speckled worm eel
Myrophis punctatus Lütken, 1852
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 speckled worm-eel, Myrophis punctatus, is a member of the Ophichthidae (snake eel) family. It was described by Christian Frederik Lütken in 1852. M. punctatus have brown bodies that are lighter on the ventral side than the dorsal side. The upper body is speckled with pepper-like black spots. The snout is pointed. They grow to a maximum size of 35.3 centimetres (1 ft 1.9 in).
Wikipedia contributors, Speckled worm eel; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T08:11:31.958635+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Myrophis punctatus Lütken, 1852
- Name authority
- Lütken, 1852
- Common name
- speckled worm eel
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Teleostei
- Order
- Anguilliformes
- Family
- Ophichthidae
- Genus
- Myrophis
- 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
- genusMyrophis Lütken, 1852
- speciesMyrophis punctatus Lütken, 1852
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Myrophis. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| broadnose worm eelMyrophis platyrhynchus Breder, 1927 | OphichthidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Pacific worm eelMyrophis vafer Jordan & Gilbert, 1883 | OphichthidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Myrophis anterodorsalis McCosker, Böhlke & Böhlke, 1989 | OphichthidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Myrophis lepturus Kotthaus, 1968 | OphichthidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Myrophis microchir (Bleeker, 1864) | OphichthidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Myrophis plumbeus (Cope, 1871) | 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 |
|---|---|
| Myrophis dolichorhynchus Parr, 1930 Parr, 1930 | synonym |
| Myrophis longleii Silvester, 1915 Silvester, 1915 | synonym |
| Myrophis lumbricus Jordan & Gilbert, 1882 Jordan & Gilbert, 1882 | synonym |
| Myrophis microstigmius Poey, 1867 Poey, 1867 | synonym |
| Myroplius punctatus Lütken, 1852 Lütken, 1852 | synonym |
| Neoconger perlongus Poey, 1875 Poey, 1875 | synonym |
| Leptocephalus mollis Fowler, 1944 Fowler, 1944 | synonym |
| Leptoconger perlongus (Poey, 1875) (Poey, 1875) | synonym |
| Myrophis iguapensis Miranda Ribeiro, 1908 Miranda Ribeiro, 1908 | 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.
- Lütken, C. F. (1852). Nogle bemaerkninger om naeseborenes stilling hos de i gruppe med Ophisurus staaende slaegter af aalefamilien. Videnskabelige Meddelelser Fra Den Naturhistoriske Forening I Kjøbenhavn, Aaret 1851, (nos 1–2): 1–21, Pl. 1. [German translation appeared in Archiv für Naturgeschichte (Wiegmann) v. 18 (pt. 1):255–276. 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:45D8B. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.