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AUSTRALIAN SERPENT EEL Although regarded until recently as a ran fish on this coast the serpent eel which is distinctly snakelike in appearance is now so often caught in trawls and on lines and hooks that its appearance does not surprise ichthyologists One a little over two feet long was caught in Botany Bay by a hoy a few days ago When landed it fastened its sharp teeth into the side of the boat and some force liud to be used to detach it The bodv was semitrans ¬ parent and almost cylindrical tapering to the tail The head was as long as that of an oyster eel The only welldeveloped fins were the pectorals Where the dorsal ventral and anal fins should be there was merely a fine black line The under surface was silvery These eels are extremely active and voracious They live on sandy bottoms catching elusive sand worms and other denizens of the sands Their flesh is delicious eating and when an eel attains a length of four feet which it often does it is well worth keeping for food No poison fangs are found in the jaws but a bite from the needle sharp teeth is something to be remembered Town and Country Journal Sydney N S W
