Eastern Conger, Conger wilsoni (Bloch & Schneider, 1801)

ANIMAL SPECIES:Eastern Conger, Conger wilsoni (Bloch & Schneider, 1801)

The Eastern Conger is blue-grey to brown-black above and pale below. It occurs in Australian temperate marine waters.

Alternative Name/s

Common Conger-eel, Conger Eel, Short-finned Conger Eel, Wilson's Conger Eel

Identification

The Eastern Conger is blue-grey to brown-black above and pale below.

Size range

It grows to 1.6 m in length.

Similar Species

The species closely resembles the Southern Conger. The position of the dorsal fin origin can be used to distinguish between these species. In the Eastern Conger the dorsal fin starts slightly behind the pectoral fin tip while in the Southern Conger the dorsal fin begins above the tip of the pectoral fin. Other differences include the number of vertebrae, lateral line pores and dorsal fin ray counts.

Distribution

The species occurs on the eastern Australian coast from southern Queensland to southern New South Wales, and on the south coast from eastern South Australia to south-western Western Australia.

Distribution by collection data

Biomaps map of Eastern Conger specimens in the Australian Museum collection.

What does this mean?

Classification

Species:: wilsoni
Genus:: Conger
Family:: Congridae
Order:: Anguilliformes
Class:: Actinopterygii
Subphylum:: Vertebrata
Phylum:: Chordata
Kingdom:: Animalia

What does this mean?

References

Edgar, G.J. 1997. Australian Marine Life: the plants and animals of temperate waters. Reed Books. Pp. 544.
Hutchins, B. & R. Swainston. 1986. Sea Fishes of Southern Australia. Complete Field Guide for Anglers and Divers. Swainston Publishing. Pp. 180.
Kuiter, R.H. 2000. Coastal Fishes of South-eastern Australia. Gary Allen. Pp. 437.

Mark McGrouther , Collection Manager, Ichthyology
Last Updated: 15 August 2011

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