Gymnothorax flavoculus (Böhlke & Randall, 1996)
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
The palenose moray (Gymnothorax flavoculus) is a moray eel found in coral reefs in the western Indian Ocean. It's a dwarf species not exceeding 11" and primarily feeds on krill in the home aquarium. With some enticing, they have taken other food, like smaller mussels. Its mouth is so small you shouldn't risk feeding it live food with claws like emerald crabs or spear shrimp. It was first named by Eugenia B. Böhlke and John E. Randall in 1996.
Wikipedia contributors, Palenose moray eel; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T22:41:17.325146+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Gymnothorax flavoculus (Böhlke & Randall, 1996)
- Name authority
- (Böhlke & Randall, 1996)
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Teleostei
- Order
- Anguilliformes
- Family
- Muraenidae
- Genus
- Gymnothorax
- 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
- orderAnguilliformes
- familyMuraenidae Rafinesque, 1815
- subfamilyMuraeninae Rafinesque, 1815
- genusGymnothorax Bloch, 1795
- speciesGymnothorax flavoculus (Böhlke & Randall, 1996)
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Gymnothorax. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| vagrant morayGymnothorax buroensis (Bleeker, 1857) | MuraenidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Gymnothorax cephalospilus Böhlke & McCosker, 2001 | MuraenidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| lipspot morayGymnothorax chilospilus Bleeker, 1864 | MuraenidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Gymnothorax chlamydatus Snyder, 1908 | MuraenidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| saddled morayGymnothorax conspersus Poey, 1867 | MuraenidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Gymnothorax cribroris Whitley, 1932 | MuraenidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Gymnothorax davidsmithi McCosker & Randall, 2008 | MuraenidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Gymnothorax elegans Bliss, 1883 | MuraenidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Gymnothorax enigmaticus McCosker & Randall, 1982 | MuraenidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| yellow-edged morayGymnothorax flavimarginatus (Rüppell, 1830) | MuraenidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Gymnothorax fuscomaculatus (Schultz, 1953) | MuraenidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Gymnothorax hansi Heemstra, 2004 | MuraenidaeChordata | 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 |
|---|---|
| Siderea flavocula Böhlke & Randall, 1996 Böhlke & Randall, 1996 | 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.
- https://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=271834 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:3HVC5. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.