Strophidon sathete ( Hamilton 1822 )

Smith, David G., Bogorodsky, Sergey V., Mal, Ahmad O. & Alpermann, Tilman J., 2019, Review of the moray eels (Anguilliformes: Muraenidae) of the Red Sea, with description of a new species, Zootaxa 4704 (1), pp. 1-87 : 61-62

publication ID

https://doi.org/ 10.11646/zootaxa.4704.1.1

publication LSID

lsid:zoobank.org:pub:0AF043C6-38E4-4546-A7FB-C43BAC5A9837

persistent identifier

https://treatment.plazi.org/id/A84F87BC-FFBD-691A-FF5A-F9A5FD8FFB87

treatment provided by

Plazi

scientific name

Strophidon sathete ( Hamilton 1822 )
status

 

Strophidon sathete ( Hamilton 1822) View in CoL —Longtail Moray

( Figure 40 View FIGURE 40 )

Muraenophis sathete Hamilton 1822: 17 View in CoL , 363 (Ganges estuaries near Calcutta, India). No types known.

Thyrsoidea macrura (Bleeker) View in CoL : Ajiad 1987: 102 (Gulf of Aqaba).

Strophidon sathete: Randall & Golani 1995: 871 View in CoL ; Golani & Bogorodsky 2010: 11; Golani & Fricke 2018: 23.

Red Sea material. None examined, based on report by Ajiad (1987).

Comparative material. Mozambique: USNM 312253 About USNM (1, 1041) . Pakistan: USNM 199673 About USNM (1, 182) ; USNM 427620 About USNM (1, 1197) . India: MNHN 2134 About MNHN (1, 1460, holotype of Thyrsoidea longissima Kaup ) . Indonesia: BMNH 1867.11 . 28.212 (1, 2265, holotype of Muraena macrura Bleeker ); RMNH 7206 About RMNH (1, 2425) . Philippines: USNM 84213 About USNM (1, 1021) ; USNM 135176 About USNM (1, 590) ; USNM 136598 About USNM (1, 1510) . Taiwan: USNM 312252 About USNM (1, 486) . Japan: USNM 75945 About USNM (1, 824) ; USNM 160610 About USNM (1, 1118) . Fiji: USNM 259863 About USNM (1, 130).

Description. In TL: preanal length 2.2–2.9, predorsal length 11–17, head length 8.1–13, body depth at anus 37–63. In head length: snout length 6.8–12, eye diameter 13–29, upper-jaw length 2.7–3.7. Pores: LL 1–8, SO 2–3, IO 3–4, POM 6. Vertebrae: predorsal 7–14, preanal 71–84, total 183–212.

Body very elongate; anus well before midlength; dorsal-fin origin before gill opening. Snout long, jaws of equal length. Eye small, closer to tip of snout than to rictus. Anterior nostril tubular; posterior above and slightly behind anterior margin of eye. Usually three infraorbital pores; 1–8 branchial pores.

Teeth pointed, smooth. Intermaxillary teeth in a single peripheral series, about 4–9 on each side; 1–4 median teeth. Maxillary and dentary teeth biserial anteriorly and uniserial posteriorly, the inner teeth larger and fewer than outer. Vomerine teeth uniserial, about 8–17.

Color: grayish brown, paler ventrally, the fins darker.

Reported to reach 375 cm.

Distribution and habitat. Indo-West Pacific from East Africa and the Red Sea to New Caledonia and Fiji. Occurs on mud bottom in burrows in lagoons and estuaries; nocturnal. The Red Sea record is based on two specimens reported by Ajiad (1987) taken by hook and line in 50 m at Nuweiba, Gulf of Aqaba.

Remarks. This is the longest of all moray eels, reaching nearly 4 m, but very slender. The forward placement of the eye is distinctive, as is the usual presence of three rather than four infraorbital pores and up to eight branchial pores. The wide range of vertebral counts and recent DNA evidence indicate that more than one species are included under this name. It has frequently been referred to in the literature as Thyrsoidea macrura . No COI sequence data from Red Sea specimens was available for this species, but the phylogeny ( Fig. 48 View FIGURE 48 ) includes sequences from specimens from other localities. In our search for sequences representative for this species, we found that there are two closely related clades with reciprocally exclusive distributions (as of the sequences found in BOLD). One clade only contained specimens from China and Taiwan, whereas the other included specimens from a wider area, encompassing Australia, Indonesia, Philippines, India and South Africa (not all localities were included in the present analysis, see Fig. 48 View FIGURE 48 ). With its type locality in India, we suggest that the latter clade represents the species described as Strophidon sathete , but without further analysis we refrain from any firm conclusions and we provisionally keep both clades under that name. Strophidon sathete formed a highly supported clade with two other congeneric species (i.e. S. dorsalis (Seale) and Strophidon sp.).

Kingdom

Animalia

Phylum

Chordata

Class

Actinopterygii

Order

Anguilliformes

Family

Muraenidae

Genus

Strophidon

Loc

Strophidon sathete ( Hamilton 1822 )

Smith, David G., Bogorodsky, Sergey V., Mal, Ahmad O. & Alpermann, Tilman J. 2019
2019
Loc

Strophidon sathete: Randall & Golani 1995: 871

Golani, D. & Fricke, R. 2018: 23
Golani, D. & Bogorodsky, S. V. 2010: 11
Randall, J. E. & Golani, D. 1995: 871
1995
Loc

Thyrsoidea macrura

Ajiad, A. M. 1987: 102
1987
Loc

Muraenophis sathete

Hamilton, F. 1822: 17
1822
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