Panamic sand eel
Bascanichthys panamensis Meek & Hildebrand, 1923
Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.
Open encyclopedia reference
The Panama sand-eel (Bascanichthys panamensis, also known as the Panamic sand-eel in Mexico) is an eel in the family Ophichthidae (worm/snake eels). It was described by Seth Eugene Meek and Samuel Frederick Hildebrand in 1923. It is a marine, tropical eel which is known from the eastern central Pacific Ocean, including the Gulf of California, Mexico, Costa Rica, Panama, and Nicaragua. It dwells at a maximum depth of 30 metres (98 ft), and inhabits sandy sediments, sometimes in estuaries and mangroves. Males can reach a maximum total length of 76 centimetres (30 in).
The IUCN redlist currently lists the Panama sand-eel as Least Concern, due to a lack of major threats and observed population decline. It notes, however, that coastal development in its range could prove problematic for the species.
Wikipedia contributors, Panama sand-eel; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T08:08:10.512554+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Bascanichthys panamensis Meek & Hildebrand, 1923
- Name authority
- Meek & Hildebrand, 1923
- Common name
- Panamic sand eel
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Teleostei
- Order
- Anguilliformes
- Family
- Ophichthidae
- Genus
- Bascanichthys
- Extinction status
- Not supplied by this source
Source habitat flags: Marine: yes · Freshwater: no · Terrestrial: no. These do not form a complete habitat description.
Classification family tree
Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumOsteichthyes
- gigaclassActinopterygii
- superclassActinopteri
- classTeleostei
- orderAnguilliformes
- familyOphichthidae Günther, 1870
- subfamilyOphichthinae Günther, 1870
- genusBascanichthys Jordan & Davis, 1891
- speciesBascanichthys panamensis Meek & Hildebrand, 1923
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Bascanichthys. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| sooty sand eelBascanichthys bascanoides Osburn & Nichols, 1916 | OphichthidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Bascanichthys deraniyagalai Menon, 1961 | OphichthidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Bascanichthys myersi (Herre, 1932) | OphichthidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Bascanichthys inopinatus McCosker, Böhlke & Böhlke, 1989 | OphichthidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Bascanichthys ceciliae Blache & Cadenat, 1971 | OphichthidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Bascanichthys fijiensis (Seale, 1935) | OphichthidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Bascanichthys cylindricus Meek & Hildebrand, 1923 | OphichthidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Bascanichthys gaira Moreno, Acero P. & Grijalba-Bendeck, 2016 | OphichthidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Bascanichthys filaria (Günther, 1872) | OphichthidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Bascanichthys longipinnis (Kner & Steindachner, 1867) | OphichthidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| whip eelBascanichthys scuticaris (Goode & Bean, 1880) | OphichthidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Bascanichthys paulensis Storey, 1939 | OphichthidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
Source literature & publication evidence
References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.
- Meek, S. E., & Hildebrand, S. F. (1923). The marine fishes of Panama. Part I. Field Museum of Natural History, Publications, Zoölogical Series, v. 15 (publ. 215): i–xi + 1–330, Pls. 1–24. Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references
Origins, evidence & remaining research
Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.
Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record. A suitable sourced image remains to be added.
Dataset citation & attribution
This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11
Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Stable key: col:68DCJ. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.