Giant Oarfish

Name: king of herrings or giant oarfish,
Scientific Name: Regalecus glesne
FAQ:

• The king of herrings or giant oarfish, Regalecus glesne, an oarfish of the family Regalecidae, is the world's longest bony fish. Rarely sighted, it is found in all the world's oceans at depths of between 300 and 1000 meters. Most sightings have been in the north Atlantic, with most specimens found either dead or dying in shallow waters.
• The king of herrings is neither a true herring, nor a close relative. According to the Great Book of Animals, its name comes from being sighted near shoals of herring, which fishermen thought were being guided by this fish.It is scaleless, ribbon-shaped and silvery with a long, red dorsal fin
• The king of herrings is the world's longest bony fish. Its total length can reach 17 m, and it can weigh up to 300 kg. Its length (the record is 17 m (56 ft)) and bizarre appearance are presumed to be responsible for some sea serpent sightings

Box Jellyfish

Name: Box JellyFish

Scientific Name: Carukira Barnesi
FAQ:

• Carukia barnesi is a small and extremely venomous jellyfish found near Australia. Stings can result in Irukandji syndrome, and thus this species is commonly known as Irukandji jellyfish, although this name does not distinguish it from other Irukandji jellyfish such as Malo kingi.
• SIZE: A mature C. barnesi's bell is only 12 mm by 30 mm in height. It has four contractile tentacles, one extending from each bottom "corner" of its bell, ranging in length from 50mm to 500mm. The jellyfish was discovered by, and named after, Jack Barnes

Portuguese man o' war

Name: Portuguese man o' war 
Scientific Name: Physalia physalis
FAQ:

• The Portuguese man o' war (Physalia physalis), also known as the Portuguese man-of-war, man-of-war, or bluebottle, is a jelly-like marine invertebrate of the family Physaliidae. The name "man-of-war" is borrowed from the man-of-war, an 16th century English armed sailing ship.
• Despite its outward appearance, the man-of-war is not a true jellyfish but a siphonophore, which differ from jellyfish in that they are not actually a single creature, but a colonial organism made up of many minute individuals called zooids. Each of these zooids is highly-specialized and, although structurally similar to other solitary animals, are attached to each other and physiologically integrated to the extent that they are incapable of independent survival.
• The man-of-war is found in warm water seas floating on the surface of open ocean, its air bladder keeping it afloat and acting as a sail while the rest of the organism hangs below the surface. It has no means of self-propulsion and is entirely dependent on winds, currents, and tides. It is most common in the tropical and subtropical regions of the Pacific and Indian oceans, but can drift outside of this range on warm currents such as the Atlantic Gulf Stream.
• The Portuguese Man o' War lives at the surface of the ocean, with its float above the water, serving as a sail, and the rest of the organism hanging below the surface. It has no means of propulsion, but is moved by a combination of winds, currents, and tides.
• It is found in open ocean in all of the world's warm water seas but most commonly in the tropical and subtropical regions of the Pacific and Indian oceans, and the northern Atlantic Gulf Stream. Strong onshore winds may drive them into bays or on beaches. It is rare for only a single Portuguese Man o' War to be found; the discovery of one usually indicates the presence of many as they are usually congregated by currents and winds into groups of thousands.
• The Portuguese Man o' War is responsible for up to 10,000 human stings in Australia each summer, particularly on the east coast, with some others occurring off the coast of South Australia and Western Australia.
• The stinging venom-filled nematocysts in the tentacles of the Portuguese Man o' War can paralyze small fish and other prey. Detached tentacles and dead specimens (including those that wash up on shore) can sting just as painfully as the live creature in the water, and may remain potent for hours or even days after the death of the creature or the detachment of the tentacle.
• Stings usually cause severe pain to humans, leaving whip-like, red welts on the skin that normally last 2 or 3 days after the initial sting, though the pain should subside after about an hour. However, the venom can travel to the lymph nodes and may cause, depending on the amount of venom, a more intense pain. A sting may lead to an allergic reaction. There can also be serious effects, including fever, shock, and interference with heart and lung action. Stings may also cause death, although this is rare. Medical attention may be necessary, especially where pain persists or is intense, if there is an extreme reaction, the rash worsens, a feeling of overall illness develops, a red streak develops between swollen lymph nodes and the sting, or if either area becomes red, warm and tender.

