Yirrkala | |
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Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Actinopterygii |
Order: | Anguilliformes |
Family: | Ophichthidae |
Subfamily: | Ophichthinae |
Genus: | Yirrkala Whitley, 1940 |
Type species | |
Yirrkala chaselingi Whitley, 1940 | |
Synonyms | |
Pantonora J. L. B. Smith, 1965 |
Yirrkala is a genus of eels in the snake eel family Ophichthidae. [1] [2] It is named after Yirrkala, an indigenous community in Arnhem Land, in the Northern Territory of Australia. [3]
There are currently[ as of? ] 15 recognized species in this genus: [1]
Ophichthidae is a family of fish in the order Anguilliformes, commonly known as the snake eels. The term "Ophichthidae" comes from Greek ophis ("serpent") and ichthys ("fish"). Snake eels are also burrowing eels. They are named for their physical appearance, as they have long, cylindrical, snake-like bodies. This family is found worldwide in tropical to warm temperate waters. They inhabit a wide range of habitats, from coastal shallows and even rivers, to depths below 800 m (2,600 ft). Most species are bottom dwellers, hiding in mud or sand to capture their prey of crustaceans and small fish, but some are pelagic.
Uropterygius is a genus of moray eels in the family Muraenidae.
Myrichthys is a genus of snake eels currently containing 11 recognized species found in tropical and warm temperate oceans worldwide.
Aplatophis is a genus of eels in the snake-eel family Ophichthidae with these species:
Bascanichthys is a genus of eels in the snake eel family Ophichthidae. It currently contains the following species:
Callechelys is a genus of eels in the snake eel family Ophichthidae. It currently contains the following fifteen species:
Cirricaecula is a genus of eels in the snake eel family Ophichthidae.
Ethadophis is a genus of eels in the snake eel family Ophichthidae. It currently contains the following species:
Gordiichthys is a genus of eels in the snake eel family Ophichthidae. It currently contains the following species:
Hyphalophis is a monospecific genus of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Ophichthidae, the snake eels. The only member of this genus is Hyphalophis devius, a species known only from its holotype which was collected in the Lesser Antilles southwest of Grenada.
Lamnostoma is a genus of eels in the snake eel family Ophichthidae. It currently contains the following species:
Letharchus is a genus of eels in the snake eel family Ophichthidae. It currently contains the following species:
Myrophis is a genus of eels in the snake eel family Ophichthidae.
Pisodonophis is a genus of eels in the snake eel family Ophichthidae. It currently contains the following species:
Pseudomyrophis is a genus of eels in the snake eel family Ophichthidae. It currently contains the following species:
Xyrias is a genus of eels in the snake eel family Ophichthidae. It currently contains the following species:
Scolecenchelys puhioilo is an eel in the family Ophichthidae. It was described by John E. McCosker in 1979, originally under the genus Muraenichthys. The specific name puhioilo is derived from Hawaiian puhi oilo, which refers to "small eels about as large in diameter as a finger".
Yirrkala omanensis also known as the Oman snake eel is an eel in the family Ophichthidae. It was described by John Roxborough Norman in 1939, originally under the genus Sphagebranchus. It is a marine, tropical eel which is known from the Gulf of Oman, in the western Indian Ocean. It is known to dwell at a depth of 73 metres (240 ft). Males can reach a maximum total length of 23 centimetres (9.1 in).
The longfin spotted snake eel is an eel in the family Ophichthidae. It was described by John E. McCosker and Richard Heinrich Rosenblatt in 1993. It is a marine, tropical eel which is known from Mexico, Costa Rica and Panama, in the eastern central Pacific Ocean. It dwells at a depth range of 44 to 64 metres, and inhabits sandy substrates. Males can reach a maximum total length of 51 centimetres.
Pylorobranchus hearstorum, the gigantic worm eel, is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the subfamily Myrophinae, the worm eels, in the family Ophichthidae, which also includes the snake eels. This species is known from a single specimen, the holotype collected from the Verde Island Passage in the Philippines at 13.583-13.575°N, 120.382-120.411°E from a depth between 892 and 966 m. The species was described in 2014 by the American marine biologist John E. McCosker. The specific name honours the friends of McCosker and philanthropists William and Margaret Hearst, who sponsored the expedition the holotype was collected on. This single known specimen of this species had a total length of 121.8 cm (48.0 in).