Gymnothorax pictus, Paintspotted moray : fisheries

Gymnothorax pictus (Ahl, 1789)

Paintspotted moray
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Gymnothorax pictus   AquaMaps   Data sources: GBIF OBIS
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Image of Gymnothorax pictus (Paintspotted moray)
Gymnothorax pictus
Picture by Randall, J.E.

Classification / Names Common names | Synonyms | Catalog of Fishes(genus, species) | ITIS | CoL | WoRMS | Cloffa

Teleostei (teleosts) > Anguilliformes (Eels and morays) > Muraenidae (Moray eels) > Muraeninae
Etymology: Gymnothorax: Greek, gymnos = naked + Greek, thorax, -akos = breast (Ref. 45335).

Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range Ecology

Marine; brackish; reef-associated; depth range 0 - 100 m (Ref. 26165). Tropical; 30°N - 26°S

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Indo-Pacific: East Africa (Ref. 26165) to the Galapagos, Cocos, and Clipperton islands; north to the Hawaiian and Ryukyu islands; south to Australia and the Kermadec Islands.

Size / Weight / Age

Maturity: Lm ?  range ? - ? cm
Max length : 140 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 30573)

Short description Identification keys | Morphology | Morphometrics

Dorsal spines (total): 0; Dorsal soft rays (total): 0; Anal spines: 0; Anal soft rays: 0; Vertebrae: 128 - 135. Greyish and speckled with irregular, dark markings (Ref. 3257). Young yellowish with hollow-centered spots which becomes less conspicuous with age (Ref. 3257). Lacks the molariform teeth as well as the depressible vomerine fangs present in most Gymnothorax and have two rows of vomerine teeth (Ref. 37816).
Body shape (shape guide): eel-like.

Biology     Glossary (e.g. epibenthic)

Adults inhabit reef flats and rocky intertidal shorelines. Feed on small fishes and crustaceans, sometimes leaving the water in pursuit of prey (Ref. 9710, 48635). Benthic (Ref. 58302). Simultaneous hermaphroditism is confirmed for this species (Ref. 103751). Caught with various nets (Ref. 30573). Solitary (Ref 90102). Minimum depth reported taken from Ref. 86942.

Life cycle and mating behavior Maturity | Reproduction | Spawning | Eggs | Fecundity | Larvae

Simultaneous hermaphroditism is confirmed (Ref. 103751).

Main reference Upload your references | References | Coordinator | Collaborators

Chen, H.-M., K.-T. Shao and C.T. Chen, 1994. A review of the muraenid eels (Family Muraenidae) from Taiwan with descriptions of twelve new records. Zool. Stud. 33(1):44-64. (Ref. 6934)

IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 130435: Version 2025-2)

  Least Concern (LC) ; Date assessed: 18 August 2011

CITES

Not Evaluated

CMS (Ref. 116361)

Not Evaluated

Threat to humans

  Reports of ciguatera poisoning (Ref. 4690)





Human uses

Fisheries: minor commercial
FAO - Publication: search | FishSource | Sea Around Us

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Internet sources

AFORO (otoliths) | Aquatic Commons | BHL | Cloffa | Websites from users | Check FishWatcher | CISTI | Catalog of Fishes: genus, species | DiscoverLife | ECOTOX | FAO - Publication: search | Faunafri | Fishipedia | Fishtrace | GloBI | Google Books | Google Scholar | Google | IGFA World Record | National databases | OneZoom | Open Tree of Life | Otolith Atlas of Taiwan Fishes | Public aquariums | PubMed | Reef Life Survey | Socotra Atlas | TreeBase | Tree of Life | Wikipedia: Go, Search |