Collared eel
Kaupichthys nuchalis under normal illumination
Biofluorescence of Kaupichthys nuchalis
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Anguilliformes
Family: Chlopsidae
Genus: Kaupichthys
Species:
K. nuchalis
Binomial name
Kaupichthys nuchalis

The collared eel[2] (Kaupichthys nuchalis) is an eel in the family Chlopsidae.[3] It was described by James Erwin Böhlke in 1967.[4] It is a tropical, marine eel known from coral reefs in the western Atlantic Ocean, including Texas, USA; the Bahamas, the Antilles, northern South America, the northwestern Gulf of Mexico, and the Caribbean. It is a benthic, solitary eel that primarily resides in tubular sponges. Males can reach a maximum total length of 16 centimetres (6.3 in).[3]

The collared eel exhibits biofluorescence, that is, when illuminated by blue or ultraviolet light, it re-emits it as orange, and appears differently than under white light illumination. Biofluorescence may assist in intraspecific communication and camouflage.[5]

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Kaupichthys nuchalis.
  1. ↑ Tighe, K. (2015). Kaupichthys nuchalis. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2015-2.RLTS.T190473A1952839.en
  2. ↑ Common names for Kaupichthys nuchalis at www.fishbase.org.
  3. 1 2 Kaupichthys nuchalis at www.fishbase.org.
  4. ↑ Böhlke, J. E. (1967). "The descriptions of three new eels from the tropical west Atlantic". Proceedings of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia. 118 (4): 91–108. JSTOR 4064593.
  5. ↑ Sparks, John S.; Schelly, Robert C.; Smith, W. Leo; Davis, Matthew P.; Tchernov, Dan; Pieribone, Vincent A.; Gruber, David F. (2014). "The Covert World of Fish Biofluorescence: A Phylogenetically Widespread and Phenotypically Variable Phenomenon". PLOS ONE. 9 (1): e83259. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0083259. PMC 3885428. PMID 24421880.
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