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Myrichthys maculosus (Cuvier, 1816)

Tiger snake eel
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Native range | All suitable habitat | Point map | Year 2050
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Myrichthys maculosus   AquaMaps   Data sources: GBIF OBIS
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Image of Myrichthys maculosus (Tiger snake eel)
Myrichthys maculosus
Picture by Greenfield, J.


China country information

Common names: 巨斑花蛇鰻, 巨斑花蛇鳗, 艾氏花蛇鰻
Occurrence: native
Salinity: marine
Abundance: | Ref:
Importance: | Ref:
Aquaculture: never/rarely | Ref:
Regulations: no regulations | Ref:
Uses: no uses
Comments: Found in Xisha islands.
National Checklist:
Country Information: https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/resources/the-world-factbook/geos/ch.html
National Fisheries Authority:
Occurrences: Occurrences Point map
Main Ref: Qiu, S., B. Chen, J. Du, K.-H. Loh, J. Liao, X. Liu and W. Yang, 2021
National Database:

Common names from other countries

Classification / Names Common names | Synonyms | Catalog of Fishes(genus, species) | ITIS | CoL | WoRMS | Cloffa

Teleostei (teleosts) > Anguilliformes (Eels and morays) > Ophichthidae (Snake eels) > Ophichthinae
Etymology: Myrichthys: Greek, myros, -ou = male of morey eel + Greek, ichthys = fish (Ref. 45335).
  More on author: Cuvier.

Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range Ecology

Marine; reef-associated; depth range 0 - 262 m (Ref. 9710).   Tropical; 30°N - 33°S

Distribution Countries | FAO areas | Ecosystems | Occurrences | Point map | Introductions | Faunafri

Indo-Pacific: Red Sea and East Africa to the central Pacific, not including Hawaii and the Leeward Islands. Replaced by Myrichthys magnificus in the Hawaiian Islands (Ref. 26145, 37816).

Size / Weight / Age

Maturity: Lm ?  range ? - ? cm
Max length : 100.0 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 1602); common length : 50.0 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 9137)

Short description Identification keys | Morphology | Morphometrics

Dorsal spines (total): 0; Dorsal soft rays (total): 0; Anal spines: 0; Anal soft rays: 0; Vertebrae: 185 - 189. Pale cream in color with variable pattern of large and small black spots with narrower white interspaces (Ref. 3972, 48635). Young with black saddles (Ref. 3972). Its behavior is similar to Myrichthys colubrinus and Leiuranus semicinctus.

Biology     Glossary (e.g. epibenthic)

Found in sandy areas of reef flats, lagoons, and seaward reefs; living buried in the sand. May aggregate in large numbers under a light at night (Ref. 9710). Sometimes fully exposed when searching for prey (Ref. 30874). Feeds on small fishes and crustaceans (Ref. 89972). Solitary and more common at night (Ref 90102).

Life cycle and mating behavior Maturities | Reproduction | Spawnings | Egg(s) | Fecundities | Larvae

Main reference Upload your references | References | Coordinator : McCosker, John E. | Collaborators

McCosker, J.E. and R.H. Rosenblatt, 1993. A revision of the snake eel genus Myrichthys (Anguilliformes: Ophichthidae) with the description of a new eastern Pacific species. Proc. Calif. Acad. Sci. 48(8):153-169. (Ref. 40867)

IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 130435)

  Least Concern (LC) ; Date assessed: 04 November 2019

CITES (Ref. 128078)

Not Evaluated

CMS (Ref. 116361)

Not Evaluated

Threat to humans

  Harmless




Human uses

Fisheries: commercial; aquarium: commercial
FAO(Publication : search) | FishSource |

More information

Trophic ecology
Food items
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Food consumptions
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Predators
Ecology
Ecology
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Population dynamics
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Max. ages / sizes
Length-weight rel.
Length-length rel.
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Estimates based on models

Preferred temperature (Ref. 115969): 19.2 - 28.2, mean 26.1 (based on 991 cells).
Phylogenetic diversity index (Ref. 82804):  PD50 = 0.5005   [Uniqueness, from 0.5 = low to 2.0 = high].
Bayesian length-weight: a=0.00089 (0.00039 - 0.00204), b=3.00 (2.80 - 3.20), in cm Total Length, based on LWR estimates for this (Sub)family-body shape (Ref. 93245).
Trophic level (Ref. 69278):  3.6   ±0.5 se; based on size and trophs of closest relatives
Resilience (Ref. 120179):  Medium, minimum population doubling time 1.4 - 4.4 years (Preliminary K or Fecundity.).
Fishing Vulnerability (Ref. 59153):  High vulnerability (60 of 100).
Price category (Ref. 80766):   Unknown.