A New, Distinctively Colored Snake Eel (Anguilliformes: Ophichthidae) from Northeastern New Zealand

Abstract

Quassiremus polyclitellum, n. sp., described from three specimens line-fished at island outliers in 35-58 m represents the first record of Quassiremus Jordan & Davis, 1891, for the Indo-West Pacific. It has regularly spaced, mid-brown to orange, vertically rectangular saddles of pigment along body, tail longer than preanal length, and 166-168 vertebrae. It thus differs from East Pacific Q. nothochir (Gilbert), which has hourglass-shaped spots ringed with brown and 138-142 vertebrae, Galapagos endemic Q. evionthas (Jordan & Bollman) with small oblong spots and 149-153 vertebrae, and western Atlantic Q. ascensionis (Studer) with large, round spots above, alternating with similar spots below and 129-136 vertebrae; all three species have the tail shorter than the preanal length. The strong New World associations of Quassiremus are noted and the possible extralimital origins as larvae of the holotype and paratypes are discussed.