King snake eel

King snake eel
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Anguilliformes
Family: Ophichthidae
Genus: Ophichthus
Species:
O. rex
Binomial name
Ophichthus rex

The king snake eel[1] (Ophichthus rex) is an eel in the family Ophichthidae (worm/snake eels).[2] It was described by James Erwin Böhlke and John H. Caruso in 1980.[3] It is a marine, tropical eel which is known from Florida to Texas, USA, in the northern Gulf of Mexico in the western Atlantic Ocean. It dwells at a depth range of 15 to 365 meters (49 to 1,198 ft), and inhabits offshore waters. Males can reach a maximum total length of 211 centimeters (83 in); the maximum recorded weight is 23.6 kilograms (52 lb).[2] caught by Patrick Lemire on the Texsun II out of Galveston, Texas in 1997.

The King snake eel is often caught near oil platforms by anglers.[2]

References

  1. ^ Common names for Ophichthus rex at www.fishbase.org.
  2. ^ a b c Ophichthus rex at www.fishbase.org.
  3. ^ Böhlke, J. E. and J. H. Caruso, 1980 (19 Dec.) [ref. 8737] Ophichthus rex: a new giant snake eel from the Gulf of Mexico (Anguilliformes, Ophichthidae). Proceedings of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia v. 132: 239-244.


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