[4] It was described by David Starr Jordan and John Otterbein Snyder in 1901, originally under the genus Chlopsis.

[5] It is a marine, tropical eel which is known from the western Pacific Ocean, including Japan, China, Malaysia, the Philippines, and Taiwan.

[2] Males can reach a maximum total length of 50 centimeters (20 in).

[4] Due to its wide distribution and tendency to dwell in deep waters, the IUCN redlist currently lists the blacktail buckbill eel as Least Concern.

It notes, however, that the eel occurs in a region heavily affected by fisheries, and may be caught as by-catch despite not being of commercial interest.