Ophichthus melope — Details

Snake-eel learn more about names for this taxon

Overview

Comprehensive Description

Description

Learn more about this article

Common names: snake-eel (English), tieso (Espanol)
 
Ophichthus melope McCosker & Rosenblatt, 1998

Black-pored snake-eel


Moderately robust; tail 60-62% of TL; head 11-12% of TL; eye moderate, about over middle of mouth; front nostrils tubular, rear nostril a hole above top lip, covered by a flap that extends to or below edge of mouth; snout overhanging; no head barbels; mouth large; teeth conical, 1 row on roof of mouth (which ends under eye) and side of lower jaw, 2 rows on side of top jaw; gill opening vertical, semicircular; dorsal fin origin well behind pectoral tips; tip of tail a blunt, finless point; pectoral fins rounded, paddle shaped, with restricted bases - opposite and above upper half of gill opening; lateral line not abruptly arched at rear of head.


Brown above, paler below, paler below; body with irregular asymmetrical narrow pale bars; head pores in wide black rings, but lateral line pores not; front of dorsal fin with broad black margin, rest of fin with thin dark margin; anal and pectorals colorless.

Size: grows to 27 cm.

Habitat: benthic on soft bottoms.

Depth: 70-244 m.

Known from Costa Rica to Colombia.

Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial 3.0 (CC BY-NC 3.0)

© Shorefishes of the tropical eastern Pacific online information system. www.stri.org/sftep

Source: Shorefishes of the Tropical Eastern Pacific Online Information System

Trusted

Article rating from 0 people

Average rating: 2.5 of 5

Comment on or rate this article

Distribution

Range Description

Learn more about this article

This species is found in the Eastern Pacific in the Gulf of Nicoya, Costa Rica and Colombia (McCosker and Rosenblatt, 1998).
Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial Share Alike 3.0 (CC BY-NC-SA 3.0)

© International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources

Source: IUCN

Trusted

Article rating from 0 people

Average rating: 2.5 of 5

Comment on or rate this article

Depth

Learn more about this article

Depth Range (m): 70 (S) - 244 (S)
Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial 3.0 (CC BY-NC 3.0)

© Shorefishes of the tropical eastern Pacific online information system. www.stri.org/sftep

Source: Shorefishes of the Tropical Eastern Pacific Online Information System

Trusted

Article rating from 0 people

Average rating: 2.5 of 5

Comment on or rate this article

Zoogeography

Learn more about this article

See Map (including site records) of Distribution in the Tropical Eastern Pacific


 
Global Endemism: All species, East Pacific endemic, Tropical Eastern Pacific (TEP) endemic

Regional Endemism: All species, TEP endemic, Continental TEP endemic, Panamic province endemic, Continent, Continent only

Residency: Resident

Climate Zone: Equatorial (Costa Rica to Ecuador + Galapagos, Clipperton, Cocos, Malpelo)

Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial 3.0 (CC BY-NC 3.0)

© Shorefishes of the tropical eastern Pacific online information system. www.stri.org/sftep

Source: Shorefishes of the Tropical Eastern Pacific Online Information System

Trusted

Article rating from 0 people

Average rating: 2.5 of 5

Comment on or rate this article

Learn more about this article

Eastern Central Pacific: Costa Rica to Colombia.
Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial 3.0 (CC BY-NC 3.0)

© WorldFish Center - FishBase

Source: FishBase

Trusted

Article rating from 0 people

Average rating: 2.5 of 5

Comment on or rate this article

Physical Description

Morphology

Size

Learn more about this article

Length max (cm): 27.0 (S)
Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial 3.0 (CC BY-NC 3.0)

© Shorefishes of the tropical eastern Pacific online information system. www.stri.org/sftep

Source: Shorefishes of the Tropical Eastern Pacific Online Information System

Trusted

Article rating from 0 people

Average rating: 2.5 of 5

Comment on or rate this article

Learn more about this article

Vertebrae: 146 - 154
Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial 3.0 (CC BY-NC 3.0)

© WorldFish Center - FishBase

Source: FishBase

Trusted

Article rating from 0 people

Average rating: 2.5 of 5

Comment on or rate this article

Size

Max. size

Learn more about this article

27.0 cm TL (male/unsexed; (Ref. 31243))
Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial 3.0 (CC BY-NC 3.0)

© WorldFish Center - FishBase

Source: FishBase

Trusted

Article rating from 0 people

Average rating: 2.5 of 5

Comment on or rate this article

Ecology

Habitat

Habitat and Ecology

Learn more about this article

Habitat and Ecology
This species lives on benthic-soft substrate in deeper waters from 100 to 240m.

