Moray eel
If you see something resembling a large snake swimming along sea bottom, don’t panic. It’s an eel. Moray eels may have a nasty look, but they are only opening the mouth to breathe. In general are they gentle as long as you don’t provoke them. The bigger they are, the more relaxed they appear. Black Cheek Moray is said to be aggressive, but the only one I have seen so far, withdrew into a hole.
Morays are easy to photograph, as they usually rest in crevices with only their head outside the hole. |
Moray eels have good sense of smell and feed on fish and shrimps at night. Often do I see small fish swim very close to moray eels, apparently without fear of being eaten. A local diver told me that the prey "knows" when the moray eel is hungry and when it is safe.
Moray eels can be from 40 to 220 cm in length, where Giant Moray and Honeycomb Moray are the largest. They can weight up to 30 kg, and the jaws are very powerful. They have poor eye vision, and it is therefore not a good idea to feed them by hand, as they by mistake may bite off your fingers. |