Fringed-lipped Snake-eel
Cirrhimuraena calamus
- Usual depth1–1 m
- Water temperature19–23 °C
- Best monthsMay and July
- How commonRare
About this species
Cirrhimuraena calamus, known commonly as the fringed-lipped snake-eel or the fringelip snake eel, is an eel in the family Ophichthidae. It was described by Albert Günther in 1870. It is a marine, temperate water-dwelling eel which is endemic to western Australia, in the eastern Indian Ocean. It forms burrows in the soft bottoms of inshore waters.
Text from the Wikipedia article “Cirrhimuraena calamus”, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Read the article
Where and when
Where it has been recorded
Worldwide
Loading the map
Best months
Worldwide (open data)
- January: 1 records
- February: 1 records
- March: 1 records
- April: 1 records
- May: 3 records
- June: 0 records
- July: 4 records
- August: 0 records
- September: 2 records
- October: 0 records
- November: 2 records
- December: 1 records
Depth and water temperature
Depth
Mostly recorded at 1–1 m · Deepest record: 1 m
Water temperature
Recorded in surface water of 19–23 °C
Names and classification
- English
- Fringed-lipped Snake-eel, Fringelip Eel, Fringelip Snake eel
Names in 1 more languages
- Simplified Chinese
- 南澳鬚鰻
Other scientific names: Ophichthys calamus
Similar species
- Fringelip snake-eel
Cirrhimuraena playfairii
Saddled snake-eelLeiuranus semicinctus
Harlequin snake-eelMyrichthys colubrinus
Tiger snake-eelMyrichthys maculosus
Sources and credits
Names and taxonomy: WoRMS (CC BY 4.0) and the GBIF Backbone (CC BY 4.0). Photos: iNaturalist observers, each under the licence shown (CC0, CC BY or CC BY-SA).
- Depth, temperature, months and maps: records from OBIS and GBIF under CC0 or CC BY.
- Descriptions: Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA, each linked to its article.
- Conservation status as published by GBIF (IUCN Red List).
- 19 open-data records from 1948 to 2007.
- Species data updated November 1, 2026.
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