[3] It was described by David Starr Jordan in 1884, originally under the genus Caecula.

[4] It is a marine, subtropical eel which is known from the western Atlantic Ocean, including North Carolina and Florida, USA, and the Gulf of Mexico.

It dwells at a depth range of 0 to 27 metres (0 to 89 ft).

Males can reach a maximum total length of 70 centimetres (2.3 ft).

[3] The sooty eel is preyed on by the Atlantic tripletail.