MURAENIDAE


Echidna nebulosa, 17.3 cm SL
(photo by Keiichi Matsuura)


Echidna nebulosa
(Ahl, 1789)
Snowflake Moray

V 119-126.

Body moderately elongate. Snout blunt. Teeth on jaws conical. Vomer with 2 rows of rounded molariform teeth. Dorsal-fin origin over or slightly anterior to gill opening. Anus near midbody. Color: body dark brown with blackish irregular spots or obscure reticulation; snout and ventral surface light brown; gill opening somewhat blackish. Size: maximum length 75 cm. Distribution: Indo-West Pacific, including Red Sea, Bonin, Ryukyu Islands, Micronesia, and Hawaiian, Society, and Lord Howe Islands. Remarks: occurring in the areas of shallow lagoon and seaward reefs to depths of 10 m or more.