As they grow older, they migrate deep into the sea. Young Wolf Eels, live on the surface of the water till 2 years of age, so that they get more air. This helps it to move in a wave like pattern. Wolf Eel has a cartilaginous skeleton which helps it flex its body to enter shelves and crevices. There is one dorsal fin extending from the head to the end of the body. It does not have a pelvic fin like other fish. The body – The Wolf Eel has a long, slender body.The back rows of teeth comprise of strong molars for pulverizing the prey. It has a row of 4 to 6 conical fang like teeth meant for biting. It is one of the strongest mouths created by nature to crush hard shelled creatures. The jaw of a wolf – one of the most remarkable features of the anatomy of the Wolf Eel is its mouth.They have huge, soft lips surrounding the mouth. The head is a large square structure with a bump on the top. The head - Scott Reid says, “ They have got faces, which only a mother could love”.Not just color, the Wolf Eel also shows a gender specific spot pattern on its body. The females are brown in color and the males are grey in color. The special characteristic of the Wolf Eel is its gender specific coloring. The young ones of a burnt orange hue and the adults are brown or green or grey. A Wolf Eel can grow up to 8 feet in length and weighs up to 88 pounds. Someone rightly said that the Wolf Eel has the appearance of a fish, eyes of a snake, jaws of a wolf and the grace of a gold fish. They are bred near shore reefs of Oregon where they are bred in captivity. They are also found in Russia, Aleutian Islands of Japan, Islands of Racerocks (near the Rosedale Reef), and Imperial Beach of Southern California. They are found in the Pacific coast from North Baja of California to Kodiak Island in Alaska. GEOGRAPHICAL DISTRIBUTION OF THE WOLF EEL It is the Pacific relative of the popular Atlantic Wolf Fish. Wolf Eel is one of the five species of the endangered Wolf Fish family. Anarrhichthys in Greek means ‘a fish’ and ocellatus stands for ‘eye like spots’. It is in fact, a fish with the face of a wolf and the body of an Eel. Wolf Eel or Anarrhichthys Ocellatus, is neither a wolf nor an eel. Fisheries that harvest octopuses, urchins, and crab may remove prey resources that wolf-eel depend upon" (Jaglio 6).Check out our Astoria Fishing Charters and Washington Halibut Charters There were no wolf-eel present when surveyed. Trawler nets, which many fishermen use, are particularly damaging because they destroy rocky reefs where wolf eels reside. Conservationists and scientists suggest using alternative method of logline traps which won't damage the reefs.Īccording to Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife "the wolf eel appears to be a species that is sensitive to harvest and may be affected by competition with Pacific giant octopus and with fisheries During 1999, one area in the harvest zone was surveyed that once contained a large wolf-eel colony. Because wolf eels make their home in rocky reefs their homes are susceptible to damage from storms, pollution, trawler nets and other factors. Human pollution can affect wolf eel habitat, degrading it and making it uninhabitable. Wolf eels are often caught in crab traps or fishing nets. About two thirds were speared by skin divers and most of the others were caught by skiff fishermen. Crey's article discusses a breeding and release program for VPA.Ī survey from 1957-1961 stated that sport fishermen took an estimated 200 wolf eels a year. There have been efforts to restore wolf populations in some areas. Local populations of wolf eels have been wiped out in waters of many metropolitan areas as a consequence of fishermen and aquarium collectors as well as habitat destruction, pollution and accidental catching once eliminated from a site wolf eels will not return naturally (Creys).
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |