Common names:

* proposed name

Synonyms:

Etymology:
'Oxuderces' comes from the Greek 'oxuderkês' (quick-sighted), which probably refers to the quick burying behaviour, elicited by visual stimuli

the species was named after Dr. P. Wirz, who collected the holotype

Maximum recorded length:
105 mm SL (Murdy, 1989)

Live colouration (pers. obs.: Fly river delta, Papua New Guinea):
ground colour dorsally light brown, greyish on flanks and ventrally whitish; 6-8 vertical and irregular dark brown bars on dorsum, the last 3-4 ones reaching the lateral midline; few dark brown blotches on head, larger on opercles and cheeks; few dark brown spots on dorsum; large dark brown blotch on the base of caudal fin and ventral side of caudal peduncle. D1 translucent; D2 transparent except for 3-4 light brown bars in correspondence to the last 3-4 vertical dorsal bars; a large dark blue iridescent ocellus near tips of last 4 D2 rays; all other fins transparent; posterior portion of upper jaw yellow

Colouration on preservation (Murdy, 1989):
ground colour greenish brown dorsally and ventrally yellowish brown; a discontinuous blue-grey midlateral band which curves ventrally at posterior quarter of D2 and continues onto caudal fin base; small brown spots on dorsum; dark blue markings on cheeks and opercula. D2 with a prominent dark blue ocellus on posteriormost rays; dark blue bar or spots on pectoral fin base; pectoral fins may present small dusky spots ventrally; all other fins transparent. Smaller specimens with 8-10 dorsal bars: only the 3-4 posteriormost ones present in larger ones

Diagnosis (Murdy, 1989):
total D2 elements 29-31; total anal fin elements 27-30; D2 and anal fins basally connected to caudal fin; 17 branched caudal fin rays; predorsal scales 26-44; 2 recurved canine teeth internal to symphysis of lower jaw; bifid teeth usually present in lower jaw, sometimes in both jaws; pore posteriorly in interorbital region; basihyal bifid.
The genus is characterised by a fang-like, canine tooth on each side of premaxillary symphysis, in having the anterior ceratohyal lengthened posterior to the insertion of the 4th branchiostegal (see drawing), and by its anteriorly depressed head

Diet:
no published study is available

Reproduction:
no published study is available

Ecological notes (pers. obs.: Fly river delta, Papua New Guinea):
locally abundant on mudflats, in areas covered by a thin film of water, especially in proximity of creek mouths

middle: Purutu Is., Papua New Guinea: higher mudflat at low tide, in front of a stand of Avicennia lanceolata; young Ox. wirzi were here abundant

(photo: G. Polgar; 2007)

Distribution:
northern Australia and Papua New Guinea; type locality: Papua New Guinea (Murdy, 1989)

Photographs of Oxuderces wirzi:

A-D: close-ups of Ox. wirzi in a plastic bag (photo: G. Polgar, Purutu Is., Papua New Guinea, 2007)

Drawings of Oxuderces wirzi:

above, left: cephalic sensory and nasal pores of Oxuderces spp.: an= anterior nostril; ao= anterior oculoscapular canal pore; f= fangs; pio= posterior interorbital pore; pn= posterior nostril (modified from Murdy, 1989)*; above, right: lateral view of the hyoid arch of Ox. dentatus, rotated about 45° clockwise; the portion of the anterior ceratohyal that is not present in other oxudercine genera is coloured in red: Ch= ceratohyal; an= anterior ceratohyal; po= posterior ceratohyal; 1-5= branchiostegals (modified from Murdy, 1989)* - * with permission