Hawaiian Spotted Snake Eel
Myrichthys magnificus
- Usual depth5–26 m
- Water temperature24–27 °C
- Best monthsSeptember
- How commonRare
Photo credit: (c) eklemp, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist
About this species
The magnificent snake eel, also known as the Hawaiian spotted snake eel, is an eel in the family Ophichthidae. The Hawaiian name for these creatures is Puhi La'au. It was described by Charles Conrad Abbott in 1860, originally under the genus Pisodonophis. It is a marine eel endemic to the Hawaiian Islands.
Text from the Wikipedia article “Magnificent snake eel”, 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: 8 records
- February: 6 records
- March: 10 records
- April: 6 records
- May: 4 records
- June: 3 records
- July: 8 records
- August: 6 records
- September: 19 records
- October: 5 records
- November: 6 records
- December: 6 records
Depth and water temperature
Depth
Mostly recorded at 5–26 m · Deepest record: 28.7 m
Water temperature
Recorded in surface water of 24–27 °C
Photos
no rights reserved · CC0 1.0 · iNaturalist 
(c) Thomas Irvine, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist 
(c) Robin White, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist 
(c) Ryan Donnelly, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist
Names and classification
- English
- Hawaiian Spotted Snake Eel, Magnificent Snake Eel
Names in 2 more languages
- Spanish
- Tieso magnifico
- Simplified Chinese
- 大花蛇鰻
Other scientific names: Ophichthus stypurus, Ophichthys stypurus, Pisoodonophis magnifica
Similar species
Harlequin snake-eelMyrichthys colubrinus
Tiger snake-eelMyrichthys maculosus
Saddled snake-eelLeiuranus semicinctus
Pencil Snake EelApterichtus klazingai
Stargazer Snake EelBrachysomophis cirrocheilos
Crocodile snake eelBrachysomophis crocodilinus
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).
- 29 open-data records from 1951 to 2017.
- Species data updated November 4, 2026.
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