Fish of the Nettastoma genus of the Nettastomatidae (duckbill eels or witch eels) family of the Congroidei suborder of the Anguilliformes (eels) order of the Elopomorpha superorder.
(Blackfin sorcerer. Photo by © OCEANA. flickr.com/photos/oceanaeurope)
Blackfin sorcerer (Nettastoma melanurum) was first described in 1810 by the American naturalist, zoologist and botanist Constantine Samuel Rafinesque (1783-1840).
It occurs at the depth of 37-1,647 meters, usually 329-860 meters. It digs burrows in the muddy bottom and hides there. The maximum recorded length is 77.3 cm. It feeds mainly on various crustaceans.
(Blackfin sorcerer. Photo by © Alberto Serrano López. fishbase.org)
It is a rare inhabitant of the Adriatic. It is more common in its southern part near the border with the Ionian Sea.
Names of blackfin sorcerer (Nettastoma melanurum) in other languages are as follows:
Pico de pato (Spanish), Becco d’anatra (Italian), Schwarzflossen-Hexenaal (German), Patkokljunić, Patokljunčić (Serbian, Croatian), Sorcière à queue noire (French), Štíhlohlavec sicilský (Czech).