The Lesser Sand Eel is also known as the Sand Lance and can be found all around England in our coastal waters. It is not a true eel like its name suggests because it has a body that is covered in scales. True eels, like the Conger Eel, have smooth scaleless bodies.

The Lesser Sand Eel is a thin-looking fish with a pointed jaw and a forked tail fin. It can reach approximately twenty centimetres in length. It has a yellow-green back which has a bluish tint to it. The lower sides and belly are a silver colour which first gives this fish the impression that it is silver all over. The scales on the underside are ‘V’ shaped and they all face in one direction.

Lesser Sand Eels swim in dense shoals near to the sand seabed and they particularly like areas that contain weed covered rocks because the eels shelter behind them when the sea currents are very strong. When Lesser Sand Eels feel in danger, they suddenly dart into the sand where they completely disappear from view. It is an amazing sight to see because they can do it so quickly. Lesser Sand Eels can also bury themselves twenty to fifty centimetres deep under the sand in winter to keep warm.