Actinopterygii (ray-finned fishes) > Anguilliformes
(Eels and morays) > Muraenidae
(Moray eels) > Uropterygiinae
Etymology: Uropterygius: Greek, oura = tail + Greek pterygion = little wing. Fin (Ref. 45335); xenodontus: Specific name from the Greek 'xenikos' meaning strange and 'odontos' meaning tooth.. More on author: McCosker.
Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range
Marine; reef-associated; depth range 6 - 9 m (Ref. 27479). Tropical
Pacific Ocean: Coral Sea, American Samoa, the Marshall Islands, and Johnston Islands.
Size / Weight / Age
Maturity: Lm ?  range ? - ? cm
Max length : 53.0 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 37816)
Morphology | Morphometrics
Vertebrae: 154 - 157. Body uniformly gray-brown; laterally compressed, subrectangular in cross-section. Vertical fins restricted to the tail tip; anus at mid-body; one branchial pore (Ref. 27479).
Inhabits corals and crevices of shallow lagoon and seaward reefs (Ref. 37816). Benthic (Ref. 58302).
Life cycle and mating behavior
Maturity | Reproduction | Spawning | Eggs | Fecundity | Larvae
McCosker, J.E. and D.G. Smith, 1997. Two new Indo-Pacific morays of the genus Uropterygius (Anguilliformes: Muraenidae). Bull. Mar. Sci. 60(3):1005-1014. (Ref. 27479)
IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 115185)
CITES (Ref. 115941)
Threat to humans
Common namesSynonymsMetabolismPredatorsEcotoxicologyReproductionMaturitySpawningFecundityEggsEgg development
ReferencesAquacultureAquaculture profileStrainsGeneticsAllele frequenciesHeritabilityDiseasesProcessingMass conversion
Estimates of some properties based on models
Preferred temperature (Ref. 115969
): 24.8 - 29.4, mean 28.1 (based on 1041 cells).
Phylogenetic diversity index (Ref. 82805
= 0.5000 [Uniqueness, from 0.5 = low to 2.0 = high].
Bayesian length-weight: a=0.00102 (0.00046 - 0.00225), b=3.06 (2.88 - 3.24), in cm Total Length, based on all LWR estimates for this body shape (Ref. 93245
Trophic Level (Ref. 69278
): 3.5 ±0.6 se; Based on size and trophs of closest relatives
Resilience (Ref. 69278
): Medium, minimum population doubling time 1.4 - 4.4 years (Preliminary K or Fecundity.).
Vulnerability (Ref. 59153
): Moderate vulnerability (39 of 100) .