Article · Wikipedia archive · Last revised Jun 17, 2026

Shorttailed shortfaced eel

The shorttailed shortfaced eel is an eel in the family Heterenchelyidae. It was described by Charles Tate Regan in 1912, originally under the genus Heterenchelys. It is a tropical, marine eel which is known from Mauritania to Angola, in the eastern Atlantic Ocean. It typically dwells at a depth range of 40–150 metres. Males can reach a maximum total length of 50.5 centimetres.

Last revised
Jun 17, 2026
Read time
≈ 1 min
Length
151 w
Citations
5
Source
Wikipedia ↗
Shorttailed shortfaced eel
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Anguilliformes
Family: Heterenchelyidae
Genus: Pythonichthys
Species:
P. microphthalmus
Binomial name
Pythonichthys microphthalmus
(Regan, 1912)
Synonyms1
  • Heterenchelys microphthalmus Regan, 1912

The shorttailed shortfaced eel2 (Pythonichthys microphthalmus) is an eel in the family Heterenchelyidae (mud eels).3 It was described by Charles Tate Regan in 1912, originally under the genus Heterenchelys.4 It is a tropical, marine eel which is known from Mauritania to Angola, in the eastern Atlantic Ocean. It typically dwells at a depth range of 40–150 metres. Males can reach a maximum total length of 50.5 centimetres.3

References

References

  1. Synonyms of Pythonichthys micropthalmus at www.fishbase.org.
  2. Common names for Pythonichthys microphthalmus at www.fishbase.org.
  3. Pythonichthys microphthalmus at www.fishbase.org.
  4. Regan, C. T., 1912 (1 Sept.) [ref. 3647] Description of two new eels from West Africa, belonging to a new genus and family. Annals and Magazine of Natural History (Series 8) v. 10 (no. 57): 323-324.