The Congridae are the family of conger and garden eels. Congers are valuable and often large food fishes, while garden eels live in colonies, all protruding from the sea floor after the manner of plants in a garden. The family includes over 220 species in 32 genera.
Leptocephalus is a genus that was used for species of larval eels, called leptocephali. Leptocephali larvae differ so much in appearance from their adults. When first discovered, leptocephali were thought to be a distinct type of fish, not an eel specie. Because of this, the genus designation of Leptocephalus was used for a while for an unidentified leptocephali. After it was known that these were eel larvae, it was identified to be part of a wastebasket taxon, but not anymore in the present classification system. Examples of marine congrid larvae, found in the western Indian Ocean and the Red Sea that were named this way are listed below. Only two species in two families are currently treated as having any validity, though the validity of L. bellottii is strongly in doubt.
Eels are ray-finned fish belonging to the order Anguilliformes, which consists of eight suborders, 20 families, 164 genera, and about 1000 species. Eels undergo considerable development from the early larval stage to the eventual adult stage and are usually predators.
Gavialiceps is a genus of eels in the family Congridae, the conger eels.
Facciolella is a genus of eels in the duckbill eel family Nettastomatidae.
Nettenchelys is a genus of eels in the duckbill eel family Nettastomatidae.
Saurenchelys is a genus of eels in the duckbill eel family Nettastomatidae.
Eels are elongated fish, ranging in length from five centimetres (2 in) to four metres (13 ft). Adults range in weight from 30 grams to over 25 kilograms. They possess no pelvic fins, and many species also lack pectoral fins. The dorsal and anal fins are fused with the caudal or tail fin, forming a single ribbon running along much of the length of the animal. Most eels live in the shallow waters of the ocean and burrow into sand, mud, or amongst rocks. A majority of eel species are nocturnal and thus are rarely seen. Sometimes, they are seen living together in holes, or "eel pits". Some species of eels live in deeper water on the continental shelves and over the slopes deep as 4,000 metres (13,000 ft). Only members of the family Anguillidae regularly inhabit fresh water, but they too return to the sea to breed.
Promyllantor adenensis is an eel in the family Congridae. It was described by Wolfgang Klausewitz in 1991, originally under the genus Bathycongrellus. It is a marine, deep water-dwelling eel which is known from the Indo-Western Pacific, including the Gulf of Aden and the Lord Howe Seamount Chain. It is known to dwell at a depth range of 2,227 to 2,325 metres. Males can reach a maximum total length of 51.2 centimetres (20.2 in).
Gorgasia cotroneii is an eel in the family Congridae. It was described by Umberto D'Ancona in 1928, originally under the genus Leptocephalus. It is a marine, tropical eel which is known from the Red Sea, in the western Indian Ocean.
Heteroconger congroides is an eel in the family Congridae. It was described by Umberto D'Ancona in 1928, originally under the genus Leptocephalus. It is a marine, deepwater-dwelling eel which is known from the Kamaran Islands in Yemen, in the Red Sea, in the western Indian Ocean. It is known only from larvae, which are known from a depth of 522 m (1,710 ft).
Gavialiceps bertelseni is an eel in the family Muraenesocidae. It was described by Emma Stanislavovna Karmovskaya in 1993. It is a marine, deep water-dwelling eel which is known from the southwestern slope of Madagascar, in the western Indian Ocean. It dwells at a depth range of 670 to 1,200 metres. Males can reach a maximum total length of 84 centimetres (33 in).
Gavialiceps javanicus, the duckbill conger, is an eel in the family Muraenesocidae. It was described by Emma Stanislavovna Karmovskaya in 1993. It is a marine, deep water-dwelling eel which is known from the Indo-West Pacific, including northwestern Australia, Java, and Indonesia. It dwells at a depth range of 560–600 metres. Males can reach a maximum total length of 89 centimetres.
Gavialiceps taeniola is an eel in the family Muraenesocidae. It was described by Alfred William Alcock in 1889. It is a marine, deep water-dwelling eel which is known from the Indian Ocean, including the Arabian Sea, Oman, and the Bay of Bengal. It dwells at a depth range of 350 to 1,046 metres. Males can reach a maximum total length of 64.7 centimetres (25.5 in).
Gavialiceps taiwanensis is an eel in the family Muraenesocidae. It was described by Johnson T. F. Chen and Herman Ting-Chen Weng in 1967, originally under the genus Chlopsis. It is a marine, deep water-dwelling eel which is known from the northwestern Pacific Ocean, including Taiwan and Okinawa, Japan. It dwells at a depth range of 600 to 750 metres. Males can reach a maximum total length of 75.7 centimetres (29.8 in).
Facciolella saurencheloides is an eel in the family Nettastomatidae. It was described by Umberto D'Ancona in 1928. It is a marine, deep water-dwelling eel which is known from the northwestern and western Indian Ocean, including the Red Sea. It dwells at a depth range of 700–2,000 metres (2,300–6,560 ft).
Saurenchelys lateromaculata is a species of eel in the family Nettastomatidae. It was described by Umberto D'Ancona in 1928, originally under the genus Leptocephalus. It is a marine, tropical eel which is known from the Indo-Western Pacific, including the South China Sea and possibly also the Red Sea.
The saddled snake-eel, also known commonly as the halfbanded snake-eel, the banded snake eel, or the culverin, 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).
Ophichthus echeloides is an eel in the family Ophichthidae. It was described by Umberto D'Ancona in 1928. It is a marine, tropical eel which is known from the Gulf of Aqaba and the Red Sea, in the western Indian Ocean. Males can reach a maximum total length of 51 centimetres (20 in).
Rhynchocalamus arabicus, the Aden kukri snake, is a species of snake of the family Colubridae.
