Species: Bascanichthys bascanium, Sooty Eel

Bascanichthys bascanium (Jordan, 1884)

Sooty Eel

Body very elongate (body depth 1-2.2% TL); head and trunk 49-57% of TL; tip of tail finless, hard, blunt; head skin rough; eye small; snout short, blunt, grooved on underside; front nostril tubular, rear nostril opens in mouth; jaw teeth small, conical, in 1 row on jaws, 2 rows on roof of mouth, those between top jaws exposed when mouth is closed; gill opening crescent-like, at lower side; dorsal and anal fins low; dorsal origin before gill opening; pectoral fin small, broad based, width 38-86% of gill opening; lateral line complete, lines of each side of head connected by 2 canals with across top of head.

Dark above, especially on back, graduating to pale below; head paler than body; fins pale, dorsal fin appears as a white stripe along dark back; no pale spots along lateral line.

Reaches 79 cm.

Sandy bottoms, along shallow sandy beaches.

Depth range: 0-24 m.

Georgia to Honduras.