Moray eels

Moray eels have compressed bodies and fused fins, giving them a snake-like appearance. These fish are quite shy and live under ledges and in rock crevices. Moray eels are long-lived and range in colour, pattern and size, measuring between 15cm and 4m. The Aquarium houses four species: the honeycomb, geometric, zebra, and tiger reef moray eels. Moray eels have a very good sense of smell and another set of jaws in the throat, which allow them to secure prey. Bites from these beauties can quickly become infected due to the bacteria in their teeth, but thankfully these animals are generally not aggressive towards humans. Moray eels do not have bony gill covers, but rather two round openings just behind their heads. They use their mouths to pump water through these openings. They secrete a protective mucus to protect their scaleless skin. In sand-dwelling morays, the mucus allows grains of sand to stick to the sides of their burrows.

Moray eels live in shallow water near shore areas, continental slopes, reefs and deep seabed areas. They are found in both tropical and temperate waters in marine environments. Moray eels are opportunistic feeders and eat fishes, octopuses, and crustaceans. Roving coral groupers are known to “recruit” giant moray eels to help them hunt. With their slender bodies, the moray eels can flush prey from holes and crevices that the grouper cannot access. Most fish with rounded heads create negative pressure to assist in swallowing prey. Moray eels, with their slender heads, are unable to create this negative pressure. Instead, they have a second set of jaws, known as the pharyngeal jaws. These jaws are found in the throat and equipped with sharp teeth. While feeding, moray eels propel these jaws forward into the mouth to grab, control and pull the struggling prey back into the throat and into the digestive tract.

Moray eels have no specific mating season but mate when there is enough food and a stable habitat. Warmer water temperatures increase the chances of success. Moray eels are oviparous, meaning that eggs are laid and hatched outside the womb. Moray eel females find a safe, hidden place to deposit the eggs, releasing an odour to signal their presence to males that release sperm to fertilise the eggs. It can take 30 to 45 days for the larvae to emerge, and the temperature of the water often dictates the length of incubation. These larvae, once hatched, instinctively know how to care for themselves. After about a year of surviving as part of the plankton, the moray eel larvae are big enough to swim to the ocean floor and hide in rocks or crevices. A high percentage will have become prey for various predators. The moray eel is ready to mate around three years of age.