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.
The Anguillidae are a family of ray-finned fish that contains the freshwater eels. Except from the genus Neoanguilla, with the only known species Neoanguilla nepalensis from Nepal, all the extant species and six subspecies in this family are in the genus Anguilla, and are elongated fish of snake-like bodies, with long dorsal, caudal and anal fins forming a continuous fringe. They are catadromous, spending their adult lives in freshwater, but migrating to the ocean to spawn.
Uropterygius is a genus of moray eels in the family Muraenidae.
Myrichthys is a genus of snake eels currently containing 11 recognized species found in tropical and warm temperate oceans worldwide.
Myrichthys maculosus, commonly known as the tiger snake eel, the ocellate snake eel or the spotted snake eel, is a species of fish in the family Ophichthidae, native to the Indo-Pacific. It is occasionally encountered in the aquarium trade. It grows to a length of 1 m (40 in).
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.
Callechelys is a genus of eels in the snake eel family Ophichthidae. It currently contains the following fifteen species:
Neenchelys is a genus of snake eels native to the Indian Ocean and the western Pacific Ocean. All species of Neenchelys have two rather than three preopercular pores, a significant character among many species of ophichthids.
Ophichthus is a genus of eels in the snake eel family Ophichthidae.
Pisodonophis is a genus of eels in the snake eel family Ophichthidae. It currently contains the following species:
Yirrkala is a genus of eels in the snake eel family Ophichthidae. It is named after Yirrkala, an indigenous community in Arnhem Land, in the Northern Territory of Australia.
Neenchelys cheni is an eel in the family Ophichthidae. It was described by Johnson T. F. Chen and Herman Ting-Chen Weng in 1967, originally under the genus Myrophis. It is a marine, temperate water-dwelling eel which is known from Taiwan, in the northwestern Pacific Ocean. Males can reach a maximum standard length of 35 centimetres (14 in).
The reptilian snake eel, also known as Henshaw's snake eel, the Hawaiian crocodile eel or the crocodile snake eel, is an eel in the family Ophichthidae. It was described by David Starr Jordan and John Otterbein Snyder in 1904.
The dark deepwater snake eel is an eel in the family Ophichthidae. It was described by John E. McCosker and Chen Yu-Yun in 2000. It is a marine, deep water-dwelling eel which is known from Taiwan, in the northwestern Pacific Ocean. It dwells at a depth range of 36–1350 m, and inhabits sand and mud. Specimens have been observed in burrows with only their heads exposed, or resting on sediment with their bodies curved in an S shape. Females can reach a maximum total length of 62.8 cm.
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 Korean snake eel is an eel in the family Ophichthidae. It was described by Hwan-Sung Ji and Jin-Koo Kim in 2011. It is a marine, temperate water-dwelling eel which is known from Korea, in the northwestern Pacific Ocean. It dwells at a depth range of 5 to 110 meters, and uses its hard, pointed tail to form burrows in sand and mud sediments. Females can reach a maximum total length of 60.1 centimeters (23.7 in).
Xyrias chioui is an eel in the family Ophichthidae. It was described by John E. McCosker, Chen Wei-Li and Chen Hong-Ming in 2009. It is a marine, subtropical eel which is known from Taiwan, in the Pacific Ocean. It generally dwells at a depth range of 60–70 meters. Males can reach a maximum total length of 81.9 centimeters.
Xyrias guineensis is an eel in the family Ophichthidae. It was described by Jacques Blache in 1975, originally under the genus Ophisurus. It is a marine, deep water-dwelling eel which is known from Pointe Noire, Congo, in the eastern Atlantic Ocean. It is known to dwell at a depth of 300 metres (980 ft), and inhabits burrows formed in sand and mud sediments on the continental shelf. Males can reach a maximum total length of 63.6 centimetres (25.0 in).
The speckled snake eel is an eel in the family Ophichthidae. It was described by John Roxborough Norman in 1939, originally under the genus Ophichthus. It is a marine, tropical eel which is known from the western Indian Ocean, including the Gulf of Aden and Somalia. It dwells at a depth range of 11 to 322 metres. Males can reach a maximum total length of 62.5 centimetres (24.6 in), while females can reach a maximum TL of 75.2 centimetres (29.6 in).
The strict snake eel is an eel in the family Ophichthidae. It was described by David Starr Jordan and John Otterbein Snyder in 1901. It is a marine, temperate water-dwelling eel which is known from the Indo-Pacific, including Japan, the Philippines, the China Sea, and South Africa. It dwells at a depth range of 146 to 209 meters. Males can reach a maximum total length of 93 centimeters (37 in).
