Muraenichthys schultzei Bleeker, 1857
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 Maimed snake eel (Muraenichthys schultzei, also known as the Aimed snake eel, the Bleeker's worm-eel, or the Schultz's worm eel) is an eel in the family Ophichthidae (worm/snake eels). It was described by Pieter Bleeker in 1857. It is a marine, tropical eel which is known from the Indo-Pacific, including the Red Sea, East Africa, Samoa, the Ryukyu Islands, Australia, and Micronesia. It dwells at a depth range of 1 to 13 metres (3.3 to 42.7 ft), and inhabits coral reefs and lagoons, where it forms burrows in soft benthic sediments. Males can reach a maximum total length of 24 centimetres (9.4 in), but more commonly reach a TL of 8 centimetres (3.1 in).
The Maimed snake eel is of minor commercial interest to fisheries. It is usually bagged, netted or dug out, and sold for shark bait.
Wikipedia contributors, Maimed snake eel; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T23:14:50.145931+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Muraenichthys schultzei Bleeker, 1857
- Name authority
- Bleeker, 1857
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Teleostei
- Order
- Anguilliformes
- Family
- Ophichthidae
- Genus
- Muraenichthys
- 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
- familyOphichthidae Günther, 1870
- subfamilyMyrophinae Kaup, 1856
- genusMuraenichthys Bleeker, 1853
- speciesMuraenichthys schultzei Bleeker, 1857
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Muraenichthys. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Muraenichthys gymnopterus (Bleeker, 1853) | OphichthidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Muraenichthys philippinensis Schultz & Woods, 1949 | OphichthidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Muraenichthys sibogae Weber & de Beaufort, 1916 | OphichthidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Muraenichthys thompsoni Jordan & Richardson, 1908 | OphichthidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Muraenichthys elerae Fowler, 1934 | OphichthidaeChordata | 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 |
|---|---|
| Muraenichthys schultzi Bleeker, 1857 Bleeker, 1857 | synonym |
| Muraenichthys schulzei Bleeker, 1857 Bleeker, 1857 | 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.
- Bleeker, P. (1857). Descriptiones specierum piscium javanensium novarum vel minus cognitarum diagnosticae. Natuurkundig Tijdschrift Voor Nederlandsch Indië, v. 13 (no. 2): 323–368. 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:44L9G. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.