Gunnellichthys curiosus Dawson, 1968
Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.
Open encyclopedia reference
Gunnellichthys curiosus, the curious wormfish, is a species of wormfish native to the Indian Ocean from the Seychelles and Mauritius to the Hawaiian Islands in the central Pacific Ocean. It is an inhabitant of reefs and can be found at depths of from 9 to 60 m (30 to 197 ft). It occurs in areas with substrates that allow it to conceal itself in burrows. It reaches a length of 12 cm (4.7 in) SL. This fish can also be found in the aquarium trade.
Wikipedia contributors, Gunnellichthys curiosus; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T22:40:20.756262+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Gunnellichthys curiosus Dawson, 1968
- Name authority
- Dawson, 1968
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Teleostei
- Order
- Gobiiformes
- Family
- Microdesmidae
- Genus
- Gunnellichthys
- Extinction status
- Not supplied by this source
Source habitat flags: Marine: yes · Freshwater: no · Terrestrial: no. These do not form a complete habitat description.
Classification family tree
Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumOsteichthyes
- gigaclassActinopterygii
- superclassActinopteri
- classTeleostei
- orderGobiiformes
- familyMicrodesmidae Regan, 1912
- subfamilyMicrodesminae Regan, 1912
- genusGunnellichthys Bleeker, 1858
- speciesGunnellichthys curiosus Dawson, 1968
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Gunnellichthys. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Gunnellichthys copleyi (Smith, 1951) | MicrodesmidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Gunnellichthys grandoculis (Kendall & Goldsborough, 1911) | MicrodesmidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| yellowstripe wormfishGunnellichthys viridescens Dawson, 1968 | MicrodesmidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Gunnellichthys irideus Smith, 1958 | MicrodesmidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Gunnellichthys monostigma Smith, 1958 | MicrodesmidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
Names & synonyms
Names explicitly linked to this accepted taxon in the source. Synonymy can change with revision.
| Recorded name | Source status |
|---|---|
| Gunnelichthys curiosus Dawson, 1968 Dawson, 1968 | synonym |
| Gunnelichtys curiosus Dawson, 1968 Dawson, 1968 | synonym |
Source literature & publication evidence
References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.
- Dawson, C. E. (1968). Two new wormfishes (Gobioidea: Microdesmidae) from the Indian Ocean. Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington, 81: 53–67. Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references
Origins, evidence & remaining research
Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.
Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record. A suitable sourced image remains to be added.
Dataset citation & attribution
This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11
Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Stable key: col:3HM9Q. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.