Fringelip Snake Eel, Cirrhimuraena calamus (Günther 1870)
Other Names: Fringe-lipped Snake Eel, Fringe-lipped Snake-eel
A Fringelip Snake Eel, Cirrhimuraena calamus, at Woodman Point, Perth, Western Australia, December 2019. Source: Alex Hoschke / iNaturalist.org. License: CC by Attribution-NonCommercial
Summary:
A brownish snake eel with an abruptly pale lower half, a small pectoral fin, and a fringe of skin tentacles on the upper lip (hence the common name).
Cite this page as:
Bray, D.J. 2019, Cirrhimuraena calamus in Fishes of Australia, accessed 13 Nov 2024, https://fishesofaustralia.net.au/Home/species/2893
Fringelip Snake Eel, Cirrhimuraena calamus (Günther 1870)
More Info
Distribution |
Endemic to Western Australia from Hamelin Bay in the south to Learmonth in Exmouth Gulf. Burrows into sandy and silty areas, including seagrass beds in estuaries and protected coastal waters. |
Etymology |
The specific name calamus (= reed) may refer to the thin, reed-like shape of this species. |
Species Citation |
Ophichthys calamus Günther 1870, Catalogue of the Fishes in the British Museum Vol. 8: 74. Type locality: Fremantle, Western Australia. |
Author |
Bray, D.J. 2019 |
Resources |
Fringelip Snake Eel, Cirrhimuraena calamus (Günther 1870)
References
Allen, G.R. 1997. Marine Fishes of Tropical Australia and South-east Asia. Perth : Western Australian Museum 292 pp. 106 pls.
Allen, G.R. & Swainston, R. 1988. The Marine Fishes of North-Western Australia. A field guide for anglers and divers. Perth, WA : Western Australian Museum vi 201 pp., 70 pls.
Günther, A. 1870. Catalogue of the Fishes in the British Museum. Catalogue of the Physostomi, containing the families Gymnotidae, Symbranchidae, Muraenidae, Pegasidae, and of the Lophobranchii, Plectognathi, Dipnoi, [thru] Leptocardii, in the British Museum. London : British Museum Vol. 8 549 pp. See ref at BHL
Hoschke, A., Whisson, G. & Moore, G.I. 2019. Complete list of fishes from Rottnest Island. pp. 150-161 in Whisson, G. & Hoschke, A. (eds) The Rottnest Island fish book. 2nd ed. Perth: Aqua Research and Monitoring Services.
Hutchins, J.B. & Swainston, R. 1986. Sea Fishes of Southern Australia. Complete field guide for anglers and divers. Perth : Swainston Publishing 180 pp.
Hutchins, J.B. & Thompson, M. 1983. The Marine and Estuarine Fishes of South-western Australia. Perth : Western Australian Museum 103 pp. 345 figs.
McCosker, J.E. 1977. The osteology, classification, and relationships of the eel family Ophichthidae. Proceedings of the California Academy of Sciences 41(1): 1-123 figs 1-45 See ref at BHL
Smith, D.G. & McCosker, J.E. 1999. Family Ophichthidae. pp. 1662-1699 in Carpenter, K.E. & Niem, V.H. (eds). The Living Marine Resources of the Western Central Pacific. FAO Species Identification Guide for Fisheries Purposes. Rome : FAO Vol. 3 pp. 1397-2068.
Whitley, G.P. 1944. New sharks and fishes from Western Australia. The Australian Zoologist 10(3): 252-273 figs 1-6 (as Calamuraena calamus)