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SCIENTIFIC NAME: Typhlonectes natans
COMMON NAMES: Caecilian, Caecilian worm, Sicilian* worm/eel, Rubber worm/eel
*This is a misinterpretation of "caecilian," which has led to the myth that they are from Sicily.
DISTRIBUTION: Northern Colombia and Northwestern Venezuela.
PHYSICAL APPEARANCE: Highly elongated and eel-like. The body is cylindrical, flattening at the head and tapering slightly above the cloaca(opening that serves both for reproduction and excretion of waste) which is located directly at the "tail end" of the caecilian. The skin is smooth and grey, and is lined with ring-like creases that resemble the segments of an earthworm. The mouth is wide and extends past the pale, skin-covered eyes located on the upper portion of the head.
MAXIMUM SIZE: T. natans is said to reach lengths of around 20" and a width of 1", but are most commonly for sale at about 1'.
AVERAGE PRICE: Normally sold at 1' for around $20.
TANK SETUP: Small caecilians can live and even breed in tanks as small as 20 gallons, but larger tanks encourage them to be more active and prevent escapes. A fully grown caecilian deserves a tank that is at least 20" tall and 40" long. Caecilians like to burrow, so fine, round, gravel is the ideal substrate. A flat rock laid flat on the substrate is a caecilian's favorite hidng spot and will soon have a series of tunnels under it.
WATER CHEMISTRY: T. natans is fairly hardy if water is kept clean and tolerant of a wide range of pH as long as it is consistent.
FEEDING: In the wild this caecilian's diet constists mainly of worms but in aquaria they will eat nearly anything that they can get their jaws around. Because of their near blindness, this rules out most live foods. I mine eats frozen bloodworm, frozen mysis shrimp (his favorite), brine shrimp pellets, and flakes.
BEHAVIOR: T. natans is most active at night but can still be seen frequently during the day swimming to the surface to breathe or simply looking for scraps of uneaten food. As the caecilian becomes comfortable with its surroundngs, it will spend much of its time exploring the tank and often pokes its nose curiously at unsuspecting bottom dwellers, which can have rather comical results.
Caecilians shed their skin once or twice every few weeks. The skin will most likely be eaten by the caecilian's tankmates. (my small cichlids love to play tug-of-war with it!)
COMPATABILITY: Caecilians are very peaceful and will not hunt down small fish. Instances of caecilians eating fish are very rare and occur usually because the fish was too sick or weak to escape in the first place. Tankmates should also be relatively peaceful and may include other caecilians.
SEXING: Female are said to often have lumpy skin, but the best way to determine gender is by the shape of the cloaca. That of the female has three points and is said to look like the letter "Y" while the male cloaca is said to look like a star or asterisk. (female:Y / male:*)
BREEDING: T. natans will most likely breed when kept as a group in their own tank. The males internally fertilize the females by positioning his cloaca to connect with that of the female. The female will then bulge considerable over the next few months and after a gestation period of about a year, will give live birth to one or more small, but already sexually mature, caecilians. These will still have a cape-like membrane attached to their backs which eventually fall off.
APPEAL: Caecilians are true oddities. Their appearance is as bizzare as their undulatory movements are beautiful as their behavior is quirky and endearing.
This post has been edited by Asterophysus: 30 August 2005 - 09:40 AM
