Rice-paddy eel

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Rice-paddy eel
Pisodonophisboro.jpg
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Anguilliformes
Family: Ophichthidae
Genus: Pisodonophis
Species:
P. boro
Binomial name
Pisodonophis boro
(Hamilton, 1822)
Synonyms [2]
  • Ophisurus boroHamilton, 1822, Kuchiya in Assamese
  • Ophichthys boro(Hamilton, 1822)
  • Pisodontophis bora(Hamilton, 1822)
  • Pisoodonophis boro(Hamilton, 1822)
  • Ophisurus haranchaHamilton, 1822
  • Ophisurus caudatusMcClelland, 1844
  • Ophisurus sinensisRichardson, 1848
  • Ophiurus baccidensCantor, 1849
  • Ophisurus baccidensCantor, 1849
  • Conger microstomaEydoux & Souleyet, 1850
  • Ophisurus brachysomaBleeker, 1853
  • Ophisurus schaapiiBleeker, 1853
  • Ophisurus schaapiBleeker, 1853
  • Ophisurus potamophilusBleeker, 1854
  • Pisodonophis assamensisSen, 1986

The rice-paddy eel (Pisodonophis boro; also known commonly as the Bengal's snake-eel, the estuary snake eel, or the snake eel [3] ) is an eel in the family Ophichthidae (worm-snake eels). [4] It was described by Francis Buchanan-Hamilton in 1822, originally in the genus Ophisurus . [5] It is a tropical, marine eel which is known from the Indo-West Pacific, including Somalia, Tanzania, South Africa, India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Indonesia, Polynesia, Australia, Bangladesh, Cambodia, Kenya, Madagascar, the Philippines, Malaysia, Mozambique, Seychelles, Saudi Arabia, Taiwan, China, Thailand, Vietnam, and southern Yemen. [4] [1] It is an anadromous species and spawns in freshwater, often in rice paddies during the rainy season, earning it its common name. It also spends time in lagoons, estuaries and coastal rivers, in which it lives in burrows in the river bottom and bank. Males can reach a maximum total length (TL) of 100 centimetres, but more commonly reach a TL of 70 cm. [4]

The rice-paddy eel is of minor commercial interest to fisheries; it is caught in bag nets and marketed fresh. [4] Its diet consists of bony fish and crabs such as Uca annulipes ; [6] as a nocturnal creature it forages actively during the night. [4] Due to its widespread, albeit thinly populated distribution, and lack of major threats, the IUCN redlist currently lists the rice-paddy eel as Least Concern. It notes, however, that the species is subject to agricultural pollution. [1]

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<i>Myrichthys tigrinus</i> Species of fish

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marble-toothed snake-eel</span> Species of fish

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sona sea catfish</span> Species of fish

The Sona sea catfish, also called the marine catfish or the dusky catfish, is a species of catfish in the family Ariidae. It was described by Francis Buchanan-Hamilton in 1822, originally under the genus Pimelodus. It inhabits rivers, estuaries and marine coasts around Pakistan, Indonesia, Polynesia and Thailand. It reaches a maximum total length of 92 cm (36 in), but more commonly reaches a TL of 55 cm (22 in). Its maximum known life expectancy is 6 years. Males and females mate for life.

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Hexanematichthys sagor, the Sagor catfish, Sagor sea catfish, Sunda sea-catfish, marine catfish or dusky catfish, is a species of catfish in the family Ariidae. It was described by Francis Buchanan-Hamilton in 1822, originally under the genus Pimelodus. It inhabits estuaries and freshwater bodies in numerous areas of the Indo-Western Pacific Ocean. It reaches a maximum total length of 45 cm (18 in), more commonly reaching a TL of 30 cm (12 in).

References

  1. 1 2 3 Chaudhry, S. (2010). "Pisodonophis boro". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2010: e.T166552A6234729. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2010-4.RLTS.T166552A6234729.en . Retrieved 6 August 2023.
  2. Synonyms of Pisodonophis boro at www.fishbase.org.
  3. Common names for Pisodonophis boro at www.fishbase.org.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 Pisodonophis boro at www.fishbase.org.
  5. Hamilton, F., 1822 [ref. 2031] An account of the fishes found in the river Ganges and its branches. Edinburgh & London. i-vii + 1-405, Pls. 1-39.
  6. Food items reported for Pisodonophis boro at www.fishbase.org.