Gymnothorax melanosomatus Loh, Shao & Chen, 2011
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 black body moray (Gymnothorax melanosomatus) is an eel in the family Muraenidae (moray eels). It was described by Loh Kar-Hoe, Shao Kwang-Tsao, and Chen Hong-Ming in 2011. It is a tropical, marine eel which is known from southeastern Taiwan, off Changbin, Taitung to Shihtiping, Hualien City and in the Pacific Ocean. Males are known to reach a maximum total length of 49.6 cm, while females are known to reach a maximum of 50.4 cm.
The species epithet melansomatus means "black body" in Ancient Greek, and like the eel's common name, it refers to the black colouring of the body.
Wikipedia contributors, Black body moray; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T22:41:17.326654+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Gymnothorax melanosomatus Loh, Shao & Chen, 2011
- Name authority
- Loh, Shao & Chen, 2011
- 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 melanosomatus Loh, Shao & Chen, 2011
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 flavoculus (Böhlke & Randall, 1996) | MuraenidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Gymnothorax fuscomaculatus (Schultz, 1953) | MuraenidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
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.
- K-Loh, H., K-Shao, T., & H-Chen, M. (2011). Gymnothorax melanosomatus, a new moray eel (Teleostei: Anguilliformes: Muraenidae) from southeastern Taiwan. Zootaxa, 3134: 43–52. https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.3134.1.2 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:3HVDL. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.