Moray: toothy, predatory and poisonous. Moray fish. Moray eel lifestyle and habitat Predatory fish moray eel is it edible

11.06.2019

The underwater world is a unique environment. How many can you find here? unusual creatures! One of the most diverse classes of aquatic animals can be called fish, because among them there are creatures that do not even look like fish at first glance. Sea fish moray eel is one of such representatives. These large animals, belonging to the eel-like order, the moray family, are more reminiscent of snakes than fish.

What does the serpentine sea fish moray eel look like?

All members of this species have big sizes. The body length of the moray eel is from 60 to 370 centimeters. And one individual weighs from 8 to 40 kilograms! Here are the underwater giants!

The body shape of these fish is slightly flattened: the front part of the body is thicker than the back. Familiar to us pectoral fins, characteristic of most representatives of the fish class, are completely absent in moray eels. muzzle serpentine fish elongated, and the eyes have a very evil expression!

The color of animals, as a rule, is variegated. Very often there is a small-speckled pattern on the body, sometimes moray eels have a striped ornament on the body. These serpentine fish do not have scales.

Distribution of sea moray eels

The habitat of moray eels is invariably considered to be the sea, the water must be not only salty, but also necessarily warm. These snake-like fish can be found in the waters indian ocean, Atlantic Ocean, in Red and mediterranean seas and in some areas of the Pacific Ocean.

Moray fish lifestyle

For living, moray eels choose a shallow depth - up to 40 meters, preferring to spend most of their time in shallow water. In the water they keep modestly and inconspicuously. Having found some kind of shelter for themselves, whether it be a crevice of a rock or thickets of corals, moray eels sit in it for most of their lives. The main activity comes at dusk.

Moray eels are solitary animals, a pack lifestyle is not for them. Even if a “neighbor” from the same species accidentally settles nearby, not every moray eel is ready to tolerate such uninvited “friends”.

The character of the fish is also not easy, like herself. Some individuals are very friendly. But there are also those who do not like any interference in their lives. If the moray eel does not like something, it immediately becomes aggressive and can bite painfully. The bites of these serpentine fish sometimes ended fatal for a man! Therefore, while diving, you should be careful with these hot-tempered fish.

What do moray eels eat?

The main power sources for serpentine moray eels are sea urchins, fish, and . These predators first, hiding in an ambush, attract the victim, and then attack it with a sharp throw and capture it in their mouths. Since the moray eel is unable to swallow the whole animal caught, it begins to carve its prey in a special way, eating it in parts.

Reproduction of snake fish

Scientists have very poorly studied the process of breeding offspring in these fish. Perhaps this is due to a too secretive lifestyle, especially during spawning. Some of the moray eels are dioecious, but there are those that change sex from male to female during their life.

The larva of the moray eel that was born is called leptocephalus. Its size at birth is very small - 7 - 10 millimeters. The larva is very easily carried by the current and, thus, the “calves” from the same clutch fall into different habitats. Having reached the age of 4 - 6 years, the young moray eel becomes fully grown and capable of further reproduction.

The life span of a serpentine moray fish is about 10 years.

Does the moray eel have natural enemies?

The secluded lifestyle that these representatives of ray-finned fish lead saves them from an abundance of enemies. But there are times when the moray eel still catches the eye of a larger predatory fish and becomes its "lunch".

Since ancient times, the moray eel has been considered a dangerous and voracious predator. According to ancient Roman sources, noblemen and nobles used moray eels as one of the ways to punish the guilty slaves. People were thrown into a pool of moray eels and watched for a desperate fight. Before that, predatory fish were kept starving and accustomed to the smell of human blood for several months.

Giant moray (lat. Gymnothorax javanicus) (Eng. Giant moray). Photo by Andrey Narchuk

This is one of dark sides moray eels life. But are they really so terrible and dangerous to humans? The answer is no! Most of Moray eel attacks on a person occur solely through the fault of the person himself. And rightly so! There is nothing to tease a predator with long and sharp teeth like daggers.

sharp teeth

Murena attacks a larger enemy only in cases of self-defense. Remember, not a single predator will rush just like that at a creature that exceeds its size. Therefore, curious divers should not stick their hands where they should not, otherwise you can be left without fingers or even a hand. In particular, you should not stick your hands into small holes, caves and grottoes located in coral reefs, since it is there that moray eels live.

