Description: Snake-like body, without scales, covered in mucus. Has a sharp snout and large eyes. Brownish; darker dorsally and lighter ventrally; caudal fin black.
Global Distribution: Eastern Atlantic from Portugal to Morocco, and the Mediterranean. View Map
BIOLOGICAL FEATURES
Size: Maximum length 60.0 cm (total length); common length 35.0 cm (TL).
Growth type: Positive allometric (Torres et al. 2012).
von Bertallanfy growth parameters:
Reproduction: Spawns in the warmer season.
Maturity:
Behavioural ecology: Crepuscular. More active during the night and on cloudy days.
Population structure & migrations:
ECOLOGICAL FEATURES
Depth range: FishBase: 75-800 m.
Habitat: Demersal. Found on muddy or sandy bottoms of the continental slope.
Feeding habits: Feeds on benthic invertebrates; adults also feed on fish.
Trophic level: FishBase: 3.6
FISHERIES
Commercial interest: Minor commercial species. Not commercial in Madeira.
Conservation status: Global: Not evaluated.
Europe: Least concern.
Nutritional information & food safety:
REFERENCES
Carpentieri P., Colloca F., Ardizzone G. (2007). Rhythms of feeding activity and food consumption of two Mediterranean burrowing fishes: Gnathophis mystax (Delaroche) and Chlopsis bicolor Rafinesque. Marine Ecology, 28(4), 487-495.
Hureau J.-C., ed. (1984-1985). Fishes of the North-Eastern Atlantic and the Mediterranean. UNESCO. Accessed through: Marine Species Identification Portal. World Wide Web electronic publication. http://species-identification.org (2014).
IUCN (2014). The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2014.1. www.iucnredlist.org
Nieto A., Ralph G.M., Comeros-Raynal M.T., Kemp J., GarcÃa Criado M., Allen D.J., Dulvy N.K., Walls R.H.L., Russell B., Pollard D., GarcÃa S., Craig M., Collette B.B., Pollom R., Biscoito M., Labbish Chao N., Abella A., Afonso P., Ãlvarez H., Carpenter K.E., Clò S., Cook R., Costa M.J., Delgado J., Dureuil M., Ellis J.R., Farrell E.D., Fernandes P., Florin A-B., Fordham S., Fowle, S., Gil de Sola L., Gil Herrera J., Goodpaster A., Harvey M., Heessen H., Herler J., Jung A., Karmovskaya E., Keskin C., Knudsen S.W., Kobyliansky S., KovaÄić M., Lawson J.M., Lorance P., McCully Phillips S., Munroe T., Nedreaas K., Nielsen J., Papaconstantinou C., Polidoro B., Pollock C.M., Rijnsdorp A.D., Sayer C., Scott J., Serena F., Smith-Vaniz W.F., Soldo A., Stump E., Williams J.T. (2015). Europen Red List of Marine Fishes. IUCN and European Union, Publications Office of the European Union, Luxembourg, 90 pp.
Rucabado J., Lloris D., Carrillo J. (1978). Nuevas perspectivas sobre la distribución y hábitat de Gnathophis mystax (Delaroche, 1809), Anguilliformes, Congridae. Res. Exp. Cient. B/O Cornide, 7: 145-154.
Torres M.A., Ramos F., Sobrino I. (2012). Length–weight relationships of 76 fish species from the Gulf of Cadiz (SW Spain). Fisheries Research, 127: 171-175.