Systems
  • Marine
Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial Share Alike 3.0 (CC BY-NC-SA 3.0)

© International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources

Source: IUCN

Trusted

Article rating from 0 people

Average rating: 2.5 of 5

Comment on or rate this article

Habitat

Learn more about this article

Salinity: Marine, Marine Only

Inshore/Offshore: Inshore, Inshore Only

Water Column Position: Bottom, Bottom only

Habitat: Soft bottom (mud, sand,gravel, beach, estuary & mangrove), Soft bottom only, Mud, Sand & gravel

FishBase Habitat: Demersal
Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial 3.0 (CC BY-NC 3.0)

© Shorefishes of the tropical eastern Pacific online information system. www.stri.org/sftep

Source: Shorefishes of the Tropical Eastern Pacific Online Information System

Trusted

Article rating from 0 people

Average rating: 2.5 of 5

Comment on or rate this article

Environment

Learn more about this article

demersal; marine; depth range 100 - 224 m (Ref. 31243)
Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial 3.0 (CC BY-NC 3.0)

© WorldFish Center - FishBase

Source: FishBase

Trusted

Article rating from 0 people

Average rating: 2.5 of 5

Comment on or rate this article

Trophic Strategy

Feeding

Learn more about this article

Feeding Group: Carnivore

Diet: mobile benthic crustacea (shrimps/crabs), octopus/squid/cuttlefish, bony fishes
Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial 3.0 (CC BY-NC 3.0)

© Shorefishes of the tropical eastern Pacific online information system. www.stri.org/sftep

Source: Shorefishes of the Tropical Eastern Pacific Online Information System

Trusted

Article rating from 0 people

Average rating: 2.5 of 5

Comment on or rate this article

Life History and Behavior

Reproduction

Reproduction

Learn more about this article

Egg Type: Pelagic, Pelagic larva
Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial 3.0 (CC BY-NC 3.0)

© Shorefishes of the tropical eastern Pacific online information system. www.stri.org/sftep

Source: Shorefishes of the Tropical Eastern Pacific Online Information System

Trusted

Article rating from 0 people

Average rating: 2.5 of 5

Comment on or rate this article

Conservation

Conservation Status

IUCN Red List Assessment

Learn more about this article


Red List Category
LC
Least Concern

Red List Criteria

Version
3.1

Year Assessed
2010

Assessor/s
McCosker, J., Béarez, P., and Lea, B.

Reviewer/s
Carpenter, K., Polidoro, B., Livingstone, S. (Global Marine Species Assessment Team)

Justification
This species is known from Costa Rica and Colombia in the Eastern Pacific region. No major threats to this deep water species are known, and there is no current indication of population decline. It is listed as Least Concern.
Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial Share Alike 3.0 (CC BY-NC-SA 3.0)

© International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources

Source: IUCN

Trusted

Article rating from 0 people

Average rating: 2.5 of 5

Comment on or rate this article

Conservation status

Learn more about this article

IUCN Red List: Not evaluated / Listed

CITES: Not listed
Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial 3.0 (CC BY-NC 3.0)

© Shorefishes of the tropical eastern Pacific online information system. www.stri.org/sftep

Source: Shorefishes of the Tropical Eastern Pacific Online Information System

Trusted

Article rating from 0 people

Average rating: 2.5 of 5

Comment on or rate this article

Population

Learn more about this article

Population
No population information is available for this species.

Population Trend
Unknown
Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial Share Alike 3.0 (CC BY-NC-SA 3.0)

© International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources

Source: IUCN

Trusted

Article rating from 0 people

Average rating: 2.5 of 5

Comment on or rate this article

Threats

Threats

Learn more about this article

Major Threats
There are no major threats known for this species.
Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial Share Alike 3.0 (CC BY-NC-SA 3.0)

© International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources

Source: IUCN

Trusted

Article rating from 0 people

Average rating: 2.5 of 5

Comment on or rate this article

Learn more about this article

Least Concern (LC)
Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial 3.0 (CC BY-NC 3.0)

© WorldFish Center - FishBase

Source: FishBase

Trusted

Article rating from 0 people

Average rating: 2.5 of 5

Comment on or rate this article

Management

Conservation Actions

Learn more about this article

Conservation Actions
There are no known specific conservation measures for this species.
Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial Share Alike 3.0 (CC BY-NC-SA 3.0)

© International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources

Source: IUCN

Trusted

Article rating from 0 people

Average rating: 2.5 of 5

Comment on or rate this article

Disclaimer

EOL content is automatically assembled from many different content providers. As a result, from time to time you may find pages on EOL that are confusing.

To request an improvement, please leave a comment on the page. Thank you!