In total, there are about 100 species of these predatory fish in the world. Among them, there are both small individuals and giants, for example, the moray eel Gymnothorax javanicus. It is also called Javanese hymnothorax or Javanese lycodont. These moray eels grow up to 3 meters in length.

Her home is the tropical and temperate waters of the Pacific and Indian Oceans, the Red Sea, the coast of the islands South-East Asia, New Caledonia and Australia.

Like all representatives of fish from the moray family, the giant moray eel avoids open water and prefers to hide in reliable shelters located at a depth of no more than 50 meters.

Giant moray eel and cleaner

The camouflage color of giant moray eels is somewhat reminiscent of a leopard color. Head, top part bodies and fins are colored yellow-brown and richly strewn with dark spots of various sizes. The abdominal part remains without a pattern.

The giant moray eel hunts alone and exclusively at night, but sometimes there are exceptions (more on this below, when the joint hunting of the giant moray eel and sea bass will be considered).

You can't call her a gourmand. It feeds on almost any fish, large or small, crustaceans and cephalopods. She swallows small prey whole, and drives large prey into some crevice and there tears off piece by piece from it.

The pharyngeal jaw is indicated by an arrow

Huge and sharp teeth. BUT, here lies a small secret of almost all moray eels, they have not one, but two pairs of jaws in their mouths. The first - the main one, with large teeth, is located where it should be, and the second - pharyngeal - in the pharynx. (P.S. They say that it was the moray eel that served as the prototype for the creation of a second, smaller, retractable jaw in the monster from the Alien movie.)

During the hunt, the hind jaw is located deep in the throat, but as soon as the prey is close to the mouth of the moray eel, it moves almost close to the front ones. Its main purpose is to push food into the esophagus and crush it. Agree, it is unlikely that prey will be able to escape from this double "trap".

Well, now the promised - some entertaining information about the joint hunting of a giant moray eel and sea bass - another predatory inhabitant underwater world.

Murena and sea bass

Usually each of them hunts alone: moray eel - at night and from ambush, and sea bass - during the day and in open water, so corals are the only shelter from it. But some Red Sea moray eels decided to break all the rules - from time to time they go hunting during the day, and even with a companion.

Almost always, the initiator of such a hunt is the sea bass. He swims up to the moray eel mink and if her mistress has already put her head out, she shakes her head in different directions right in front of her nose. These actions mean an invitation to a joint hunt. The fish takes this step only if it is very hungry or its prey has disappeared into a shelter not far from the moray eel mink.

After escorting it to the right place, the perch begins to shake its head, pointing to the right place. And the moray eel slips inside for prey. All lunch is caught. The giant moray eel does not always eat fish that it has caught with the help of a companion. Periodically, she gives it to her "comrade".

Little is known about the breeding process of the giant moray. Like other species, it reproduces by caviar. Most often, several females gather in shallow water, where they lay eggs, which are then fertilized by males. Often the eggs travel in the water along with sea currents and spread over long distances.

Hatching moray eels feed on zooplankton until they grow up. Then they move to corals or reef areas to escape other predators, most often sharks.

Oral cleaning

Moray eels are not eaten so often and there is no directed fishing for them. Although in ancient Rome, moray eels were highly valued for the specific taste of meat. If smaller representatives of moray eels can be kept in an aquarium, then such a trick is unlikely to work with a giant moray eel, it will need too much space for a comfortable stay.

I don’t think that anyone was fascinated by admiring the appearance of moray eels - despite the often beautiful color of her body, the appearance of this fish is repulsive. The predatory look of small prickly eyes, an unpleasant mouth with needle-like teeth, a snake-like body and the unfriendly character of moray eels do not at all conducive to friendly communication.

