Desilvai's Blind Eel
Monopterus desilvai Bailey & Gans, 1998
Also calledPotta aandha (sin)
First described in: Bailey, R. M. and C. Gans. (1998). Two new synbranchid fishes, Monopterus roseni from Peninsular India and M. desilvai from Sri Lanka. <em>Occasional Papers of the Museum of Zoology University of Michigan.</em> 726: 1-18.
Ophichthys desilvai (lesser swamp eel or Desilvai's blind eel) is a commercially important, air-breathing species of fish in the family Synbranchidae. It is endemic to Sri Lanka and is the only endemic synbranchid from there.
From Wikipedia (CC BY-SA), quoted section by section
Range & habitat
It is known from swamp areas and paddy fields from the west side of Sri Lanka. Some have been recovered from the Bolgoda swamp, an estuary southwest of Colombo. A 2020 study found specimens in the lowland coastal floodplain on the west side of the island as well as leafy vegetable plots cultivated within the Bolgoda swamp.
What it does
During reproduction, the male guards and builds a nest or burrow. They go to the surface of the water to breathe air and can stay submerged for up to 1–2 minutes before returning to the surface. During the dry season, they burrow underground and stay in the soil.
In human culture
The specific name honours the Sri Lankan herpetologist Pilippu Hewa Don Hemasiri de Silva (b. 1927), who has been director of the National Museums of Ceylon, in recognition to the help and advice he gave to Carl Gans when he was conducting fieldwork in Sri Lanka.
Where it has been recorded
Recorded sightings
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geo-referenced records in GBIF, from museums, herbaria and field observers.
Drag the globe to turn it. Dots are where records exist, not a range map; darker means more records.
In the stacks
Searching the stacks…
Every page naming Monopterus desilvai in the Biodiversity Heritage Library →
From the GBIF Backbone Taxonomy and occurrence records (GBIF.org), with Wikipedia and the Source Library. GBIF species 5204098.