Description

Common Names

No common names available.

Taxonomic Hierarchy

Kingdom: Animalia

Phylum: Chordata

Class: Teleostei

Order: Synbranchiformes

Family: Synbranchidae

Genus: Ophisternon

Species: Ophisternon gutturale (Richardson, 1845)

Climate Zone

Location

Biology

Facultative air-breathing (Ref. 126274); Occur in backwaters of rivers, swamps, and stagnant ponds. Inhabit soft bottom sediments in quiet, well-vegetated backwaters of brackish estuaries and nearby swamps. Found in lower freshwater reaches of rivers. Cryptic, nocturnally active species, which burrow in bottom sediments. The male guards and builds nest or burrow (Ref. 205). The best chance of sighting this elusive fish is by spotlighting along thickly vegetated margins of suitable habitats at night. They are capable of surviving short periods out of water. A current taxonomic study of this family indicates this species probably should be placed in a new genus (Ref. 44894).

Habitat

brackish