Can anyone ID this Moray eel?

russy pelican · #1 10/16/2007, 12:32 PM

So I picked up an eel about a month ago. I purchased it as a zebra moray (Gymnomuraena zebra):

which is a species I've kept for twenty years.

But the animal pictured below is a different species. The head is more elongate and there is a high dorsal fin, on the typical zebra there is no dorsal at all. Also, zebras have molar-like teeth for crushing mollusks; this eel has very sharp long teeth like a picovore.

If anyone knows what that is, I'd sure like too know. It doesn't appear in Burgess' Atlas or any websites I've found.

kennyangel · #2 10/16/2007, 12:49 PM

I would guess Gymnothorax enigmaticus - it looks exactly like the specimen shown in the Kuiter/Debelis Atlas.
It is in no way a Gumnomuraena or even Echidna for it has a clearly visible quite huge fin.
Can you post a picture of it's teeth?

ZC · #3 10/16/2007, 01:12 PM

could possibly be a Echidna Polyzona ???

They look very similar the the zebra, they usually have more narrow bars than the zebra.

Does it have a yellowish jaw? They also have more peg like teeth that come to blunt points. Also does it's tail come to a noticeably point?

Maika'i · #4 10/16/2007, 01:20 PM

the bottom one looks like a sea snake

russy pelican · #5 10/16/2007, 01:22 PM

The eel is in the tank now and I don't have the camera knowledge to photo a pencil sized eel up close anyway. But there are noticeable sharp, fang-like teeth like a tessalted. The pics Google had of G. enigmaticus didn't look like this specimen, but they varied so much, I'd think it's possible that could be the one. It'll be interesting to watch this little fella grow.

russy pelican · #6 10/16/2007, 01:24 PM

I'll post a pic that shows it's tail. No yellow around the head or jaw. Oh, and it's def a moray, not a sea snake!

kennyangel · #7 10/16/2007, 01:29 PM

So it has no plate like "jaws" to crush mussels or crustaceans - another evidence for me that his is no Echidna or Gymnomuraena - but I'm not a specialist. Indeed I only knew G. enigmaticus because we tried to identify this eel some days ago:

http://www.reeflex.org/index.php?nam...77&sprache=eng

Please don't pay too much attention on the description for it was simply cut and pasted from G. zebra (and therefore might not fit for this species).

russy pelican · #8 10/16/2007, 01:30 PM

full-body shot...

russy pelican · #9 10/16/2007, 01:35 PM

That mostly white zebra was unlike any I've ever seen! Very nice.

As for my little guy, his dorsal fin, teeth, and head shape are closest to a G. favagineus (tesselata) from anything in my books, but it's striped instead of spotted.

techigirl78 · #10 10/16/2007, 04:51 PM

Don't know much about eels, but the fishbase images for Gymnothorax enigmaticus look pretty convincing: http://www.fishbase.org/Photos/Pictu...4&what=species (yellow nostrils even)

Here's the full fishbase page on it: http://www.fishbase.org/Summary/Spec...TOKEN=66683531

Regardless, very nice looking eel.

vezina345 · #11 10/16/2007, 06:47 PM

looks like a juvi barred moray, does it have a little dark patch at the end of the lower jaw? If it does then that's likely what it is.

_FishFreak_724 · #12 10/16/2007, 08:04 PM

I have had 2 in the past and they are ECHIDNA POLYZONA or "Banded Moray" the turn more to a drab brownish/white collorations when they morph to adults. The are one of the more difficult eels to care for. Because their diet mostly consists of a variety of crabs and it it said that they have a hard time eating prepared foods, they like live crabs. My two took about 2 weeks before they ate , and they ate shrimp, but then they went on a food strike and didnt eat for about a month, but then i sacraficed an emerald mithrax crab and threw it in the tank and they went nuts and ate it. But, then i couldnt get much access to any live crustacea , so they passed. Good luck to yours and hope it does well. Search the scientific name i gave you on the internet and look for adult & juevenile pics. For more info look into the book entitled "MARINE FISHES" by Scott W. Michael on page 34. Im absolutely positive you have a Banded Moray ....

vezina345 · #13 10/16/2007, 08:18 PM

Same eel, diferent "common" name. I've always seen it listed as a Barred Moray but it's the same Scientific name. I've only seen one in person and it was a good looking fish.

_FishFreak_724 · #14 10/16/2007, 08:42 PM

"Banded" - "Barred" same thing .....
Ure Right

russy pelican · #15 10/17/2007, 12:46 PM

If it's a polyzona, it's in the same genus as the snowflake moray, which is one of the toughest eels you can keep. It's eating shrimp and any meaty foods with gusto, I have access to a ton of crabs from the LFS hitchhikers if need be. It'll be a real shame if it loses the coloration and pattern -it's a really pretty eel.