Sun Fish

Name: Sun Fish

Scientific Name: Nordsøen Oceanarium
FAQ:

• The ocean sunfish, Mola mola, or common mola, is the heaviest known bony fish in the world. It has an average adult weight of 1,000 kg (2,200 lb). The species is native to tropical and temperate waters around the globe. It resembles a fish head with a tail, and its main body is flattened laterally. Sunfish can be as tall as they are long when their dorsal and ventral fins are extended.
• Sunfish live on a diet that consists mainly of jellyfish, but because this diet is nutritionally poor, they consume large amounts in order to develop and maintain their great bulk. Females of the species can produce more eggs than any other known vertebrate. Sunfish fry resemble miniature pufferfish, with large pectoral fins, a tail fin and body spines uncharacteristic of adult sunfish.
• Adult sunfish are vulnerable to few natural predators, but sea lions, orcas and sharks will consume them. Among humans, sunfish are considered a delicacy in some parts of the world, including Japan, the Korean peninsula and Taiwan. In the EU, regulations ban the sale of fish and fishery products derived of the Molidae family. Sunfish are frequently, though accidentally, caught in gillnets, and are also vulnerable to harm or death from encounters with floating trash, such as plastic bags.
• GROWTH: The caudal fin of the ocean sunfish is replaced by a rounded clavus, creating the body's distinct truncated shape. The body is flattened laterally, giving it a long oval shape when seen head-on. The pectoral fins are small and fan-shaped, while the dorsal fin and the anal fin are lengthened, often making the fish as tall as it is long. Specimens up to 3.2 m (10.5 ft) in height have been recorded.
• SIZE: The ocean sunfish has an average length of 1.8 m (5.9 ft), and an average weight of 1,000 kg (2,200 lb), although individuals up to 3.3 m (10.8 ft) in length 4.2 m (14 ft) across the fins and weighing up to 2,300 kg (5,100 lb) have been observed.
• DIET: The diet of the ocean sunfish consists primarily of various jellyfish. It also consumes salps, squid, crustaceans, small fishes, fish larvae, and eel grass. This range of food items indicates that the sunfish feeds at many levels, from the surface to deep water, and occasionally down to the seafloor in some areas. The diet is nutritionally poor, forcing the sunfish to consume a large amount of food to maintain its size

Frilled Shark

 
Name: frilled shark
Scientific Name: Chlamydoselachus anguineus
FAQ:

• The frilled shark (Chlamydoselachus anguineus) is one of two extant species of shark in the family Chlamydoselachidae, with a wide but patchy distribution in the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. This uncommon species is found over the outer continental shelf and upper continental slope, generally near the bottom though there is evidence of substantial upward movements. 
• It has been caught as deep as 1,570 m (5,150 ft), whereas in Suruga Bay, Japan it is most common at depths of 50–200 m (160–660 ft). Exhibiting several "primitive" features, the frilled shark has often been termed a "living fossil". 
• GROWTH: It reaches a length of 2 m (6.6 ft) and has a dark brown, eel-like body with the dorsal, pelvic, and anal fins placed far back. 
• Its common name comes from the frilly or fringed appearance of the gill slits, of which there are six pairs with the first pair meeting across the throat.
• Seldom observed, the frilled shark is speculated to capture its prey by bending its body and lunging forward like a snake. The long, extremely flexible jaws enable it to swallow large prey whole, while the many rows of small, needle-like teeth prevent escape. 
• DIET: It feeds mainly on cephalopods, while also consuming bony fishes and other sharks. 
• This species is aplacental viviparous: the embryos emerge from their egg capsules inside the mother's uterus, and are sustained to term primarily by yolk. The gestation period may be as long as three and a half years, the longest of any vertebrate. 
• Between 2 and 15 young are born at a time; there is no distinct breeding season. 
• Frilled sharks are occasionally captured as bycatch by commercial fisheries but have little economic value. This shark, or a supposed giant relative, has been suggested as a source for reports of sea serpents.

