Serpent eel

Ophisurus serpens

Fish
IUCN: Least concern

Usual depth61–521 m
Water temperature14–27 °C
Best monthsApril, May, and July
How commonOccasional

Photo credit: (c) Julien Renoult, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist

About this species

The serpent eel or sand snake-eel is an eel found in the eastern Atlantic Ocean, western Mediterranean Sea, western Indian Ocean, western Pacific Ocean and the north-east and west coast of North Island in New Zealand. It is an elongated, slender fish with a length of up to 250 centimetres. It spends the day with its body immersed in the sediment, emerging into the open water at night.

Text from the Wikipedia article “Serpent eel”, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Read the article

Where and when

Where it has been recorded

Worldwide

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Best months

Worldwide (open data)

January: 71 records
February: 78 records
March: 78 records
April: 103 records
May: 133 records
June: 87 records
July: 91 records
August: 86 records
September: 71 records
October: 53 records
November: 63 records
December: 49 records

Depth and water temperature

Depth

Mostly recorded at 61–521 m · Deepest record: 850 m

10–20 m: 1 records
20–30 m: 0 records
30–40 m: 2 records
40–50 m: 5 records
50–60 m: 3 records
60–70 m: 6 records
70–80 m: 7 records
80–90 m: 4 records
90–100 m: 6 records
100–110 m: 2 records
110–120 m: 2 records
120+ m: 73 records

Water temperature

Recorded in surface water of 14–27 °C

12–14 °C: 1 records
14–16 °C: 20 records
16–18 °C: 24 records
18–20 °C: 103 records
20–22 °C: 88 records
22–24 °C: 13 records
24–26 °C: 3 records
26–28 °C: 2 records

Photos

no rights reserved · CC0 1.0 · iNaturalist
(c) vtzanatos, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA) · CC BY-SA · iNaturalist
(c) Julien Renoult, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist
(c) Shaun Lee, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist
(c) Shaun Lee, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist
(c) Sarah Faulwetter, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist
(c) Michael Berardozzi, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist

Names and classification

English: Serpent eel, Eel, Giant Snake Eel, sand snake eel, Sand Snake-eel, serpent eel, Snake Eel, Snipe Eel

Names in 4 more languages

German: Langschnauzen-Schlangenaal
Spanish: Anguila serpiente, Culebra de Mar, Tieso Trompudo
French: Serpenton à long nez, Serpenton à Nez Long
Simplified Chinese: 褐沙蛇鰻

Other scientific names: Echelus oxyrinchus, Leptorhynchus capensis, Muraena acutirostris, Muraena serpens, Oxystomus serpens, Sphagebranchus serpens

Similar species

Saddled snake-eel
Leiuranus semicinctus
Harlequin snake-eel
Myrichthys colubrinus
Tiger snake-eel
Myrichthys maculosus
Pencil Snake Eel
Apterichtus klazingai
Stargazer Snake Eel
Brachysomophis cirrocheilos
Crocodile snake eel
Brachysomophis crocodilinus

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).
477 open-data records from 1878 to 2009.
Species data updated November 5, 2026.

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