Let's try to get to know this, in its own way interesting and unique fish. Perhaps our attitude towards her, at least a little, will warm up.

Moray eels (Muraena) belong to the genus of fish from the eel family (Muraenidae). About 200 species of moray eels live in the seas of the World Ocean. Most of them prefer warm waters tropical and subtropical zones. A frequent visitor to coral reefs and underwater rocks.

Quite often they are found in the Red Sea, they also live in the Mediterranean. The Red Sea is home to snowflake moray, zebra moray, geometric moray, star moray, white-spotted moray, and elegant moray. The largest of them is the stellar moray, its average length reaches 180 cm.

The Mediterranean moray eel living in the Mediterranean Sea reaches 1.5 meters in length. It was her image that was the prototype for numerous legends and myths about these predatory fish with a rather unusual appearance.

For permanent residence, they choose crevices in the rocks, shelters in underwater stone rubble, in general, places where you can safely hide a large and completely unprotected body. It lives mainly in the bottom layer of the seas.

The appearance of moray eels is known to everyone. A long, serpentine body, completely naked and devoid of scales, covered with mucus, which in some species is poisonous. The mucus helps the moray eel shoot out of cover when hunting, significantly reducing water resistance.

In addition, the body covered with a thick layer of mucus is easier to squeeze into narrow holes and crevices, which moray eels use as shelter and dwelling.

The body color is camouflage, consistent with the surrounding landscape. More often, moray eels are painted in dark brown or grayish tones with spots that form a likeness on the body. marble pattern. There are also uniformly colored, and even white individuals.

Since the mouth of moray eels is of considerable size, its inner surface is painted to match the color of the body, so as not to unmask the moray eel when it opens its mouth wide. And the mouth of moray eels, almost always, is open. By pumping water through the open mouth into the gill openings, the moray eel increases the access of oxygen to the body.

The head bears small, round eyes that make the moray eels even more vicious. Behind the eyes are small gill openings, which usually have a dark spot.

The anterior and posterior nasal openings of moray eels are located on the upper side of the snout - the first pair is represented by simple openings, while the second in some species has the shape of tubules, while in others it has leaflets. If the moray eels "plug" the nasal openings, she will not be able to find her prey.

An interesting feature of moray eels is the absence of a tongue. Their powerful jaws are seated with 23-28 sharp canine-shaped or awl-shaped teeth, bent back, which helps the moray eels to hold the caught prey.

Almost all moray eels have teeth in one row, with the exception of the Atlantic green moray eel, in which an additional row of teeth is located on the palatine bone.

The teeth of moray eels are long and extremely sharp. In some species of moray eels, the diet of which is dominated by armored animals - crustaceans, crabs, teeth have a flattened shape. With such teeth, it is easier to split and grind the strong protection of the prey. Moray eels do not contain poison on their teeth. The jaws of all moray eels are very powerful, large in size.

Moray eels have no pectoral fins, and the rest - the dorsal, anal and caudal fins have grown together into one train framing the back of the body.

Moray eels can reach considerable sizes. By different sources, their length can be 2.5 and even more than 3 meters (the world's largest giant moray eel Thyrsoidea macrura). One and a half meter individuals weigh an average of 8-10 kg. Interestingly, males are smaller and "slenderer" than females. Here's a stronger sex for you!, with a weight of up to 40 kg. Among moray eels there are also small species, the length of which does not exceed ten centimeters. The average size moray eels, most often seen by divers, are approximately one meter.

As a rule, males are slightly smaller than females.

Moray eels breed with caviar. AT winter months they gather in shallow water, where the eggs laid by the females are fertilized by the sex products of the males. Eggs and moray eel larvae hatched from them move in the water by sea currents and are carried over a large area of the seas.

Moray eels are predators, their diet consists of various bottom animals - crabs, crustaceans, cephalopods, especially octopuses, medium-sized marine fish and even sea urchins.

