Gymnothorax indicus, new species of eel found in Bay of Bengal

A group of researchers discovered a new species of eel, Gymnothorax indicus, from the northern Bay of Bengal along the West Bengal coast. It is likely to be called Indian unpatterned moray.

The discovery was published in an international journal, Zootaxa, in the second week of August 2016.

The eel was studied by the scientists at Sankarpur fishing harbour in West Bengal’s Purba Medinipur district. It was collected in a trawl net by fishermen in northern Bay of Bengal, about 70 km off the coast.

Key highlights of the Gymnothorax indicus

• The newly found species is slender-bodied, about one feet-long and edible.

• The one-foot long fish has 194 vertebrae.

• Its dorsal fin has a black margin.

• When fresh, the body is uniformly pale brown without spots or patterns and the eye rim is pale.

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