Teleostei (teleosts) >
Anguilliformes (Eels and morays) >
Muraenidae (Moray eels) > Muraeninae
Etymology: Gymnothorax: Greek, gymnos = naked + Greek, thorax, -akos = breast (Ref. 45335).
More on author: Girard.
Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range
Ecology
Marine; reef-associated; depth range 10 - 100 m (Ref. 9761), usually 10 - 19 m (Ref. 89891). Subtropical; 67°N - 36°N, 118°W - 153°W
Western Atlantic: southern Florida to Texas and Yucatan in Mexico, but most common west of Mississippi River Delta.
Size / Weight / Age
Maturity: Lm ?  range ? - ? cm
Max length : 99.0 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 40637); max. published weight: 1.4 kg (Ref. 40637)
Brown, with small yellow or white spots on body and lower half of fins (Ref. 26938).
Abundant in seagrass beds and banks from 10-19 m depth. Rarely found in bays; absent from coral reefs.
Life cycle and mating behavior
Maturity | Reproduction | Spawning | Eggs | Fecundity | Larvae
Robins, C.R. and G.C. Ray, 1986. A field guide to Atlantic coast fishes of North America. Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston, U.S.A. 354 p. (Ref. 7251)
IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 130435: Version 2024-2)
Threat to humans
Harmless
Human uses
Fisheries: minor commercial; gamefish: yes
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Estimates based on models
Preferred temperature (Ref.
123201): 25.8 - 28.2, mean 27.3 °C (based on 315 cells).
Phylogenetic diversity index (Ref.
82804): PD
50 = 0.5000 [Uniqueness, from 0.5 = low to 2.0 = high].
Bayesian length-weight: a=0.00048 (0.00025 - 0.00091), b=3.28 (3.12 - 3.44), in cm total length, based on LWR estimates for this Genus-body shape (Ref.
93245).
Trophic level (Ref.
69278): 4.1 ±0.7 se; based on size and trophs of closest relatives
Resilience (Ref.
120179): Low, minimum population doubling time 4.5 - 14 years (Preliminary K or Fecundity.).
Fishing Vulnerability (Ref.
59153): High vulnerability (60 of 100).
Nutrients (Ref.
124155): Calcium = 16.6 [8.0, 41.5] mg/100g; Iron = 0.423 [0.230, 0.882] mg/100g; Protein = 19.5 [17.3, 22.0] %; Omega3 = 0.17 [0.07, 0.49] g/100g; Selenium = 24.4 [11.7, 52.4] μg/100g; VitaminA = 35.5 [10.0, 129.9] μg/100g; Zinc = 0.582 [0.380, 0.889] mg/100g (wet weight);