Classification / Names
Common names | Synonyms | Catalog of Fishes(genus, species) | ITIS | CoL | WoRMS | Cloffa
Teleostei (teleosts) >
Anguilliformes (Eels and morays) >
Muraenidae (Moray eels) > Muraeninae
Etymology: Gymnothorax: Greek, gymnos = naked + Greek, thorax, -akos = breast (Ref. 45335); poikilospilus: Name from the Greek ‘poikilo’ for varied or variegated, and ‘spilos’ meaning a spot or stain, referring to its varied body markings between daytime and nighttime.
Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range
Ecology
Marine; reef-associated; depth range 10 - 20 m (Ref. 127463). Subtropical
Northwest Pacific: Taiwan.
Size / Weight / Age
Maturity: Lm ? range ? - ? cm
Max length : 86.8 cm TL (female)
Short description
Identification keys | Morphology | Morphometrics
Vertebrae: 141. This medium-sized species is distinguished by the following characters: typical muraenid shape, anus at mid-point of body; high dorsal fin; eyes above the mid-jaw; jaws slightly arched, do not completely close; cephalic sensory pores are small; uniserial teeth, are slender and pointed; predorsal vertebrae 4, preanal vertebrae 57-59, total vertebrae 141. Colouration: brown or gray-brown body; several rows of large dark brown patches on back of body and dorsal fin; patches are obscure during daytime and becoming obvious at night; dorsal head dark brown and spotless; when alive, the fins with fine greyish-white margins but these are invisible when preserved; inner skin of nostrils and head pores are whitish; oral cavity uniform brown; throat grooves are darkish; iris of the eye reddish-brown (Ref. 127463).
The holotype was reared from 10 June 2002 until 4 February 2005 in a laboratory aquarium. It accidentally crawled out of the aquarium during the night and died. It was dissected and many mature eggs were found in its abdominal cavity. The mature eggs were between 0.8-1.2 mm in diameter, and batch fecundity was about 20,000 eggs. Under microscope, there was the other immature egg group in its ovaries, the diameters of oocytes were about 0.15-0.26 mm. The paratype was also reared until its death on 22 September 2008. Under the microscope, its gonads belonged to immature ovaries, with 2 groups of oocytes with different egg diameter interval ranges: the larger group was 0.17-0.26 mm, while the smaller group was 0.07-0.13 mm. The two specimens were fed with fish and squid meat (Ref. 127463).
Life cycle and mating behavior
Maturity | Reproduction | Spawning | Eggs | Fecundity | Larvae
Huang, W.-C., K.-H. Loh and H.-M. Chen, 2022. Gymnothorax poikilospilus, a new moray eel (Teleostei: Anguilliformes: Muraenidae) from Penghu Islands, western Taiwan. Zootaxa 5189(1):87-102. (Ref. 127463)
IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 130435: Version 2024-2)
Threat to humans
Harmless
Human uses
Fisheries: minor commercial
Tools
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Internet sources
Estimates based on models
Phylogenetic diversity index (Ref.
82804): PD
50 = No PD50 data [Uniqueness, from 0.5 = low to 2.0 = high].
Bayesian length-weight: a=0.00048 (0.00025 - 0.00091), b=3.28 (3.12 - 3.44), in cm total length, based on LWR estimates for this Genus-body shape (Ref.
93245).
Trophic level (Ref.
69278): 4.1 ±0.7 se; based on size and trophs of closest relatives
Resilience (Ref.
120179): Low, minimum population doubling time 4.5 - 14 years (Preliminary K or Fecundity.).
Fishing Vulnerability (Ref.
59153): Moderate to high vulnerability (55 of 100).
