The spotted snake eel (Myrichthys tigrinus), also known as the tiger snake eel or the spotted tiger snake eel,[1] is an eel in the family Ophichthidae (worm/snake eels).[2] It was described by Charles Frédéric Girard in 1859. It is a marine, tropical eel which is known from the eastern central and southeastern Pacific Ocean, including Chile, Costa Rica, Colombia, El Salvador, Ecuador, Mexico, Guatemala, Nicaragua, Panama, Honduras, and Peru.[3] It dwells at a depth range of 0mto60mm (00feetto200feetm), and inhabits benthic sediments of mud and sand. Males can reach a maximum total length of 74cm (29inches), but more commonly reach a TL of 60cm (20inches).[2]
The spotted snake-eel is of no commercial interest to fisheries.[2] Due to its wide distribution in the eastern Pacific, its lack of known threats and lack of observed population decline, the IUCN redlist currently lists the species as Least Concern.[3]