ANIMAL SPECIES:Pelican Eel, Eurypharynx pelecanoides Vaillant, 1882
The Pelican Eel has an elongate body with a luminous organ at the end of the tail. The Gulper Eel occurs in midwaters of tropical and temperate seas worldwide.
Alternative Name/s
Gulper EelIdentification
The Pelican Eel has an elongate body with a luminous organ at the end of the tail. The eyes are tiny and close to the snout. There are several rows of small teeth in the massive jaws. The species is black, sometimes with a white line or groove on either side of the dorsal fin. The Pelican Eel is the only species in the family Eurypharyngidae.
Size range
The species grows to 80 cm in length.Distribution
The Pelican Eel occurs in midwaters of tropical and temperate seas worldwide. In Australian waters, this species is known from off north-western Western Australia, northern Queensland and New South Wales.
Distribution by collection data
Biomaps map of Pelican Eel specimens in the Australian Museum collection.
Habitat
It has been recorded from depths of 500 m to 3000 m.
Behaviour and adaptations
Feeding and Diet
Its major food items are crustaceans, but it also feeds on fishes, cephalopods and other invertebrates. It is believed to ingest its prey along with a quantity of water that is expelled through the gill openings.
Life cycle
At maturity males undergo changes that include an enlargement of the olfactory organs and degeneration of the teeth and jaws. Females remain relatively unchanged.
Classification
- Species:
- pelecanoides
- Genus:
- Eurypharynx
- Family:
- Eurypharyngidae
- Order:
- Saccopharyngiformes
- Class:
- Actinopterygii
- Subphylum:
- Vertebrata
- Phylum:
- Chordata
- Kingdom:
- Animalia
References
- Smith, D. G. 1999. Eurypharyngidae. in Carpenter, K.E. & V.H. Niem (Eds). FAO Species Identification Guide for Fishery Purposes. The Living Marine Resources of the Western Central Pacific. Volume 3. Batoid fishes, chimaeras and bony fishes part 1 (Elopidae to Linophrynidae). FAO, Rome. Pp. iii-vi, 1398-2068.
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Pelican Eel, Eurypharynx pelecanoides View full size
Robin McPhee
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