They forage mainly at night. Lurking in ambush, moray eels lie in wait for gaping prey, jumping out of it with an arrow if a potential victim appears within reach, and grab it with their sharp teeth.
During the day, moray eels sit in their dwelling - crevices of rocks and corals, among large stones and other natural shelters and rarely hunt.

The sight when the moray eel cracks down on its victim is rather unpleasant. She instantly tears her prey into small pieces with her long teeth, and in a matter of moments only memories remain from the victim.

Moray eels can hunt not only from ambush. The favorite delicacy of most moray eels is the octopus. In pursuit of this sedentary animal, the moray eel drives it into a "corner" - some kind of shelter or crevice and, sticking its head to its soft body, tears off piece by piece from it, starting with the tentacles, until it is torn into small pieces and eaten without a trace.

Moray eels can swallow small prey whole, like snakes. When biting off a piece of the body from a large prey, the moray eel is often helped by its own tail, with which it, like a lever, increases the power of its jaws.

A peculiar method of hunting is used by nosed moray eels. These relatively small representatives of moray eels are so named for the outgrowths above their upper jaw. These nasal outgrowths, oscillating in the current of water, resemble sessile sea worms- polychaetes. The type of "prey" attracts small fish, which very quickly turn out to be the prey of a hidden predator.

In search of food, moray eels, like most nocturnal predators, rely on the sense of smell. Their eyesight is poorly developed, and even at night it is a poor helper in search of food. The moray eel victim can be felt at a considerable distance.

The notoriety of fish dangerous to humans has been attached to moray eels since ancient times.

In ancient Rome, noble citizens often kept moray eels in pools, growing them for food - the meat of these fish was extremely valued due to its specific taste. Quickly appreciating the ability of moray eels to be aggressive, the noble Romans used them as a tool to punish delinquent slaves, and sometimes they threw people into a cage with moray eels solely for the sake of entertainment.

Indeed - oh, times! .. Oh, morals! ..

Muren, before arranging such torture or spectacles, was kept starving. When a person was in the pool, they pounced on him and, hanging on the victim, like bulldogs, shook their jaws, tearing out pieces of flesh.

About the danger of moray eels for people in natural environment habitats, there are different opinions. Some researchers consider it a fairly peaceful animal, using its teeth solely for the sake of protection from too annoying divers, others consider the moray eel to be extremely dangerous. sea creature. One way or another, there are many known cases of attacks and bites of people by moray eels.

Here are some of them.

In 1948, biologist I. Brock, who later became director of the Hawaiian Institute of Marine Biology at the University of Hawaii, was scuba diving near Johnston Island in the Pacific Ocean at shallow depths. Before Brock was immersed in the water, a grenade was thrown - this was part of the research program that the biologist was engaged in. Noticing a large moray eel in the water and thinking that she was killed by a grenade, Brock faked her with a spear. However, the moray eel, whose length was 2.4 meters, was far from dead: she rushed straight at the offender and grabbed his elbow. Moray eel, attacking a person, inflicts a wound that looks like a barracuda bite mark. But unlike the barracuda, the moray eel does not immediately swim away, but hangs on its prey, like a bulldog. Brock managed to rise to the surface and reach a boat waiting nearby. However, the surgeons had to deal with this wound for a long time, as it turned out to be very serious. The victim nearly lost his arm.

The well-known pop singer Dieter Bohlen (Modern Talking duet) also suffered from moray eels.

While diving in the area Seychelles the moray eel clung to his leg, tearing the skin and muscles of the singer. D. Bolen underwent surgery after this incident, and spent a whole month in a wheelchair.

Once, specialists even had to relocate a couple of moray eels from a popular reef among tourists (Old cod hole, Big barrier reef, 1996). While feeding, the fish tore the hand of a diver from New Zealand so badly that it was not possible to save him.

Unfortunately, the moray eels died during transportation.

I think that the above examples will help novice divers to assess the danger of meeting with moray eels and take measures to prevent such cases.

These measures are simple - you should not provoke the moray eels to aggressive actions. Very rarely (usually starved) moray eels attack people for no reason.

