Ophichthus ophis, the spotted snake eel,[1] is an eel in the family Ophichthidae (worm/snake eels). It was described by Carl Linnaeus in 1758, originally under the genus Muraena.[2] It is a marine, subtropical eel which is known from the western and eastern Atlantic Ocean, including Bermuda and southern Florida, USA, Brazil, Lesser Antilles, Senegal, Angola, and the Mediterranean. It dwells at a depth range of 21mto50mm (69feetto160feetm), usually at around 50 m, and lives in burrows on a permanent basis. Males can reach a maximum total length of 210abbr=NaNabbr=, but more commonly reach a TL of 100abbr=NaNabbr=.
The Spotted snake eel hunts nocturnally, and feeds primarily on octopuses and finfish, including Haemulon aurolineatum.[3] It is used as bait in subsistence fisheries, but is reported to cause ciguatera poisoning, and therefore is not usually used as a food source.