Western Atlantic finless eel

Western Atlantic finless eel
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Anguilliformes
Family: Ophichthidae
Genus: Apterichtus
Species: A. kendalli
Binomial name
Apterichtus kendalli
(Gilbert, 1891)
Synonyms[1][2]
  • Caecula kendalli Gilbert, 1891
  • Sphagebranchus kendalli C. H. Gilbert, 1891
  • Verma kendalli (C. H. Gilbert, 1891)

The Western Atlantic finless eel (Apterichtus kendalli, also known as the Finless eel[3]) is an eel in the family Ophichthidae (worm/snake eels).[4] It was described by Charles Henry Gilbert in 1891.[5] It is a marine, subtropical eel which is known from the western and eastern Atlantic Ocean, including North Carolina, USA; the western Bahamas, Venezuela, and St. Helena Island. It dwells at a depth range of 3 to 400 metres (9.8 to 1,312.3 ft), and forms burrows in sandy sediments on the continental shelf. Males can reach a maximum total length of 60 centimetres (24 in).[4]

Due to a lack of known major threats to the species, the IUCN redlist currently lists the Western Atlantic finless eel as Least Concern.[2]

References

  1. Synonyms of Apterichtus kendalli at www.fishbase.org.
  2. 1 2 Apterichtus kendalli at the IUCN redlist.
  3. Common names for Apterichtus kendalli at www.fishbase.org.
  4. 1 2 Apterichtus kendalli at www.fishbase.org.
  5. Gilbert, C. H., 1891 [ref. 18113] Description of a new species of eel (Sphagebranchus kendalli). Bulletin of the U. S. Fish Commission v. 9: 310.
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