Ingolf Duckbill Eel, Nessorhamphus ingolfianus (Schmidt, 1912)

Scientific name: Nessorhamphus ingolfianus
Alternative name/s:
Duckbilled Eel
Ingolf Duckbill Eel, <i>Nessorhamphus ingolfianus</i> Click to enlarge image
Ingolf Duckbill Eel, Nessorhamphus ingolfianus Image: AMS - Ichthyology
© Australian Museum

Fast Facts

  • Classification
    Genus
    Nessorhamphus
    Species
    ingolfianus
    Family
    Derichthyidae
    Order
    Anguilliformes
    Class
    Actinopterygii
    Subphylum
    Vertebrata
    Phylum
    Chordata
    Kingdom
    Animalia
  • Size Range
    The species grows to about 60 cm in length.

Introduction

The Ingolf Duckbill Eel has a long slender body that lacks scales. In Australia it is known from the Tasman Sea off New South Wales.

Identification

The Ingolf Duckbill Eel has a long slender body that lacks scales. It has a long snout with a spatulate tip that extends well beyond the lower jaw. The dorsal and anal fins join with the caudal fin. The gill opening is a small slit in front of and below the pectoral fin base.

The species is named after the Danish ship Ingolf.

Distribution

It is a rarely seen mesopelagic species that occurs in temperate marine waters worldwide. In Australia it is known from the Tasman Sea off New South Wales.

The map below shows the Australian distribution of the species based on public sightings and specimens in Australian Museums. Click on the map for detailed information. Source: Atlas of Living Australia.

References

  1. Robins, C.H. 1989. Derichthyidae in Fishes of the Western North Atlantic. Part 9 Volume 1: Orders Anguilliformes and Saccopharyngiformes. Sears Foundation for Marine Research, Yale University. Pp. 655.
  2. Smith, D.G. 1999. Derichthyidae. 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.