Uropterygius nagoensis Hatooka 1984

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 : 70

Uropterygius nagoensis Hatooka 1984 —Reticulate Snakemoray

( Figure 46 )

Uropterygius nagoensis Hatooka 1984: 20 , figs. 1–4 (Nago fish market, Okinawa I., Ryukyu Is.). Holotype (unique), FAKU 51431.— Randall & Golani 1995: 875; Golani & Bogorodsky 2010: 11; Golani & Fricke 2018: 24.

Red Sea material. Egypt: USNM 312825 (1, 503), Sinai Peninsula, Ras Muhammad; USNM 440340 (1, 710), Sharm el Sheikh, Sharm el Moya. Sudan: BPBM 20429 (2, 152–389), Port Sudan.

Comparative material. Indonesia: USNM 312826 (1, 426). Fiji: USNM 259853 (1, 396). Tonga: USNM 338045 (1, 378).

Description. In TL: preanal length 2.0–2.2, head length 9.2–11, body depth at anus 19–23. In head length: snout length 6.1–7.1, eye diameter 12, upper-jaw length 2.5–2.7. Pores: LL 0–1, SO 3, IO 4, POM 6. Vertebrae: predorsal 115–116, pre-anus 61–65, preanal-fin 121–123, total 135–140.

Body moderate; anus slightly before midlength. Snout moderate, jaws about equal length. Eye relatively small, closer to tip of snout than to rictus. Gill opening at upper third of side. Anterior nostril tubular; posterior nostril above anterior margin of eye. Branchial pore present or absent.

Teeth slender, conical, smooth. Intermaxillary teeth in five rows across, peripheral teeth small, intermediate and median teeth larger; two median teeth. Maxillary teeth in 3–4 series anteriorly, biserial posteriorly, the outermost small and closely set, the innermost long and depressible. Dentary teeth in three irregular series anteriorly, uniserial posteriorly. Two or three vomerine teeth in a single row.

Color: tan with large, dendritic, vertically aligned dark brown markings interconnected to form a coarse reticular pattern; an irregular white band across interorbital space.

Maximum size about 800 mm.

Distribution and habitat. Known from widely scattered locations in the western and central Pacific and from the Red Sea; uncommon. In addition to the specimens recorded here, Randall & Golani (1995: 876) reported specimens from the Society and Solomon Islands. Other localities are Japan (type locality), Taiwan, Papua New Guinea, and Australia. In the Indian Ocean known only from the Red Sea. Red Sea records are from caves of fringing reefs at depths of 3– 13 m.

Remarks. Randall & Golani (1995) reported the first Red Sea record based on two specimens from Sudan and one from Ras Muhammed, Sinai Peninsula. Two additional specimens were collected by the second author from Sharm el Moya, one of them (USNM 440340) is the one of the largest specimens known for the species, 710 mm TL. There is no significant morphological variation over its range; three specimens from the Red Sea have 136–139 vertebrae, and four specimens from the western Pacific have 135–140. Both Hatooka (1984) and Randall & Golani (1995) stated that there were no lateral-line pores anterior to the gill opening, but some specimens we examined clearly have one. The apparent absence of this moderately large species from elsewhere in the Indian Ocean is surprising. No tissue samples or COI sequences are available for analyzing the phylogenetic relationships of this species.

Figures

FIGURE 46. Uropterygius nagoensis, USNM 440340, 710 mm TL, fresh specimen, Sharm el Moya, Egypt. Photo by S.V. Bogorodsky.