- Classification
- ACTINOPTERYGII
- ANGUILLIFORMES
- OPHICHTHIDAE
- Ophichthus
- cephalozona
Blacksaddle Snake Eel, Ophichthus cephalozona (Bleeker 1864)
Other Names: One-banded Snake-eel
A Blacksaddle Snake Eel, Ophichthus cephalozona, at Moalboal, Cebu, Philippines, January 2002 . Source: Paolo & Antidio Rossi / Fishbase. License: All rights reserved
Summary:
A pale greyish-brown snake eel becoming white below, with a brown snout, a white band around the head behind the eye followed by a distinctive black patch on the back of the head, and a second white band at the pectoral-fin base. The dorsal fin is white with a black submarginal stripe, and the pectoral fins are dusky with a white margin.
Video of a Blacksaddle Snake Eel (also known as a Dark Shouldered Snake Eel) at Cebu in the Philippines.
Video of a Blacksaddle Snake Eel (also known as a Dark Shouldered Snake Eel) at Cebu in the Philippines.
Cite this page as:
Bray, D.J. 2019, Ophichthus cephalozona in Fishes of Australia, accessed 05 Dec 2024, https://fishesofaustralia.net.au/Home/species/2900
Blacksaddle Snake Eel, Ophichthus cephalozona (Bleeker 1864)
More Info
Distribution |
Onslow to Brecknock Island, Western Australia, Ashmore Reef in the Timor Sea, and south of Arukun in the eastern Gulf of Carpentaria to North West Island, Queensland. The species has not been recorded from the Northern Territory. Elsewhere it occurs in the Indo-west-central Pacific.Inhabits inshore muddy to sandy areas. |
Species Citation |
Ophichthys cephalozona Bleeker 1864, Atlas ichthyologique des Indes Orientales Néêrlandaises 4: 49, pl.156 (fig. 2). Type locality: Singapore and Ambon, Indonesia. |
Author |
Bray, D.J. 2019 |
Resources |
Blacksaddle Snake Eel, Ophichthus cephalozona (Bleeker 1864)
References
Allen, G.R. 1993. Fishes of Ashmore Reef and Cartier Island. Records of the Western Australian Museum, Supplement 44: 67-91
Allen, G.R. 1997. Marine Fishes of Tropical Australia and South-east Asia. Perth : Western Australian Museum 292 pp. 106 pls.
Allen, G.R. & Erdmann, M.V. 2012. Reef fishes of the East Indies. Perth : Tropical Reef Research 3 vols, 1260 pp.
Allen, G.R. & Swainston, R. 1988. The Marine Fishes of North-Western Australia. A field guide for anglers and divers. Perth, WA : Western Australian Museum vi 201 pp., 70 pls.
Bleeker, P. 1863. Description de quelques espèces nouvelles ou peu connues d'Ophisuroïdes de l'Inde Archipélagique. Nederlandsch Tijdschrift voor de Dierkunde 1: 179-186
Bleeker, P. 1864. Atlas Ichthyologique des Indes Orientales Néerlandaises, publié sous les auspices du Gouvernement colonial néerlandais. Tome 4. Murènes, Symbranches, Leptocéphales. Amsterdam : Fréd. Müller 132 pp. pls 145-193. See ref at BHL
Fricke, R., Kulbicki, M. & Wantiez, L. 2011. Checklist of the fishes of New Caledonia, and their distribution in the Southwest Pacific Ocean (Pisces). Stuttgarter Beiträge zur Naturkunde. Serie A (Biologie) Neue Serie 4: 341-463
McCosker, J.E. 1977. The osteology, classification, and relationships of the eel family Ophichthidae. Proceedings of the California Academy of Sciences 41(1): 1-123 figs 1-45
Hutchins, B.J., Allen, G.R. and Sampey, A. 2014. Kimberley marine biota. Historical data: fishes. Records of the Western Australian Museum, Supplement 84: 161-206
Randall, J.E., Allen, G.R. & Steene, R. 1997. Fishes of the Great Barrier Reef and Coral Sea. Bathurst : Crawford House Press 557 pp. figs.
Smith, D.G. & McCosker, J.E. 1999. Family Ophichthidae. pp. 1662-1699 in Carpenter, K.E. & Niem, V.H. (eds). The Living Marine Resources of the Western Central Pacific. FAO Species Identification Guide for Fisheries Purposes. Rome : FAO Vol. 3 pp. 1397-2068.