Common Eel
Congresox talabonoides
- Usual depth32–325 m
- Water temperature25–29 °C
- Best monthsApril, June, and July
- How commonRare
Photo credit: (c) Ashwit Shetty, some rights reserved (CC BY), uploaded by Ashwit Shetty · CC BY · iNaturalist
About this species
Congresox talabonoides, the Indian pike conger, common eel, conger-pike eel, daggertooth pike-conger or Indian putyekanipa, is an eel in the family Muraenesocidae. It was described by Pieter Bleeker in 1853. It is a marine, tropical eel which is known from the Indo-Western Pacific, including Somalia, India, Sri Lanka, Indonesia, the Philippines, Hong Kong and Taiwan. It dwells at a depth range of 800 to 875 metres, and inhabits soft sediments in coastal waters and estuaries. Males can reach a maximum total length of 250 centimetres (98 in), but more commonly reach a TL of 180 centimetres (71 in).
Text from the Wikipedia article “Congresox talabonoides”, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Read the article
Where and when
Where it has been recorded
Worldwide
Loading the map
Best months
Worldwide (open data)
- January: 0 records
- February: 0 records
- March: 1 records
- April: 2 records
- May: 0 records
- June: 2 records
- July: 2 records
- August: 2 records
- September: 2 records
- October: 2 records
- November: 2 records
- December: 0 records
Depth and water temperature
Depth
Mostly recorded at 32–325 m · Deepest record: 325 m
Water temperature
Recorded in surface water of 25–29 °C
Photos
(c) Ashwit Shetty, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist 
(c) Ashwit Shetty, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist
Names and classification
- English
- Common Eel, Conger-pike Eel, Indian pike conger, Indian Pike-conger, Indian putyekanipa
Names in 3 more languages
- Spanish
- morenocio indio
- French
- morénésoce indien
- Thai
- ปลายอดจากปากยาว
Other scientific names: Conger talabonoides, Congresox talabanoides, Congresox telabonoides, Muraenesox talabonoides
Similar species
yellow pike congerCongresox talabon
Common pike congerMuraenesox bagio
Daggertooth pike congerMuraenesox cinereus
- Duckbill Conger
Gavialiceps javanicus
Sources and credits
Names and taxonomy: WoRMS (CC BY 4.0) and the GBIF Backbone (CC BY 4.0). Photos: iNaturalist observers, each under the licence shown (CC0, CC BY or CC BY-SA).
- Depth, temperature, months and maps: records from OBIS and GBIF under CC0 or CC BY.
- Descriptions: Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA, each linked to its article.
- Conservation status as published by GBIF (IUCN Red List).
- 18 open-data records from 1853 to 2025.
- Species data updated November 1, 2026.
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