pouch snake eel
Paraletharchus opercularis (Myers & Wade, 1941)
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 Pouch snake eel (Paraletharchus opercularis) is an eel in the family Ophichthidae (worm/snake eels). It was described by George S. Myers and Charles Barkley Wade in 1941, originally under the genus Letharchus. It is a marine, tropical eel which is known from the eastern central and southeastern Pacific Ocean, including the Galapagos Islands, the Revillagigedo Islands, and the Cocos Islands. It is known to dwell at a maximum depth of 10 metres (33 ft), and inhabits sand sediments. Males can reach a maximum total length of 64.3 centimetres (25.3 in).
The IUCN redlist currently lists the pouch snake eel as vulnerable under Criterion D2, due to its limited range, and speculation that increasing frequency of ENSO events will have negative effects on the species' habitat.
Wikipedia contributors, Pouch snake eel; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T08:06:10.650158+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Paraletharchus opercularis (Myers & Wade, 1941)
- Name authority
- (Myers & Wade, 1941)
- Common name
- pouch snake eel
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Teleostei
- Order
- Anguilliformes
- Family
- Ophichthidae
- Genus
- Paraletharchus
- 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
- subfamilyOphichthinae Günther, 1870
- genusParaletharchus McCosker, 1974
- speciesParaletharchus opercularis (Myers & Wade, 1941)
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Paraletharchus. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Pacific sailfin eelParaletharchus pacificus (Osburn & Nichols, 1916) | 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 |
|---|---|
| Letharchus opercularis Myers & Wade, 1941 Myers & Wade, 1941 | 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=282061 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:4CYQX. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.