Green moray eel
| Green moray eel | ||||||||||||
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Green Moray Eel ( Gymnothorax funebris ) |
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| Scientific name | ||||||||||||
| Gymnothorax funebris | ||||||||||||
| Ranzani , 1839 |
The green moray ( Gymnothorax funebris ) occurs in the tropical and subtropical western Atlantic from New Jersey via Bermuda to the coast of southern Brazil , as well as in the Caribbean and the northern Gulf of Mexico . It mainly inhabits coral and rock reefs as well as mangrove areas at depths of up to 30 meters. The fish also penetrate into river mouths and docks.
features
The green moray is very large, 2 to 2.3 meters long, weighs 29 kg and is strongly built. It is monochrome green-brown, juveniles rather brown, very small juveniles blackish with a white lower jaw. The fin hem is tall and well developed which makes them a good swimmer. Gender differences are not known.
Way of life
Green moray eels are solitary and usually spend the day hidden in caves and crevices. Occasionally, however, they also swim around freely. They are nocturnal and feed on fish, crabs , cuttlefish and octopuses . The reproductive biology of the green moray eel is unknown.
Green moray eels and people
Green morays are caught as food fish and marketed fresh or salted. However, the meat of large specimens may contain the Ciguatera venom. Because of their size, the bites of the animals can be dangerous for fishermen or divers.
literature
- Baensch, Patzner: Mergus Sea Water Atlas Volume 6 Non-Perciformes , Mergus-Verlag, Melle, ISBN 3-88244-116-X
- E. Lieske, RF Myers: Coral fish of the world , 1994, year publisher, ISBN 3-86132-112-2
- M. + W. Baumeister: Marine fauna, Caribbean and Florida . Ulmer Verlag, ISBN 3-8001-4164-7
- Marco Lichtenberger: Moray eels in the seawater aquarium. Natur und Tier Verlag, 2008, ISBN 978-3-86659-081-6
Web links
- Green moray eel on Fishbase.org (English)