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Vulture sand eel

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Vulture sand eel
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Anguilliformes
Family: Ophichthidae
Genus: Ichthyapus
Species:
I. vulturis
Binomial name
Ichthyapus vulturis
(Weber & de Beaufort, 1916)
Synonyms[2]
  • Sphagebranchus vulturis Weber & de Beaufort, 1916
  • Ichthyapus vulturus (Weber & de Beaufort, 1916)

The Vulture sand eel (Ichthyapus vulturis, also known as the Vulture eel[3]) is an eel in the family Ophichthidae (worm/snake eels).[4] It was described by Max Carl Wilhelm Weber and Lieven Ferdinand de Beaufort in 1916, originally under the genus Sphagebranchus.[5] It is a marine, tropical eel which is known from the Indo-Pacific, including Mascarenes, Pitcairn, Japan, Australia, Micronesia, and Easter Island. It dwells in inshore waters at a depth range of 2 to 18 metres (6.6 to 59.1 ft), and forms burrows in soft, sandy sediments.[4]

The Vulture sand eel's diet consists of bony fish.[6]

References

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  1. ^ McCosker, J.; Béarez, P.; and Lea, B. (2010). "Ichthyapus vulturis". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2010: e.T199277A2577653. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2010-3.RLTS.T199277A2577653.en. Retrieved 13 November 2024.
  2. ^ Synonyms of Ichthyapus vulturis at www.fishbase.org.
  3. ^ Common names of Ichthyapus vulturis at www.fishbase.org.
  4. ^ a b Froese, Rainer; Pauly, Daniel (eds.). "Ichthyapus vulturis". FishBase. November 2024 version.
  5. ^ Weber, M. and L. F. de Beaufort, 1916 [ref. 4604] The fishes of the Indo-Australian Archipelago. III. Ostariophysi: II Cyprinoidea, Apodes, Synbranchi. E. J. Brill, Leiden. v. 3: i-xv + 1-455.
  6. ^ Food items reported for Ichthyapus vulturis at www.fishbase.org.