Species: Anguilla rostrata, American eel

mouth ends under eye, thick lips
adult - small, embedded scales

teeth - minute, in bands
large pectorals
Anguilla rostrata (Lesueur, 1817)
American eel
Body robust; tail compressed; mouth reaching to under rear edge of eye; lower jaw projecting; lips thick, with flanges along sides of jaws; teeth small, granular, in broad bands on jaws and a front of roof of mouth; dorsal fin origin well behind pectoral fin, nearer to anus than to pectoral fin; dorsal and anal fins continuous with tail fin; large pectoral fins; lateral line complete but pores very small; small imbedded scales arranged in basket-weave pattern present in adults but not juveniles.
Mature fish bicolored, black above, white below, with a silvery to bronze sheen.
Reaches 150 cm, at least 3.63 kg.
Adults in rivers and estuaries.
Depth 0-4000 m.
Greenland to Venezuela.

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Species Data
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- Salinity
-
- Marine
- Brackish
- Freshwater
- Inshore/Offshore
-
- Inshore
- Inshore Only
- Water Column Position
-
- Bottom
- Bottom only
- Habitat
-
- Freshwater
- Mangrove
- Estuary
- Mud
- Soft bottom (mud/sand/gravel/beach/estuary/mangrove/seagrass)
- FishBase Habitat
-
- Demersal
- Feeding Group
-
- Carnivore
- Data
- Diet
-
- Insects
- Mobile benthic worms
- Mobile benthic gastropods/bivalves
- Data
- Mobile benthic crustacea (shrimps/crabs)
- Bony fishes
- Egg Type
-
- Data
- Pelagic larva
- Pelagic
- Global Endemism
-
- All species
- Greater Caribbean non-endemic
- West Atlantic Endemic
- Regional Endemism
-
- Extends North of GC
- Island (s)
- All species
- GC non-endemic
- Continent
- Continent + Island (s)
- Residency
-
- Resident
- Climate Zone
-
- Temperate (>35N)
- Tropical (10-23N, Nicaragua / Cuba)
- Subtropical (23-35N, Florida / Carolinas / Bermuda)
- Equatorial (0-10N, Costa Rica / Venezuela)
- IUCN Red List
-
- Listed
- Endangered
- CITES
-
- Not listed
- Depth Range Min
-
- 0
- Depth Range Max
-
- 4000
- Length Max
-
- 150