When you see a moray eel, you should not irritate this fish - approach its dwelling, try to stroke it, and even more so - put your hands into its shelter. Spearfishers should not shoot holes and crevices just to check if there is a moray eel there. If she really lives there, she will certainly attack you. If you don't provoke her, she won't touch you.

Directed fishing for moray eels is not conducted. They are caught in single specimens for consumption.
It should be noted that the meat and some organs of moray eels in different time years may contain toxic substances causing severe stomach cramps and nerve damage. Therefore, you should study this issue in more detail before trying the taste of moray eel meat.

Sometimes moray eels are kept in large aquariums. The behavior of these predators in a closed volume may not be the same. Often, moray eels show extreme aggressiveness towards their aquarium neighbors, sometimes they are completely indifferent to roommates.
In captivity, moray eels can live for more than ten years.

Moray eels, like all predatory fish, are an important link in the ecological balance of the seas where they live. Therefore, their extermination negatively affects the health of the fauna of these regions.

In ancient times, therefore, moray eels were considered scary monsters. Then they believed in huge sea monsters that could swallow a whole ship. And this ability was attributed, in particular, to moray eels. Later in history, there were cases when they were trained to attack a person.

But all this never prevented people from hunting moray eels. It is eaten and considered a delicacy, although its meat can be very poisonous. The ancient Romans kept moray eels in special pens to prepare them for feasts. They were a terrible execution for slaves. It's such a strange food chain. In the Caribbean, moray eel ceviche is still popular - a dish that is prepared in a very exotic way and rather brutal.

source
http://medusy.ru
http://live.1001chudo.ru

One of the most dangerous inhabitants of the seabed is moray eel fish PAGEREF

First meeting.
species diversity.
Lifestyle and connection with the person.
Reproduction and offspring.

One of the most dangerous inhabitants of the seabed is moray eel fish.

First meeting

Moray eel - a fish from ancient times belonged to one of the most interesting and attention-grabbing family of fish. Such greedy enthusiasm in their search, catching and studying can hardly be explained beautiful shape or harmless behavior. Moreover, there were cases of their attacks on people.

Sea fish moray eels belong to the eel-like order. It reaches impressive lengths, the color is variegated, spotted and varies depending on environment. Everyone knows that the nostrils of fish are not designed for breathing, but perform an olfactory function. Moray eels doubly succeeded in this matter, they have two pairs of nostrils.

Also interesting is the fact that they do not have a language. Over time, during the period of growing up, they lose their fins, and this gives a certain resemblance to snakes. Completes this hard-hitting description of something that looks like a fish head with tiny eyes and a prominent mouth. With its ugly array of knife-sharp teeth, its jaw, perhaps, can only be compared with a shark's.

Until recently, it was widely believed that its teeth are poisonous, but numerous studies and studies of this fish have refuted this theory. It is widely believed that the moray eel cannot completely close its mouth due to the size of its teeth, but this fact turned out to be untenable, since this is due to the fact that it hides in places where the flow of water to the gills is difficult and the mouth is used for breathing.

With all their gluttony, moray eels deprive their attention of wrasse fish - cleaners and shrimp - orderlies. These small inhabitants of the underwater world serve as domestic servants for moray eels, they clean their skin on their heads and in their mouths.

Species diversity

This family is rich in species diversity, ranging from the Red Sea to the western Indian Ocean species of moray eels:

Snowy;
Ring;
Moray - zebra;
White-lipped;
wild;
Moray Berndt and others.

Muraena Helena

Occurs most often. These predators live in holes in coral reefs, deepenings of underwater rocks. The choice of such a habitat is not accidental and is directly related to the nature and method of its hunting. She hides in secluded places, only slightly sticking her head out, and when the time comes, she attacks an unsuspecting victim with lightning speed. To marine life suffering from her gluttony include the following:

Octopuses;
Crayfish;
small fish;
Crabs;
Cuttlefish.