Blue Ring Octopus

Name: blue-ringed octopuses
Scientific Name: genus Hapalochlaena
FAQ:

• The blue-ringed octopuses (genus Hapalochlaena) are three (or perhaps four) octopus species that live in tide pools in the Pacific Ocean, from Japan to Australia. Despite their small size and relatively docile nature, they are currently recognized as one of the world's most venomous animals .
• They can be recognized by their characteristic blue and black rings and yellowish skin. When the octopus is agitated, the brown patches darken dramatically, and iridescent blue rings or clumps of rings appear and pulsate within the maculae. Typically 50-60 blue rings cover the dorsal and lateral surfaces of the mantle. 
• DIET: They hunt small crabs, hermit crabs, and shrimp, and may bite attackers, including humans, if provoked.
• Their diet typically consists of small crab and shrimp, but they may also feed on fish if they can catch them. They pounce on their prey, paralyze them with venom and use their beaks to tear off pieces. They then suck out the flesh from the crustacean's exoskeleton.
• SIZE: The blue-ringed octopus is 12 to 20 cm (5 to 8 inches), but its venom is powerful enough to kill humans. There is no blue-ringed octopus antivenom available.
• The octopus produces venom that contains tetrodotoxin, 5-hydroxytryptamine, hyaluronidase, tyramine, histamine, tryptamine, octopamine, taurine, acetylcholine, and dopamine. 
• The major neurotoxin component of blue-ringed octopus venom was originally known as maculotoxin but was later found to be identical to tetrodotoxin, a neurotoxin which is also found in pufferfish and cone snails. Tetrodotoxin blocks sodium channels, causing motor paralysis and respiratory arrest within minutes of exposure, leading to cardiac arrest due to a lack of oxygen. 
• The toxin is created by bacteria in the salivary glands of the octopus

Gulper Eel

Name: Gulper eel
Scientific Name: Eurypharynx pelecanoides
FAQ

• Saccopharyngiformes is an order of unusual ray-finned fish superficially similar to eels, but with many internal differences. Most of the fish in this order are deep-sea types known from only a handful of specimens such as the Umbrella Mouth Gulper Eel. 
• Saccopharyngiformes are also bioluminescent in several species. Some, such as the swallowers, can live as deep as 10,000 feet (3,000 m) in the ocean, well into the aphotic zone.
• Saccopharyngiforms lack several bones, such as the symplectic bone, the bones of the opercle, and ribs. They also have no scales, pelvic fins, or swim bladder. 
• The jaws are quite large, and several types are notable for being able to consume fish larger than themselves. Their myomeres (muscle segments) are V-shaped instead of W-shaped like in all other fish, and their lateral line has no pores, instead it is modified to groups of elevated tubules.
• DIET: The gulper eel eats fish, copepods, shrimp, and plankton. It uses its mouth like a net by opening its large mouth and swimming at its prey. Due to the gulper eel's specialised body shape, it is a poor swimmer and relies on the luminescent organ at the tip of its tail to attract prey.

Flashfish

Name: Flashfish
Scientific Name: Kryptophanaron alfredi
FAQ:

• The flashlight fish are a family, the Anomalopidae, of beryciform fish. There are some unrelated fish with similar features, some of which are also called flashlight fish. 
• Notable among these are the deep sea lanternfish, of the family Myctophidae, of which there are over 200 species.
• Flashlight fishes live in tropical waters across the world. Some species move to shallow waters or coral during the night, but otherwise, they are exclusively deep water fish. 
• SIZE: They are typically about 14 centimeters (5.5 in) in adult length, although some species reach twice this size. 
• DIET: They feed on small crustaceans.
• Flashlight fish are named for their large bioluminescent organs. These are located beneath the eyes and contain luminous red bacteria. 
• Different species have an array of methods for shielding the light to escape from predators. The light is used to attract prey, and for communication.

