825, originally under the genus Muraenophis. It is a marine, tropical eel which is known from the western and eastern Atlantic Ocean, including Bermuda, southern Florida, USA; the Bahamas, Santa Catarina, and Brazil. It dwells at a maximum depth of 15 metres (49 ft), and inhabits rocky and coral reefs. Males can reach a maximum total length of 110 centimetres (3.6 ft).
The many-eyed snake eel is a species of eel in the family Ophichthidae. It was described by Pieter Bleeker in 1864. It is a tropical, marine and freshwater-dwelling eel which is known from the Indo-Pacific, including East Africa and the Hawaiian Islands. It dwells at a depth of 2 to 25 metres, and inhabits sand and rubble sediments near coral reefs. Males can reach a total length of 62.5 centimetres (24.6 in).
The wrinkled snake eel is an eel in the family Ophichthidae. It was described by David Starr Jordan and Charles Harvey Bollman in 1890. It is a marine, tropical eel which is known from the eastern central and southeastern Pacific Ocean, including the Galapagos Islands and the Cocos Islands. It is also speculated to occur in Malpelo Island. It is known to dwell at a depth of 200 metres (660 ft), and inhabits sediments of sand and rubble. Males can reach a maximum total length of 68 centimetres (27 in).
Phaenomonas longissima, also known as the short-maned sand eel in St. Helena, is an eel in the family Ophichthidae. It was described by Jean Cadenat and Émile Marchal in 1963, originally under the genus Callechelys. It is a marine, tropical eel which is known from the Atlantic Ocean, including Ascension Island, St. Helena, Brazil, Senegal, Ghana, and Cape Verde. It dwells at a depth range of 25 to 35 metres, and forms burrows in sand and mud sediments on the continental shelf. Males can reach a maximum total length of 50 centimetres (20 in).
