Uropterygius polyspilus ( Regan 1909 )

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 : 71

Uropterygius polyspilus ( Regan 1909) —Largespotted Snakemoray

( Figure 47 )

Gymnomuraena polyspila Regan 1909: 438 (Tahiti, Society Is.). Holotype (unique), BMNH 1909.12 .14.23.

Uropterygius polyspilus : Marshall 1952: 224; Dor 1984: 30; Goren & Dor 1994: 7; Randall & Golani 1995: 876; Golani & Bogorodsky 2010: 11; Golani & Fricke 2018: 24.

Red Sea material. Israel: USNM 312859 (1, 495), Eilat.

Comparative material. Seychelles: USNM 264162 (1, 410). Guam: USNM 312858 (1, 542). Samoa: USNM 115910 (2, 140–175). Johnston I.: USNM 26823 (1, 441).

Description. In TL: preanal length 2.0–2.1, head length 10–11, body depth at anus 24–32. In head length: snout length 6.0–8.1, eye diameter 10–15, upper-jaw length 3.1–4.2. Pores: LL 1, SO 3, IO 4, POM 6. Vertebrae: predorsal 120–128, pre-anus 60–65, pre-anal fin 122–128, total 127–136.

Body moderate; anus near midlength. Snout moderate, jaws about equal length. Eye moderate, over middle of upper jaw. Gill opening at mid-side. Anterior and posterior nostrils tubular; posterior nostril tubular, above middle of eye.

Teeth slender, conical, smooth. Intermaxillary teeth in five rows across, peripheral teeth small, intermediate and median teeth larger; 3–4 median teeth. Maxillary teeth biserial; outer teeth small and closely spaced, continuous with peripheral intermaxillary teeth; inner teeth long and depressible, continuous with intermediate intermaxillary teeth, inner row extends about as far back as outer row. Dentary teeth biserial, the outer small and closely spaced, the inner larger and fewer. Vomerine teeth uniserial.

Color: tan to white, with rounded dark brown spots; spots on head smaller than those on body; nostrils white.

Maximum size at least 780 mm.

Distribution and habitat. Widespread but known from scattered localities; in the Indian Ocean including the Red Sea, Zanzibar, Comoro Islands, Seychelles, and Chagos Archipelago; in the western Pacific from Australia (Great Barrier Reef), Vietnam, the Philippines, Caroline Islands, Hawaiian Islands, Johnston Island, Samoa Islands, Line Islands, and Society Islands. Most records from reef flats but reported from coral reefs at depth of 18 m.

Remarks. The first Red Sea record is based on a specimen of 202 mm in length from Sanafir Island at the entrance to the Gulf of Aqaba ( Marshall 1952). One individual was photographed by J.E. Randall off Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. May easily be confused in the field with Scuticaria tigrina , which has a similar color pattern, but it differs in having the anus at midlength of body, preanal length 2.0– 2.1 in TL (vs. anus much closer to tail in S. tigrina , 1.3–1.6 in TL), fewer vertebrae (127–136 vs. 166–170), and having more scattered spots on body and a large spot on postorbital head between eye and gill opening below level of eye (vs. body with combination of large and small spots, and large spot on postorbital head between eye and gill opening at level of eye). No tissue samples or COI sequences are available for analyzing the phylogenetic relationships of this species.

Figures

FIGURE 47. Uropterygius polyspilus. A: alive, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia; B: alive, Lahami Bay, southern Egypt. Photos by J.E. Randall (A), S.V. Bogorodsky (B).