| While there are approximately 200 species of Morays worldwide, twelve make their home in tropical western Atlantic or Caribbean waters. These include the Green, Spotted, Goldentail, Reticulate, Purplemouth, Viper, Chestnut, Honeycomb, Chain, Stout, Broadbanded and Orange Moray. |
| Morays (Muraenidae family) have long scaleless bodies coated with a clear, protective mucus layer. They have no pectoral or ventral fins. Their dorsal, tail and anal fins form one long continuous fin that begins behind the head, encircles the tail and extends midway down the belly. |
| Morays are seen constantly opening and closing their mouths. This behavior is necessary to pump water through their gills for respiration. The Moray’s gills are two small, round holes located on the sides of the head. Some divers perceive this behavior as threatening, but they actually are not aggressive. When provoked, they will bite divers. Their powerful jaws and teeth can really inflict a lot of damage. |
| By day, they are usually reclusive, tending to hide in the dark recesses of the reef. Usually they are seen with their heads sticking out of reef crevices. At night, they forage in open water searching for slow-moving crustaceans, fish or even other Morays. Morays detect prey by taking in water through their nostrils, passing it over their sensitive olfactory receptors and then expelling it through their upper nostrils. |
| The Conger eels’s (Congridae family) dorsal, tail and anal fins are continuous, but unlike morays, they also have pectoral fins. They also have a complete lateral line. Conger eels live deep within the recesses of the reef and are rarely seen by divers. An exception is the Brown Garden Eel, which lives in colonies in the sand near reefs. Other Conger eels include the Yellow Garden Eel, Manytooth Conger and Bandtooth Conger. |
| Snake Eels (Ophichthidae Family) are virtually without fins and resemble sea snakes. The tips of their tails are stiff and sharp, enabling them to burrow tail first into the sand. Snake eels are commonly found in the sand, either completely buried or with their heads showing. At night, they crawl about the bottom in search of food. Unlike Garden Eels, snake eels tend to roam and don’t have permanent burrows. Some of the more common Snake Eels are the Sharptail Eel and Goldspotted Eel. |
