Looks like a MudFish, and considering your in Florida, good chance
that is what you have.  Before you release it you should contact fish
and wildlife just to make sure it is native to Florida Waters.


http://www.floridaconservation.org/fishing/news-rel/snakehead.html


http://images.google.ca/imgres?imgurl=www.igrin.co.nz/trisha/blackmud.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.igrin.co.nz/trisha/black%2520mudfish.htm&h=295&w=801&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dmudfish%26start%3D40%26svnum%3D10%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26ie%3DUTF-8%26oe%3DUTF-8%26sa%3DN

On Wed, 01 Jan 2003 23:37:00 GMT, "T&T"
 wrote:

>Greetings.  I'm not a regular poster to this ng, and I hope you don't mind
>my butting in.
>I'd like opinions about an eel that I found.
>This eel wound up in a large puddle of water after a near flooding downpour
>the night before.  We live virtually on the edge of a swampy area and the
>eel must have been washed out somehow.
>It is unlike any eels that I've found either online or in my own reference
>or seen with my own eyes.  The pictures aren't very good, but they show the
>square nose characteristic of the eel.  What the pictures don't show is that
>the creature has feet which are only about an inch long and very
>underdeveloped in appearance.  I'm not sure what the gill like things are
>that are visable in the picture. The eel didn't look that way out of the
>water.  I assume they are gills as I never see it come to the surface for
>air.  I've currently got it in a 50 gal. plastic drum half full of
>rainwater.
>I have no intentions of keeping it and will soon release it, but I'd sure
>like to know what it is.
>I'd appreciate any helpful replies.
>Happy new year.
>Tom
>http://www.geocities.com/fidormula/eel1.jpg
>http://www.geocities.com/fidormula/eel2.jpg
>http://www.geocities.com/fidormula/eel3.jpg
>http://www.geocities.com/fidormula/eel4.jpg
>
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