The Garden Eel, also known as Hass’s Garden Eel, looks like a colony of seagrass , and burrows into the sand at the bottom of many tropical seas. They are very small compared to other eels but have large eyes and tiny nostrils. They rely almost entirely on their sight to capture food.

Garden eels live in large groups in underwater sandbanks. Each eel has to make its own burrow that goes straight down into the sand. They dig these burrows with their tails using a gland in their tail which secretes a slime that makes the sand stick together. This technique ensures that the eels burrow does not collapse. The garden eel eats without leaving its burrow keeps its tail inside and sticks the rest of its body out. With its head exposed garden eels spend most of the day attempting to capture zooplankton that the current delivers them. When it gets scared, it takes its whole body into the burrow closing the burrow with a mucus plug to protect itself. This is the secret to the Garden Eels vanishing act, leaving no trace of the burrow as it retreats.

This creature blends in by disguising itself as sea grass especially since they are commonly found in groups, so it literally looks like you are looking at a field of sea grass. Garden Eels are quite striking with a leopard pattern of spots with two large dark spots on their bodies. They can grow to over a foot long, but most of the time you only see part of their bodies as the rest is buried in the sandy bottom.

Garden eels are known o be notoriously difficult to photograph as they are extremely shy, and will retreat into their burrows upon seeing a scuba diver approach. One of the most renowned dive sites in the world to witness garden eels is in Dahab Egypt, at the site known as Eel Garden. You can read more about this dive site by reading our Aquaviews article” Dive With Thousands of Eels At The ‘Eel Garden’ Dive Site, Dahab“

photos from flickr by: sarnau, Jeff Croft

The Disappearing Garden Eel was written by Nevin for Aquaviews - SCUBA Blog - Bringing You The Other 70% Of Our World

The predatory eel comes from the Anguilliformes order of fish and have a long snake-like body. There are over 600 species of eel in four suborders and 19 families, one of which is the Muraenidae family more commonly known as the family of Moray eels with 200 species within it. From tropical to temperate waters, tidal pools formed to rocky habitats, wrecks, and reefs and down along coral walls leading down to the abyss, wherever there is a suitable crevice, one is almost certain to find a moray eel of one species or another.

Moray eels secrete a mucus over their smooth skins in greater quantities than other eels, allowing them to swim fast around the reef without fear of abrasion. Contrary to belief the moray eel does not bare its open jaw to display aggression but simply to breathe. Morays are frequently thought of as particularly vicious or ill-tempered animals. In truth, morays hide from humans in crevices and would rather flee than fight. Attacks on humans are very rare and mostly only in self-defense or when humans are stupid enough to try and feed them. They have poor vision and rely mostly on their acute sense of smell, making distinguishing between fingers and held food difficult.

Here’s a look at some species of Moray Eels you may encounter during dives-

Honeycomb Moray Eel

Peppered Moray Eel

Blue Ribbon Moray Eel

Snowflake Moray Eel

Green Moray Eel

*Photo credits: photos by AlKok, mattk1979, jon hanson, mattk1979, richard ling, Oriolus, laszlo-photo on flickr

Diving Marine Life Guides: The Eel Appeal was written by Noreen for Aquaviews - SCUBA Blog - Bringing You The Other 70% Of Our World

Whenever I used to catch glimpse of this seemingly vicious, ill-tempered creature lurking in the reef, I stay clear giving it as much of a wide berth as possible. I can’t really say what exactly it is about the moray eel that makes so many divers react the way I do, there are just so many intimidating qualities.

I guess the moray eels gaping jaws and sharp teeth are the first thing that grabs your attention. They possess sharp backward pointing teeth designed for tearing flesh, and a second set of jaws inside their throats, also armed with teeth, meant for capturing or restraining their prey.

What also makes the moray seem more intimidating is the fact that we never see the entire length of the eel as it lays hidden in a crevice with only its head sticking out. This creates the doubt in the diver’s mind, as to how long it really is, and the fear of it possibly springing out to attack.

Typically moray eels are around 1.5 meters (5 ft) long (almost the size of a person). But some moray species grow up to 4 meters (13ft) long, i.e. twice the size of an adult human male.

Morays seldom deliberately attack divers; they are secretive and shy creatures that would rather avoid humans and swim for cover than confront one. Most instances of moray related attacks have almost always been in self-defense, when a diver unwittingly grabs on to a rocky outcrop that happens to be the home of a moray eel or if a diver has been trying to feed the moray.

Moray eels have poor vision and poor hearing, so they rely heavily on smell to locate prey which mainly consists of small fish and crustaceans.  They are often found amongst coral reefs and lurking in crevices at the sea floor. It’s very rare to see one swimming free from one crevice to another during the day, as they are predominantly nocturnal creatures.

The other intimidating and fascinating feature of the moray is the sheer varieties color you see them in. There are over 200 species of the moray eel, and they range in several different colors, some subdued and camouflaged, others bright and showy making them one of the most recognizable creatures on the reef.

Despite its menacing qualities, the moray eel is a truly fascinating creature which is often misunderstood and unjustly reputed as a ‘dangerous’ creature. Having said that; I still dive rather carefully whenever I catch sight of a moray, and will often still try and circumvent its ill-tempered glare and admire its beauty from afar.

Photos: richard ling, jon hanson, doug.deep, alfonsator

Meet the Morays was written by Nevin for Aquaviews - SCUBA Blog - Bringing You The Other 70% Of Our World