1. (noun) blind eel, common hagfish, Eptatretus cirrhatus - a primitive eel-like fish that lives only in marine habitats. Though blind, hagfish are predators of other fish, which they detect by movement and smell. Body cylindrical with a paddle-like tail. Six barbels around the mouth. Pink-grey variably spotted with black and white. Found throughout shelf and slope waters of Aotearoa/New Zealand to depths of 922 m.