| Napoleon snake eel | |
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Scientific classification 
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| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Actinopterygii |
| Order: | Anguilliformes |
| Family: | Ophichthidae |
| Genus: | Ophichthus |
| Species: | O. bonaparti |
| Binomial name | |
| Ophichthus bonaparti (Kaup, 1856) | |
| Synonyms | |
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The Napoleon snake eel (Ophichthus bonaparti, also known as the Napoleon eel, the Purplebanded snake eel, or the Saddled snake-eel) is an eel in the family Ophichthidae (worm/snake eels). It was described by Johann Jakob Kaup in 1856, originally under the genus Poecilocephalus. It is a marine, tropical eel which is known from the Indo-Pacific, including Durban, South Africa, Mauritius, Indonesia, Japan, Australia, and the Penghu Islands. It is known to dwell at a depth of 20 metres (66 ft), and inhabits lagoons and reefs; it forms solitary burrows in sand sediments. Males can reach a maximum total length of 75 centimetres (30 in).
Etymology
The fish is named in honor of biologist Charles Lucien Bonaparte (1803-1857), who supplied the type specimen.
References
- Synonyms of Ophichthus bonaparti at www.fishbase.org.
- Common names of Ophichthus bonaparti at www.fishbase.org.
- ^ Ophichthus bonaparti at www.fishbase.org.
- Kaup, J. J. (1856). "Uebersicht der Aale". Archiv für Naturgeschichte. 22 (1): 41–77 – via BHL.
- Christopher Scharpf & Kenneth J. Lazara (22 September 2018). "Order ANGUILLIFORMES: Family OPHICHTHIDAE". The ETYFish Project Fish Name Etymology Database. Christopher Scharpf and Kenneth J. Lazara. Retrieved 1 March 2021.
External links
- Photos of Napoleon snake eel on Sealife Collection
| Taxon identifiers | |
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| Ophichthus bonaparti | |
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