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229. The Napoleon Snake Eel (Ophichthus bonaparti)



Subject:

The Napoleon Snake Eel (Ophichthus bonaparti), also known as the Purplebanded Snake Eel, shows only its head.


The snake eel is usually burrowed in the substrate, and in most encounters, the entire serpentine-shaped fish isn’t seen completely. With its 75cm/30-inch or so long slender saddled body, the Napoleon Snake Eel only comes out at night to hunt for small fish and crustaceans. Additionally, it sometimes stays buried and may ambush its prey.


This nocturnal hunter inhabits the muddy and sandy bottoms of the Indo-Pacific region, spanning from Africa’s eastern coast to the western islands of the Pacific Ocean, such as the Philippines, Indonesia, and the French territory of New Caledonia. It prefers the shallower areas of the sea and is seldom encountered by underwater videographers and photographers deeper than 20m/66ft or so.


Although the Napoleon Snake Eel can bite in self-defence, it usually prefers to retreat into the substrate when harassed.


The name “Napoleon,” referring to the French warlord, general, and emperor, has nothing to do with this fish species. The Latin name “bonaparti” was given to this eel in honour of the French naturalist and ornithologist Charles Lucien Bonaparte and not his uncle, the French emperor Napoleon Bonaparte (1769 - 1821). Napoleon Bonaparte did not use a snake eel or any type of fish in his coat of arms; he used an eagle and a bee as emblems. Therefore, the name “Charles Snake Eel” would be more correct and appropriate.


Technique:

I edited some old footage from my time in Bali (Indonesia) into a short underwater video clip. The footage had a greenish tint due to inappropriate white-balancing during filming. To enhance the subject, I adjusted the colours and darkened its surroundings. I balanced the colours of the images using a small fragment of white shell near the snake eel’s chin as a reference. By indicating this area as true white in my editing program, the image lost its greenish hue and restored almost completely the natural colours of the subject and its surroundings.


To emphasise the snake eel in the entire picture, I utilised masks and three different layers. The lowest layer represented the sandy surroundings, which I darkened. The middle layer was a masked image of the eel’s head, to which I applied the sharpening tool. The topmost layer was a copy of the middle layer with an added “watercolour” effect to smoothen out the marbled and speckled pattern of the head. Then, I increased the contrast and made this top layer slightly transparent so that the middle, sharpened layer revealed itself partially.

To further accentuate the snake eel in the picture, I added a subtle vignette. I often use a vignette when the subject isn’t engaging in any spectacular activity. If the scene were dynamic and full of action, such as one fish chasing another, the use of a vignette would not be necessary.


To set a matching atmosphere for this short underwater videoclip, I selected a Western-themed tune that I felt matched well with the sandy and ocher colouration of the subject and its surroundings.


Filming location:

This short underwater videoclip has been filmed in Bali, Indonesia 🇮🇩


More on this topic:

For another in-depth description about a different species of snake eel please go to our vlog post 91 or click on this link: https://www.beyondscuba.com/post/marbled-snake-eel-callechelys-marmorata


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