Antarctic Krill

Name: Antarctic krill
Scientific Name: Euphausia superba
FAQ:

• Antarctic krill, Euphausia superba, is a species of krill found in the Antarctic waters of the Southern Ocean. Antarctic krill are shrimp-like invertebrates or crustaceans that live in large schools, called swarms, sometimes reaching densities of 10,000–30,000 individual animals per cubic meter. 
• DIET: They feed directly on minute phytoplankton, thereby using the primary production energy that the phytoplankton originally derived from the sun in order to sustain their pelagic (open ocean) life cycle.
• GROWTH: They grow to a length of 6 centimeters , weigh up to 2 grams, and can live for up to six years. They are a key species in the Antarctic ecosystem and are, in terms of biomass, probably the most abundant animal species on the planet
• Krill are often referred to as light-shrimp because they can emit light, produced by bioluminescent organs. These organs are located on various parts of the individual krill's body: one pair of organs at the eye-stalk, another pair on the hips of the second and seventh thoracopods, and singular organs on the four pleonsternites. These light organs emit a yellow-green light periodically, for up to 2–3 s. 
• They are considered so highly developed that they can be compared with a torchlight: a concave reflector in the back of the organ and a lens in the front guide the light produced, and the whole organ can be rotated by muscles. 
• The function of these lights is not yet fully understood; some hypotheses have suggested they serve to compensate the krill's shadow so that they are not visible to predators from below; other speculations maintain that they play a significant role in mating or schooling at night.
• The krill's bio-luminescent organs contain several fluorescent substances. The major component has a maximum fluorescence at an excitation of 355 nm and emission of 510 nm.

Cookie Cutter Shark

 
Name: cookiecutter shark
Scientific Name: Isistius brasiliensis
FAQ:

• The cookiecutter shark , also called the cigar shark, is a species of small dogfish shark in the family Dalatiidae. 
• This shark occurs in warm, oceanic waters worldwide, particularly near islands, and has been recorded from as deep as 3.7 km (2.3 mi). It migrates vertically up to 3 km (1.9 mi) every day, approaching the surface at dusk and descending with the dawn. 
• GROWTH:Reaching only 42–56 cm (17–22 in) in length, the cookiecutter shark has a long, cylindrical body with a short, blunt snout, large eyes, two tiny spineless dorsal fins, and a large caudal fin. 
• It is dark brown in color, with light-emitting photophores covering its underside except for a dark "collar" around its throat and gill slits.
• The name "cookiecutter shark" refers to its feeding habit of gouging round plugs, like a cookie cutter, out of larger animals. Marks made by cookiecutter sharks have been found on a wide variety of marine mammals and fishes, as well as on submarines, undersea cables, and even human bodies. It also consumes whole smaller prey such as squid. 
• Cookiecutter sharks have adaptations for hovering in the water column and likely rely on stealth and subterfuge to capture more active prey. Its dark collar seems to mimic the silhouette of a small fish, while the rest of its body blends into the downwelling light via its ventral photophores. When a would-be predator approaches the lure, the shark attaches itself using its suctorial lips and specialized pharynx and neatly excises a chunk of flesh using its bandsaw-like set of lower teeth. 
• This species has been known to travel in schools.
• The intrinsic green luminescence of the cookiecutter shark is the strongest known of any shark, and has been reported to persist for three hours after it has been taken out of water .The ventrally positioned photophores serve to disrupt its silhouette from below by matching the downwelling light, a strategy known as "counter-illumination", that is common among bioluminescent organisms of the mesopelagic zone. The individual photophores are set around the denticles and are small enough that they cannot be discerned by the naked eye, suggesting that they have evolved to fool animals with high visual acuity and/or at close distances.
• Set apart from the glowing underside, the darker, non-luminescent collar tapers at both sides of the throat and has been hypothesized to serve as a lure by mimicking the silhouette of a small fish from below. The appeal of the lure would be multiplied in a school of sharks. 
• If the collar does function in this way, the cookiecutter shark would be the only known case of bioluminescence in which the absence of light attracts prey, while its photophores serve to prevent premature detection by incoming would-be predators. As the shark can only match a limited range of light intensities, its vertical movements likely serve to preserve the effectiveness of its disguise across various times of day and weather conditions.
• DIET: Virtually every type of medium to large-sized oceanic animal sharing the habitat of the cookiecutter shark is open to attack: bite scars have been found on cetaceans, dugongs, sharks, deepwater stingrays, and bony fishes.  The cookiecutter shark also regularly hunts and eats entirely squid