If the prey is small, she quickly copes with it with the help of awesome teeth. When she comes across someone bigger, for example, an octopus, she tears off small pieces from him. Even the natural protection of crayfish in the form of a shell cannot save them from their powerful jaws.
Wild moray (Muraenesox ferox)

Of all the species, it is most similar to a snake due to the greater length of the head and its conical shape. It has small brown spots on its sides. The habitat can be subtropical zone Atlantic, Indian and Pacific Oceans.

Berndt's moray eel (Gymnothorax berndti)

Its distinctive feature is its specific coloration. The general light is dark brown with black zigzag stripes all over the body. Found in tropical seas. It is very similar to its counterparts in the way of life and habitats. The features include an almost frenzied pressure with which she attacks her victim and defends herself when threatened.

Lifestyle and human connection

AT underwater world they are rarely attacked by other fish. Night life and camouflage with coral reefs and other natural means of hiding, they are almost always safe. In rare cases of pursuit, some species can overcome small areas of land with the help of a developed muscular system.

Cases of attacks on a person are rare, since the only reason for an attack can be a manifestation of aggression or excessive curiosity. At the same time, mainly adult individuals pose a serious danger. For the first time, gourmets appreciated the specific taste of the Mediterranean moray eel ancient rome. Now people are often engaged in fishing related to the extraction of these fish because of the exotic taste, although the meat of some species is poisonous.

Reproduction and offspring

Such a question as reproduction is still not fully understood. Some of their species are dioecious. Like eels, the offspring of moray eels are called leptocifals. The body of small fish is absolutely transparent, in the first minutes of life they are very tiny, the shape of the head is rounded, and the tail fin is rounded.

Due to their tiny size and inability to resist the flow of water, they drift freely with the current. Thus, moray eels, sedentary in their way of life, spread. They quickly become sexually mature and can already produce new offspring. For fish, they have a fairly long life.

Video review of the most dangerous moray fish:

MORES, family marine fish(order eels). Length up to 3 m, serpentine body, skin without scales. Over 100 species, in tropical and subtropical waters of all oceans. Predators. Object of local craft. Some meats are poisonous... Modern Encyclopedia

A family of marine fishes of the eel-like order. Length up to 3 m. Body serpentine, skin without scales. St. 100 species, in tropical and subtropical waters of all oceans. Predators. Object of local craft. Some meats are poisonous... Big Encyclopedic Dictionary

A family of marine fishes of the eel-like order. Length up to 3 m. Body serpentine, skin without scales. Over 100 species, in tropical and subtropical waters of all oceans. Predators. Object of local craft. The meat of some species is poisonous. * * * MORAINS MORAINS ... ... encyclopedic Dictionary

Sea family. fish neg. eels. Length up to 3 m. Body serpentine, skin without scales. St. 100 species, tropical. and subtropical. waters of all oceans. Predators. Object of local craft. The meat of certain species is poisonous. Moray eels. Mediterranean moray… Natural science. encyclopedic Dictionary

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moray eels - Green moray. Moray eels, a family of marine fish (eel-like order). Length up to 3 m, serpentine body, skin without scales. Over 100 species, in tropical and subtropical waters of all oceans. Predators. Object of local craft. Some meats are poisonous... Illustrated Encyclopedic Dictionary

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moray echidna- murenos echidnos statusas T sritis zoologija | vardynas taksono rangas gentis atitikmenys: lot. Echidna rus. echidnas; megaders; echidna moray eels ryšiai: platesnis terminas – mureninės siauresnis terminas – grakščioji murena siauresnis terminas –… … Žuvų pavadinimų žodynas

serrated moray eels- pjūkladantės murenos statusas T sritis zoologija | vardynas taksono rangas gentis atitikmenys: lot. Priodonophis rus. serrated moray eels ryšiai: platesnis terminas – mureninės siauresnis terminas – siauragalvė pjūkladantė murena … Žuvų pavadinimų žodynas

Moray eels are a genus of fish from the moray family. Terence Varro Murena Foster-son famous Tacitus Varro, friend of Cicero. Under his command, the Romans defeated the Salassi. Projects military equipment under the code "Murena": Submarines project 667B ... ... Wikipedia

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