MORAY EELS + MORE

MORAY EELS

Tesselate, green and giant moray eels love nooks and crannies. They are ambush predators and spend a lot of time hiding in caves, rock crevices or coral reefs waiting for a prey animal to pass by so they can pounce on it.

 A moray eel appears dangerous because it continually exposes its mouth and teeth. This action, however, is not a hostile gesture, but simply the way an eel breathes. 

Moray eels are serious predators and their jaw structure reflects this. Not only do moray eels have the razor sharp teeth which you can see, they have double jaws and double sets of teeth! Just like an alien they have a hidden internal jaw called the “pharyngeal jaw”. When feeding they use their outer jaws to firmly grip their prey and then the pharyngeal jaw shoots forward and bites the victim and pulls it into the throat.

SWIPE RIGHT ON PHOTO FOR ANOTHER AMAZING FISH

LONGSPINE PORCUPINEFISH

Also in this exhibit you may see a long spine porcupinefish. The unique features of this fish give it protection against predators. When threatened, it will fill its body with air or water, which makes its body swell like a balloon. This makes it too large to fit into the predator’s mouth and the extended spines make it even less desirable. The teeth of both the upper and lower jaws of this fish are fused, forming a solid, heavy beak, making cracking the shells of snails, sea urchins and hermit crabs easy.