Myrophis vafer
Pacific Worm Eel
Collection Details
Specimens
Photos
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Records
Taxonomic Hierarchy
Actinopterygii (Ray-finned Fishes)
Anguilliformes (True Eels)
Ophichthidae (Snake Eels)
Myrophis
Myrophis vafer (Pacific Worm Eel)
Description
This species account was compiled from
FishBase (Froese, R. and D. Pauly. Editors. 2025. FishBase. World Wide Web electronic publication. www.fishbase.org, version 04/2025.)
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Characters
Body shape: eel-like. Branchiostegal rays: 49. Striking features: none.
Distribution
Eastern Pacific: San Pedro in southern California, USA to Peru.
Habitat Associations
Marine. demersal. depth range 0-15 m.
Biology
Found in tide pools and on shallow muddy and sandy bottoms. Benthic but not burrowing (Ref 35581). Young are attracted to lights at sea surface. Adults may often be observed near the surface (Ref. 9328).
Max length: 47.0 cm TL.
Reproductive mode: dioecism; fertilization: external; nonguarders. Oviparous.
IUCN Red List Status: Least Concern (LC), assessed 2007-05-22. Resilience: High (Preliminary K or Fecundity.).
References
Eschmeyer, W.N., E.S. Herald and H. Hammann (1983) A field guide to Pacific coast fishes of North America. Boston (MA, USA): Houghton Mifflin Company. xii+336 p.
Charter, S.R. and H.G. Moser (1996) Muraenidae: morays. p. 88-91. In H.G. Moser (ed.) The early stages of fishes in the California Current region. California Cooperative Oceanic Fisheries Investigations (CalCOFI) Atlas No. 33. 1505 p.
Love, M.S., C.W. Mecklenburg, T.A. Mecklenburg and L.K. Thorsteinson (2005) Resource inventory of marine and estuarine fishes of the West Coast and Alaska: A checklist of North Pacific and Arctic Ocean species from Baja California to the Alaska-Yukon border. U.S. Department of the Interior, U.S. Geological Survey, Biological Resources Division, Seattle, Washington, 98104.
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