lairón

Dark, partial banding starts from behind the head of the fish all the way to the tail. Most specimens have 14-15 bands across their body, that stops at the lateral line. The dorsal side is a sandy yellowish-brown colour with dark olive-brown bands that become darker towards the tail. The ventral side is white with a harsh transition from dorsal to ventral, occurring around halfway down the side. There appears to be little to no difference between male and female eels.

Eels can reach over 2 meters (2.26m) in length and weigh up to 18 kg. Both dorsal and anal fins are present, with the dorsal fin beginning well after the pectoral fin and the anal fin originating shortly after the anal opening. The gill opening is semicircular and placed right before the base of the pectoral fin. In males and smaller females, the circular premaxillary patch has a ring of teeth with none in the center. In larger females, the central area is filled with teeth. There are numerous round and oval depressions that are close together all over the fish, that sometimes deepen into pits.

The king snake eel is native to the Gulf of Mexico, with a range extending from the Yucatán Peninsula to the Florida Keys. They are bottom dwellers, preferring muddy/silt habitat compared to sand habitats. It dwells at a depth range of 15 to 365 meters (49 to 1,198 ft) and inhabits offshore waters. Not much is known about the species life history due to their elusiveness as adults. Most specimen appear as bycatch for fishermen.