A Maryland woman was likely bitten by a moray eel off the coast of Hawaii on July 29, 2018. (iStock)
The smallest moray eel is probably Snyder's moray (Anarchias leucurus), which attains a maximum length of 11.5 cm (4.5 in),[3] while the longest species, the slender giant moray (Strophidon sathete) reaches up to 4 m (13 ft).[4]
The largest in terms of total mass is the giant moray (Gymnothorax javanicus), which reaches 3 m (9.8 ft) in length and 30 kg (66 lb) in weight.[5]
Anatomy:
The dorsal fin extends from just behind the head along the back and joins seamlessly with the caudal and anal fins. Most species lack pectoral and pelvic fins, adding to their serpentine appearance. Their eyes are rather small; morays rely mostly on their highly developed sense of smell, lying in wait to ambush prey.
The body is generally patterned. In some species, the inside of the mouth is also patterned. Their jaws are wide, framing a protruding snout. Most possess large teeth used to tear flesh or grasp slippery prey items. A relatively small number of species, for example the snowflake moray (Echidna nebulosa) and zebra moray (Gymnomuraena zebra), primarily feed on crustaceans and other hard-shelled animals, and they have blunt, molar-like teeth suitable for crushing.[8]
Morays secrete a protective mucus over their smooth, scaleless skin, which in some species contains a toxin. They 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,[9] 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 to facilitate respiration.
Morays are carnivorous and feed primarily on smaller fish, octopuses, squid, cuttlefish and crustaceans. Groupers, barracudas and sea snakes are among their few predators. Commercial fisheries exist for several species, but some cause ciguatera fish poisoning.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moray_eel
Was it a rare and elusive Moose Eel?
In the ocean,YOU are part of the Food Chain, not the top of it..................
eels are bad bad news man- they are the pit bulls of the sea- they inflict massive damage- and if the bite doesn’t get ya- infection from flesh eating bacteria in the sea will seep into the wound and be life threatening-
Went diving years ago at San Francisco reef in Cozumel. Our guide carried bits of fish with him to hand feed the moray eels and urge them out of their hiding places so we could see and photograph them. Definitely would not want to be bitten by one but they are pretty and graceful to observe.
“Mama say that moray eels is ornery because they gots all ‘dem teeth and no toothbrush.” - B.B. 1998
When an eel bites your heel,
And that sting that you feel--
That's a moray!
Are they edible?
5.56mm
Swimming pools are a bit safer. No oceans for me anymore.
Was she in a hovercraft?
So... another, somewhat "Joe Biden-esque" verse:
If a big f-ing eel
Bites you right in the heel
That's a moray...
I guess Moray eels are not as friendly as they look.
“...there was blood everywhere,”
What a drama queen. I doubt there was blood everywhere. I didn’t see any here in NC.
Was she Jacqueline Bisset?The is a true story. My dad was once on a snorkeling “deserted island” off the coast of Australia with the guides and a handful of other tourists. They were standing in an about a foot of ocean water. All of a sudden my Dad was in pain and the water was filled with blood. Something had gashed his foot and taken a triangle sized bite of skin. The guides told him in their heavy Australian accent, “It’s either a ray or a [some kind of poisonous sea creature]. We’ll know shortly because if it’s a [that creature], you’ll be ‘deed’ in two minutes.”