What the heck is this?

[nomadofthehills]

My friend pulled it out of a lake in jersey...

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v422/NomadOfTheHills/may018.jpg

Looks morayish to me, but this is a freshwater lake! To add to the confusion, he has seen about 15 or so of these guys!

Any clue guys?

We are 99% sure its not an American eel.

Best bet so far:

Graboid tongue.

http://www.minza.de/graboid1.jpg

[satanpie]

hmmmm

[Marinemom]

Not sure. Looks to be some kind of eel?

Marinemom

[Inka4040]

Can you post more pictures of it? A clearer shot of the head and body areas would be great. Looks like it could be an american eel, but maybe with a slighly deformed head. They do make the treck from salt to fresh and back during their lifetimes, so it's not that wierd to find one in a lake. The pond near my parents house in Westchester NY has a pretty big eel population. (based on the one time a friend and I saw a MASS eel exodus while sitting under and overpass drinking beers (don't ask).

[Reddog80p]

:eek:crazy!!!!

[RichardA]

Okay....shared this with a friend....we have looked it over.

Looks like:

No gills
No fins

that would make this a caecilian and a not so uncommon find during this time of year.

Really need a good head shot to narrow this down.......cant make out enough features in that pic for a good hard ID.

[FireDancer7905]

Ewwww!!!!!!! Good luck with the id! btw, love the Tremors shot! :)

[DAVIDFBT]

It does kind of look like a caecilian...

[cam191919]

caecilians barely have eyes. thats a fish. probably exotic

[SchizotypalVamp]

http://www.gymnophiona.org/database/typhlonectidae/typhlonectes/natans/Typhlonectes1.jpg

Rubber Eel?

[vtx-coley]

I have no idea, but being from Jersey, I'd like to know what lake.

[BigFishKeeper]

What are caecilians??

[toddnbecka]

Caecilians are amphibians, also called rubber eels. No gills, no fins, very poor eyesight.

[BigFishKeeper]

Caecilians are amphibians, also called rubber eels. No gills, no fins, very poor eyesight.
OK cool.

[dixienut]

i don't know but i wouldn't sleep without it being under lock and key...:eek3:

[Notophthalmus]

Not a caecilian (these don't occur in North America in any case). Not an American eel. Not a lamprey. Definitely exotic, or else a marine species somehow trapped in the lake (very unlikely).Swamp eel? (http://www.floridaconservation.org/fishing/fishes/non-native.html#SWAMP%20EEL)

*EDIT* Please contact your DNR! Introduced exotics can be bad news, and the sooner they know about this the sooner something can be done! We don't need another snakehead or sea lamprey destroying our native fishes.

[catfish69hunter]

Not a caecilian (these don't occur in North America in any case). Not an American eel. Not a lamprey. Definitely exotic, or else a marine species somehow trapped in the lake (very unlikely).Swamp eel? (http://www.floridaconservation.org/fishing/fishes/non-native.html#SWAMP%20EEL)

*EDIT* Please contact your DNR! Introduced exotics can be bad news, and the sooner they know about this the sooner something can be done! We don't need another snakehead or sea lamprey destroying our native fishes.


I AGREE:grinyes::grinyes:

[PuppyFluffer]

Interesting.....I want to know what it is!

[Notophthalmus]

I posted a link to this thread over at NANFA (I hope you don't mind, Nomad, but I thought it was important). A better ichthyologist than I has confirmed my guess of synbranchid eel, though he didn't provide any further info. I know at least one synbranchid species is established in the canals of south Florida and seems to be doing little harm there, but still: better safe than sorry!

[OhioOilMan]

I have seen these a lot around the Ohio River where I live, I have actually caught these while cat fishing we always called them Mud Puppies or Mud eels because they always submerge themselves in mud with just their heads barely above the mud waiting for an innocent fish to swim by then "SNAP" beware they have teeth and lots of them!!

[hopwood83]

I would post it on monster fish keepers they seem to know all those crazy looking fish

[Rbishop]

Very weird looking.

[Cuvier]

It looks like a synbranchid "swamp eel," possibly Monopterus albus, a wide-ranging Asian species. It has become established in Florida, Hawaii, and Georgia (where it has exhibited some tolerance of freezing conditions). Your friend's finding in New Jersey would be a first for the state, and -- as far as I'm aware -- the northernmost report of this species anywhere in the United States. Probable means of introduction: live food fish or aquarium trade.


USGS Nonindigenous Aquatic Species factsheet (http://nas.er.usgs.gov/queries/FactSheet.asp?speciesID=974)
Swamp eel FAQ (http://cars.er.usgs.gov/Nonindigenous_Species/Swamp_eel_FAQs/swamp_eel_faqs.html)


I suggest you contact relevant authorities -- I'm not personally familiar with the procedure, but the NAS site I linked may have additional information. Sorry for the rushed post -- I'm in a hurry at the moment.

[Cuvier]

I have seen these a lot around the Ohio River where I live, I have actually caught these while cat fishing we always called them Mud Puppies or Mud eels because they always submerge themselves in mud with just their heads barely above the mud waiting for an innocent fish to swim by then "SNAP" beware they have teeth and lots of them!!

I think you have some sort of siren (see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greater_Siren and http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lesser_Siren) in mind. Despite their eel-like habits and appearance, these are actually aquatic salamanders (and natives of your region). Feel free to correct me if I'm wrong.

