Species: Dysomma anguillare, Shortbelly Eel

Dysomma anguillare Barnard, 1923

Shortbelly Eel

Body stout; anus far forward, just behind pectoral tip; snout bulbous, elongate, tip fleshy, a few inconspicuous pleats at front, with small papillae, overhangs mouth; eye small; mouth large, gape extending well behind eye; front nostril tubular, rear nostril large, with a raised rim, on side of snout below mid-eye level; upper jaw teeth tiny, in irregular multiple rows; lower jaw teeth larger, widely spaced, ~10; a row of 4 large compound teeth on roof of mouth preceded by a pair of sideways oriented teeth; gill openings low on body, well separated, below pectorals; dorsal and anal fins well developed, confluent with tail fin, dorsal fin origin over pectoral base; scales absent; lateral line almost complete.

Pallid, tan above, white below, darker at the front; lower ½ of tail and tail fin dark; dorsal and anal fins whitish.

Reaches 52 cm.

Lives on mud bottoms, often at mouths of large rivers.

Depth range: 30-270 m.

The W Atlantic and Indo-W Pacific; the Gulf of Mexico to the Orinoco area.