[2] It is a marine, deep water-dwelling eel which is known from the Indo-Pacific, including the Philippines, the Seychelles Islands, Marquesas, and Fiji.

It dwells at a depth range of 300 to 423 metres (984 to 1,388 ft).

Males can reach a maximum total length of 44.7 centimetres (17.6 in).

[1] The species epithet "tomioi" was given in honour of Tomio Iwamoto (b.

1939), an ichthyologist at the California Academy of Sciences.