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True eels are fish of the order Anguilliformes, which consists of 4 suborders, 19 families, 110 genera and 400 species. Most eels are predators.


 


All shapes and sizes: Depending on their species, eels can reach from 10 cm to 3 m, and weigh up to 65 kg. The number of rays of the gill webbing ranges from 6 to 51, though sometimes they are absent altogether. Their fins are always spineless. The back and anal fins are long, usually connecting with the tail fin. The belly and chest fins are absent. The shoulder girdle is separate from the skull. The scales are cycloid or absent.


Hideout: Most eels prefer to dwell in shallow waters, hide at the bottom layer of the ocean, sometimes in holes. Only the Anguillidae family comes to fresh water to dwell there (not to breed). Some eels dwell in deep water (in case of family Synaphobranchidae, this comes to a depth of 4,000 m), or are active swimmers (the family Nemichthyidae - to the depth of 500 m).

The life cycle of the eel was a mystery for a very long time, because larval eels look very different from adult eels, and were thought to be a separate species. See eel life history.

An eel sandwich: Freshwater eels (unagi) and marine eels (Conger eel, anago) are commonly used in Japanese cuisine. Eels are used in Cantonese and Shanghai cuisine too. The European eel and other freshwater eels are eaten in Europe, the United States, and other places around the world. A traditional London food is jellied eels. The Basque delicacy, angulas, consists of deep-fried elvers.

Uniquely in Europe, hand netting is the only legal way of catching eels in England, and has been practiced for thousands of years on the River Parrett and River Severn.

Eel skins are used in some wallets and purses

All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License

   
 


 Kingdom: Animalia

 Phylum: Chordata

 Class: Actinopterygii

 Order: Anguilliformes