The saddled snake-eel (Leiuranus semicinctus, also known commonly as the halfbanded snake-eel, the banded snake eel, or the culverin[2]) is an eel in the family Ophichthidae (worm/snake eels).[3] It was described by George Tradescant Lay and Edward Turner Bennett in 1839, originally under the genus Ophisurus.[4] It is a marine, tropical eel which is known from the Indo-Pacific and southeastern Atlantic Ocean, including East and South Africa, the Hawaiian Islands, the Marquesan Islands, the Mangaréva islands, Japan, and Australia. It dwells at a depth range of 0 to 70 metres (0 to 230 ft), most often around 0 to 10 metres (0 to 33 ft), and inhabits lagoons and reefs, in which it forms burrows in beds of seagrass and sandy areas. Males can reach a maximum total length of 66 centimetres (2.17 ft).[3]
| Saddled snake-eel | |
|---|---|
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Scientific classification 
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| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Actinopterygii |
| Order: | Anguilliformes |
| Family: | Ophichthidae |
| Genus: | Leiuranus |
| Species: | L. semicinctus
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| Binomial name | |
| Leiuranus semicinctus (Lay & Bennett, 1839)
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| Synonyms[1] | |
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The saddled snake-eel's diet consists of fish, crabs, prawns,[3] and worms including Ptychodera.[5] Males and females rise to the surface of the water during spawning.[6]
References
edit- ^ Synonyms of Leiuranus semicinctus at www.fishbase.org.
- ^ Common names of Leiuranus semicinctus at www.fishbase.org.
- ^ a b c Leiuranus semicinctus at www.fishbase.org.
- ^ Lay, G. T. and E. T. Bennett, 1839 [ref. 2730] Fishes. Pp. 41-75, Pls. 15-23. In: F.W. Bechey (ed.) The zoology of Captain Beechey's voyage, comp. from the collections ... to the Pacific and Behring's Straits... in 1825-28. H. G. Bohn, London.
- ^ Food items reported for Leiuranus semicinctus at www.fishbase.org.
- ^ Reproduction of Leiuranus semicinctus at www.fishbase.org.
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