Lamprey

Name: Lamprey
Scientific Name:
FAQ:

• Lampreys (sometimes also called lamprey eels) are jawless fish, whose adults are characterized by a toothed, funnel-like sucking mouth. Translated from an admixture of Latin and Greek, lamprey means stone lickers (lambere: to lick, and petra: stone). While lampreys are well-known for those species which bore into the flesh of other fish to suck their blood, most species of lamprey are non-parasitic and never feed on other fish. 
• In zoology, lampreys are sometimes not considered to be true fish because of their distinctive morphology and physiology.
• Lampreys live mostly in coastal and fresh waters, although some species, travel significant distances in the open ocean, as evidenced by their lack of reproductive isolation between populations. They are found in most temperate regions except those in Africa. Their larvae have a low tolerance for high water temperatures, which may explain why they are not distributed in the tropics.
• GROWTH: Adults physically resemble eels, in that they have no scales, and can range anywhere from 13 to 100 centimetres (5 to 40 inches) long. Lacking paired fins, adult lampreys have large eyes, one nostril on the top of the head, and seven gill pores on each side of the head. The unique morphological characteristics of lampreys, such as their cartilaginous skeleton, suggest that they are the sister taxon of all living jawed vertebrates (gnathostomes), and are usually considered the most basal group of the Vertebrata.
• DIET: They feed on prey as adults by attaching their mouthparts to the target animal's body, then using their teeth to cut through surface tissues until they reach blood and body fluid. They will generally not attack humans unless starved

LionFish

Name: Lionfish
Scientific Name: Pterois volitans
FAQ:

• The red lionfish  is a venomous coral reef fish in the family Scorpaenidae in the order Scorpaeniformes.
• GROWTH: Red lionfish are clad in white stripes alternated with red, maroon, or brown. Adults can grow as large as 17 inches (43 cm) in length while juveniles may be shorter than 1 inch (2.5 cm). It has fleshy tentacles which protrude from both above the eyes and below the mouth. The pectoral fin is present in a distinctive fan-like shape, and dorsal spines are long and separated.
• Lionfish have venomous dorsal spines that are used purely for defense. When threatened, the fish often faces its attacker in an upside down posture which brings its spines to bear. 
• If a human is envenomed, that person will experience extreme pain, and possibly headaches, vomiting, and breathing difficulties. A common treatment is soaking the afflicted area in hot water, as very few hospitals carry specific treatments.However, immediate emergency medical treatment is still advised, as some people are more susceptible to the venom than others.
• NOAA encourages everyone (divers and fishers) to be extremely cautious and avoid contact with the venomous spines of the lionfish. 
• Usually, lionfish are not aggressive toward humans and will almost always keep their distance when given the opportunity, so they pose a relatively low risk. In addition, their stings are not deadly, but they are very painful.
• Lionfish are voracious predators. They do not use their spines to capture prey; only for protection from their own predators. When hunting, they corner prey using their large fins and then use their quick reflexes to swallow the prey whole. They hunt primarily from late afternoon to dawn.
• The red lionfish eat live prey and do not eat fish flakes and other processed food. However, with some effort, they can learn to accept frozen food

Stingray

Name: Stingray
Scientific Name: Dasyatis americana
FAQ:

• The stingrays are a family-Dasyatidae-of rays, cartilaginous fishes related to sharks. They are common in coastal tropical and subtropical marine waters throughout the world, but the family also includes species found in warmer temperate oceans.
• They are named after the barbed stinger (actually a modified dermal denticle) on their tail, which is used exclusively in self-defense. The stinger may reach a length of approximately 35 cm, and its underside has two grooves with venom glands.The stinger is covered with a thin layer of skin, the integumentary sheath, in which the venom is concentrated
• The flattened bodies of stingrays allow them to effectively conceal themselves in their environment. Stingrays do this by agitating the sand and hiding beneath it. Because their eyes are on top of their bodies and their mouths on the undersides.
• Stingrays cannot see their prey; instead, they use smell and electro-receptors (ampullae of Lorenzini) similar to those of sharks. 
• DIET: Stingrays feed primarily on molluscs, crustaceans, and occasionally on small fish. Some stingrays' mouths contain two powerful, shell-crushing plates, while other species only have sucking mouthparts. Stingrays settle on the bottom while feeding, often leaving only their eyes and tail visible. Coral reefs are favorite feeding grounds and are usually shared with sharks during high tide.
• Stingrays do not aggressively attack humans, though stings do normally occur if a ray is accidentally stepped on. 
• To avoid stepping on a stingray in shallow water, the water should be waded through with a shuffle.Contact with the stinger causes local trauma (from the cut itself), pain, swelling, muscle cramps from the venom, and later possibly even infection from bacteria. The injury is very painful, but seldom life-threatening unless the stinger pierces a vital area.The barb usually breaks off in the wound, and surgery may be required to remove the fragments.
• A notable fatality is that of wildlife adventurer and television personality Steve Irwin from Australia, who died after being pierced through the chest by a stingray barb while filming The Great Barrier Reef in 2006.
• Alternatively, before wading, stones can be thrown into the water to scare stingrays away.

Stonefish

 
Name: Stonefish
Scientific Name: Synanceia verrucosa
FAQ:

• Synanceia is a genus of fish of the family Synanceiidae, the Stonefishes, whose members are venomous, dangerous, and even fatal to humans. 
• It is the most venomous fish in the world. 
• They are found in the coastal regions of Indo-Pacific oceans. They are primarily marine, though some species are known to live in rivers. 
• Its species have potent neurotoxins secreted from glands at the base of their needle-like dorsal fin spines which stick up when disturbed or threatened.
• The vernacular name of the species, the stonefish, derives from being able to camouflage and transform itself to a grey and mottled color similar to the color of a stone. Divers have sometimes stepped on them, thinking they are stones.
• Recommended treatments include using heat to the affected area and antivenom. Using hot water at a temperature no lower than 45 °C (113 °F), applied to the injured area has been found to destroy stonefish venom, and causes minimal discomfort to the victim. For more extreme cases, antivenom is to be used .

Barracuda

 

Name: Barracuda

Scientific Name: Sphyraena barracuda

FAQ:

• The barracuda is a ray-finned fish known for its large size and fearsome appearance. 
• GROWTH: Its body is long, fairly compressed, and covered with small, smooth scales. Some species could reach up to 1.8m in length and 30 centimeters (11.8 in) in width. The barracuda is a salt water fish of the genus Sphyraena, the only genus in the family Sphyraenidae, and is found in tropical and subtropical oceans worldwide.
• Barracudas are elongated fish, pike-like in appearance, with prominent sharp-edged fang-like teeth, much like piranhas, that are all of different sizes which are set in sockets of their large jaws. They have large pointed heads with an under bite in many species. Their gill-covers have no spines and are covered with small scales. Their two dorsal fins are widely separated with the anterior fin having five spines, the posterior fin having one spine and nine soft rays. The posterior dorsal fin is similar in size to the anal fin and is situated above it. The lateral line is prominent and extends straight from head to tail. The spinals dorsal fin is placed above the pelvic fins and is normally retracted in a groove. The caudal fin is moderately forked with its posterior edged double-curved and is set at the end of a stout peduncle. The pectoral fins are placed low on the sides. Their swim bladder is large.
• In most cases, they are dark green, dark blue, or gray on their upper body with silvery sides and chalky-white belly. Coloration varies somewhat between species. For some species, there are irregular black spots or a row of darker cross-bars on each side. Their fins may be yellowish or dusky. Barracudas live primarily in oceans, but certain species such as the Great Barracuda lives in brackish water.
• Like sharks, some species of barracuda are reputed to be dangerous to swimmers. Barracudas are scavengers, and may mistake snorkelers for large predators, following them in hopes of eating the remains of their prey. Swimmers have been reported being bitten by barracuda but such incidents are rare and possibly caused by poor visibility. Barracuda generally avoid muddy shallows, so attacks in surf are more likely to be by small sharks. Barracudas may mistake things that glint and shine for prey. 
• There has been a reported incident of a barracuda jumping out of water and injuring a kayaker.
• Hand feeding or touching large barracuda in general is to be avoided. Spearfishing around barracudas can also be dangerous, as they are quite capable of ripping a chunk from a wounded fish thrashing on a spear.
• Diamond rings and other shiny objects have been known to catch their attention and resemble prey to them. Caution should be taken when swimming near mangrove coastlines by covering or removing items.
• Barracudas are popular both as food and game fish. They are most often eaten as fillets or steaks. Larger species, like the Great Barracuda, have been implicated in cases of ciguatera food poisoning

Giant Moray Eel

Name: Giant Moray

Scientific Name: Gymnothorax javanicus

FAQ:

• SIZE: The largest in terms of total mass is the giant moray which reaches almost 3 metres (9.8 ft) and can weigh over 36 kilograms (79 lb).
• The 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. Morays are shy and secretive, and attack humans only in self-defense or mistaken identity. Most attacks stem from disruption of a moray's burrow (to which they do react strongly), but an increasing number also occur during hand-feeding of morays by divers, an activity often used by dive companies to attract tourists. Morays have poor vision and rely mostly on their acute sense of smell, making distinguishing between fingers and held food difficult; numerous divers have lost fingers while attempting hand feedings. For this reason the hand feeding of moray eels has been banned in some locations, including the Great Barrier Reef. The moray's rear-hooked teeth and primitive but strong bite mechanism also makes bites on humans more severe, as the eel cannot release its grip even in death and must be manually pried off. While the majority are not believed to be venomous, circumstantial evidence suggests that a few species may be.
• Eels that have eaten certain types of toxic algae, or more frequently that have eaten fishes that have eaten some of these algae, can cause ciguatera fish poisoning if eaten. Morays rest in crevices during the day and hunt nocturnally, although they may ensnare small fish and crustaceans that pass near them during the day.
• The body is generally patterned. Camouflage is also present inside the mouth. Their jaws are wide, framing a protruding snout. They possess large teeth, designed to tear flesh as opposed to holding or chewing.
• Moray eels' heads are too narrow to create the negative pressure that most fish use to swallow prey. Quite possibly because of this, they have a second set of jaws in their throat called pharyngeal jaws, which also possess teeth. When feeding, morays launch these jaws into the mouth, where they grasp prey and transport it into the throat and digestive system. Moray eels are the only animal that uses pharyngeal jaws to actively capture and restrain prey. Larger morays are capable of seriously wounding humans.
• Morays secrete a protective mucus over their smooth, scaleless skin which in some species contains a toxin. Morays have much thicker skin and high densities of goblet cells in the epidermis that allows mucus to be produced at a higher rate than in other eel species. This allows sand granules to adhere to the sides of their burrows in sand-dwelling morays, thus making the walls of the burrow more permanent due to the glycosylation of mucins in mucus. Their small circular gills, located on the flanks far posterior to the mouth, require the moray to maintain a gap in order to facilitate respiration.
• DIET: Morays are carnivorous and feed primarily on other fish, cephalopods, molluscs, and crustaceans. Groupers, barracudas and sea snakes are among their few predators. There is a commercial fishery for several species, but some cause ciguatera fish poisoning. Morays hide in reef crevices until their prey is close enough for capture. They then lunge out and clamp the prey in their strong jaws.