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.
Gnathophis habenatus, the little conger eel or silver conger, is a conger of the family Congridae, found on soft bottoms of the continental shelf of the Indian and southwest Pacific Oceans. Length is up to 43 cm.
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.
Xenomystax is a genus of eels in the family Congridae. It currently contains the following species:
The Congrinae are a subfamily of eels in the family Congridae.
The Indo-Pacific shorttail conger, also known as the short-tail conger, is an eel in the family Colocongridae. It was described by Chan William Lai-Yee in 1967. It is a marine, deep-water dwelling eel which is known from the Indo-Pacific, including southern Mozambique, Natal, South Africa, the South China Sea, and eastern Australia. It dwells at a maximum depth of 810 metres (2,660 ft). Males are known to reach a maximum total length of 51 centimetres (20 in).
The Gilbert's garden eel, also known as the Gilbert's conger and the sharpnose conger, is an eel in the family Congridae. It was described by James Douglas Ogilby in 1898, originally under the genus Congrellus. It is a tropical, marine eel which is known from the eastern central and southeastern Pacific Ocean, including the Gulf of California, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Ecuador, Guatemala, Mexico, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama, and Colombia. It is a benthic and nocturnal species, and inhabits sand flats in reefs, bays and coves at a depth range of 1–100 metres. It burrows into sand during the day and emerges to forage during the night. Males can reach a maximum total length of 27 centimetres.
The slope conger, also known as the black-fin conger, is an eel in the family Congridae. It was described by Charles Henry Gilbert in 1891, originally under the genus Ophisoma. It is a marine, deep water-dwelling eel which is known from the southeastern and eastern central Pacific Ocean, including Colombia, Ecuador, Costa Rica, Honduras, El Salvador, Mexico, Guatemala, Nicaragua, Panama, and Peru. It is known to dwell at a depth range of 380–740 metres, and inhabits substrates. Males can reach a maximum total length of 35 centimetres.
The tropical conger, also known as the Scheele's conger, is an eel in the family Congridae. It was described by Pehr Hugo Strömman in 1896, originally under the genus Leptocephalus. It is a tropical, marine eel which is known from the Indo-Pacific, including Natal and Mozambique. It inhabits reefs in lagoons, and is known to dwell at a depth of 9 metres. Males can reach a maximum total length of 20 centimetres (7.9 in).
The shortsnout conger, also known as the thicklip conger, is an eel in the family Congridae. It was described by Samuel Garman in 1899, originally under the genus Atopichthys. It is a tropical, marine eel which is known from the eastern central Pacific Ocean, including Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, and Panama. It leads a reclusive, benthic, burrowing lifestyle, and typically dwells at a depth range of 27–2198 metres. Males can reach a maximum total length of 30 centimetres.
Acromycter alcocki is an eel in the family Congridae. It was described by Charles Henry Gilbert and Frank Cramer in 1897, originally under the genus Promyllantor. It is a marine, deep water-dwelling eel which is known from Hawaii, in the eastern central Pacific Ocean. It dwells at a depth range of 388–640 metres. Males can reach a maximum total length of 25.3 centimetres.
The shorthead conger is an eel in the family Congridae. It was described by Charles Henry Gilbert in 1891, originally under the genus Ophisoma. It is a marine, deep water-dwelling eel which is known from the Gulf of California to Panama, in the eastern central Pacific Ocean. It dwells at a depth range of 265–590 metres. Males can reach a maximum total length of 25 centimetres.
The largehead conger is an eel in the family Congridae. It was described by Samuel Garman in 1899, originally under the genus Uroconger. It is a marine, deep water-dwelling eel which is known from southern Canada to Chile, in the eastern Pacific Ocean. It dwells at a depth range of 165–935 metres. Males can reach a maximum total length of 100 centimetres.
Conger erebennus is an eel in the family Congridae. It was described by David Starr Jordan and John Otterbein Snyder in 1901, originally under the genus Leptocephalus. It is a marine, temperate water-dwelling eel which is known from Japan and the Korean Peninsula, in the northwestern Pacific Ocean. It is also called the "anaconda" アナコンダ in Tokyo, Japan.
Gnathophis cinctus, the hardtail conger or Catalina conger, is an eel in the family Congridae. It was described by Samuel Garman in 1899, originally under the genus Atopichthys. It is a tropical, marine eel which is known from the eastern central and southeastern Pacific Ocean, including Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Peru, and the United States. It dwells at a depth range of 9–336 metres, and leads a benthic lifestyle, burrowing into loose sand. Males can reach a maximum total length of 42 cm.
Gnathophis longicauda, the little conger, little conger eel or silver conger, is an eel in the family Congridae. It was described by Edward Pierson Ramsay and James Douglas Ogilby in 1888, originally under the genus Congromuraena. It is a marine, temperate water-dwelling eel which is endemic to Australia, in the Indo-West Pacific. It dwells at a depth range of 2–99 metres, and inhabits the continental shelf and slope.
Rhynchoconger trewavasae is an eel in the family Congridae. It was described by Adam Ben-Tuvia in 1993. It is a marine, deep water-dwelling eel which is known from the western Indian Ocean, including the Gulf of Aqaba and possibly the Gulf of Suez. A single specimen was recorded in the Mediterranean Sea from Israel in 1993. It dwells at a depth range of 300 to 500 metres, and swims in a zigzag motion near the bottom. Males can reach a maximum total length of 57 centimetres (22 in), but more commonly reach a TL of 45 centimetres (18 in).
The bristletooth conger is an eel in the family Congridae. It was described by David G. Smith and Robert H. Kanazawa in 1989. It is a marine, deep water–dwelling eel which is known from the western Atlantic Ocean, including northeastern Florida, U.S.A.; the Gulf of Mexico, the Amazon River, the Bahamas and the West Indies. It dwells at a depth range of 140–825 metres (459–2,707 ft). Males can reach a maximum total length of 87.6 centimetres (34.5 in).
Xenomystax trucidans is an eel in the family Congridae. It was described by Alfred William Alcock in 1894. It is a marine, deep water-dwelling eel which is known from Maldives and Laccadives, in the western Indian Ocean. It is known to dwell at a depth of 1,316 metres (4,318 ft), but is more commonly found at a depth range of 400 to 800 metres. Males can reach a maximum total length of 64.5 centimetres (25.4 in).
Cynoponticus coniceps, the red pike conger or conehead eel, is an eel in the family Muraenesocidae. It was described by David Starr Jordan and Charles Henry Gilbert in 1882, originally under the genus Muraenesox. It is a marine, tropical eel which is known from the eastern central and southeastern Pacific Ocean, including Mexico, Ecuador, Colombia, Costa Rica, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Panama, Peru, and Nicaragua. It dwells at a depth range of 10 to 100 metres, and inhabits sediments of sand and mud. Males can reach a maximum total length of 202 centimetres (80 in); the maximum recorded weight is 11.0 kilograms (24.3 lb).