[VT_Chris]

let it bite you...find out what it's jaw structure is. that may help with Identification

[NickD]

Looks like this to me. I think a couple of people above said it already.

Synbranchidae (http://www.fishbase.org/Summary/FamilySummary.cfm?ID=262) (Swamp-eels)

http://www.fishbase.org/Summary/SpeciesSummary.php?id=4663

[crazycanuck]

looks like a fish :) lmao. you said it looks moray but its FW.. i had a 3 foot moray clamp onto my hip waders while brook trout fishing in newbrunswick last year. my uncle has lots of stories of them in FW. hope this helps :)

[crazycanuck]

let it bite you...find out what it's jaw structure is. that may help with Identification

thats a great idea ! :grinyes:

[xDetroitMetalx]

Good eatten?

[crazycanuck]

Good eatten?

possibly......

[Lupin]

I'm still squinting on the pic. It looks oddly like a moray but I've never seen morays in FW before.

[Notophthalmus]

Morays have fins. This eel has none.

I feel increasingly confident that it is a syngnathid.

[SchizotypalVamp]

Except for the FW Morays Neo posted before!

[apelaston]

best and easiest thing to do is call the wildlife reserves and they would come pick them up from your house and most likely be able to identify it for you as well..I am not so sure that you would want to house that thing being that it is already HUGE and will be eating plenty I am sure and I don't think that tank you have it in is going to hold that for long.

Creepy..I wouldn't be going back to that lake anymore lol *clucks like a chicken AGAIN*

[bluekrissyspike]

i think all morays come into fresh water when it is mating time. i know the very young can live in fresh water then move into brackish and eventually full salt as they age.

[The Zigman]

Where's Kevin Bacon When ya need him?

[Kpetersen]

It's an American Eel
Anguilla rostrata

[smullins]

Don't think I would be going in that lake anytime soon!

[Tastey]

I wouldn't trust anything that came out of jersey waters. lol

[froglover007]

It could be american eel, exotic swamp eel, or some kind of amphibian.

[SubRosa]

i think all morays come into fresh water when it is mating time. i know the very young can live in fresh water then move into brackish and eventually full salt as they age.
Incorrect. Most Morays are reef dwellers and never see FW. The White Cheek or so called Frshwater Moray lives in estuarys and enters FW. I think you have the life cycle confused with the American Eel which is a catadromous fish, living in FW and going into SW to breed.

[frigginchi]

Looks like this:
http://www.aquaticcommunity.com/predatory/freshwatermoray.php

http://www.aquaticcommunity.com/images/Freshwater/echidna_rhodochilus_1.jpg

[GEV83]

http://gallery.usgs.gov/videos/101

[jpappy789]

Not a caecilian (these don't occur in North America in any case). Not an American eel. Not a lamprey. Definitely exotic, or else a marine species somehow trapped in the lake (very unlikely).Swamp eel? (http://www.floridaconservation.org/fishing/fishes/non-native.html#SWAMP%20EEL)

*EDIT* Please contact your DNR! Introduced exotics can be bad news, and the sooner they know about this the sooner something can be done! We don't need another snakehead or sea lamprey destroying our native fishes.


I posted a link to this thread over at NANFA (I hope you don't mind, Nomad, but I thought it was important). A better ichthyologist than I has confirmed my guess of synbranchid eel, though he didn't provide any further info. I know at least one synbranchid species is established in the canals of south Florida and seems to be doing little harm there, but still: better safe than sorry!


It looks like a synbranchid "swamp eel," possibly Monopterus albus, a wide-ranging Asian species. It has become established in Florida, Hawaii, and Georgia (where it has exhibited some tolerance of freezing conditions). Your friend's finding in New Jersey would be a first for the state, and -- as far as I'm aware -- the northernmost report of this species anywhere in the United States. Probable means of introduction: live food fish or aquarium trade.


USGS Nonindigenous Aquatic Species factsheet (http://nas.er.usgs.gov/queries/FactSheet.asp?speciesID=974)
Swamp eel FAQ (http://cars.er.usgs.gov/Nonindigenous_Species/Swamp_eel_FAQs/swamp_eel_faqs.html)


I suggest you contact relevant authorities -- I'm not personally familiar with the procedure, but the NAS site I linked may have additional information. Sorry for the rushed post -- I'm in a hurry at the moment.


Looks like this to me. I think a couple of people above said it already.

Synbranchidae (http://www.fishbase.org/Summary/FamilySummary.cfm?ID=262) (Swamp-eels)

http://www.fishbase.org/Summary/SpeciesSummary.php?id=4663

Is there a reason why this is still being discussed? Not to mention it is well over a year old...

[GEV83]

LOL didnt look at the date but thought ide share the link to the vid cuz well its pretty cool and informative

[chefjamesscott]

Is there a reason why this is still being discussed? Not to mention it is well over a year old...

I would like to think that some subjects are meritous of a life of thier own

I am glad this old thread was reactivated as I would not have seen it otherwise

[ghinksmon]

Being that the post is old, I think the pertinent question is; did these make it through the winter? Nomad, has your friend been back to this pond in '09?

[thrak76]

I would like to think that some subjects are meritous of a life of thier own

I am glad this old thread was reactivated as I would not have seen it otherwise


:iagree: